The demand for doorstep delivery of visa services, that started in 2016, grew by 144 percent last year on a year-on-year basis in 2018, stated VFS Global, indicating that more Indian citizens are urging and willing to travel outside the country.
VFS Global, that manages visa and passport issuance service for the government, said the highest number of applications processed was in Nagpur, followed by Indore.
An over 100 percent year-on-year growth was seen in Goa, Lucknow, Shillong, Nagpur, Bhubaneshwar, Mangalore and Gurgaon in 2018, it stated, adding that in Shillong, the doorstep visa application grew from 2 applications in 2017 to 150 in 2018.
The on-demand doorstep visa service allows enrolment of biometrics and document submission at the applicant’s doorstep, instead of going to the application centres.
A significant rise of the service was also seen in Allahabad, Amravati, Trivandrum, Erode, Surat, Nagercoil, Varanasi, Gorakhpur, Tiruppur, Muzzafarpur, Indore, Palakkad, Guwahati, Jodhpur and Chattarpur in the year. The data indicates that as soon as the reach of the services widened, people hailing from tier-II also got the opportunity to travel as it has become convenient to apply for visas.
The visa provider, that operates 17 full-fledged centres in India, said that countries such as Bhutan and Sri Lanka have entered the demand circle and most of those applying for these services are corporates, large groups of travellers, film crews, celebrities, travel agencies and high net worth individuals.
"With emerging trends around consumers wanting to seek convenience, even at an additional cost, indicates the potential for growth of personalization and customization in government-to-citizen services," it stated.
