Asia and Oceania

• Travel Summary
• Safety and security
• Local laws and customs
• Entry requirements

• Health
• Natural disasters
• General
 

General

Insurance

We recommend that you obtain comprehensive travel and medical insurance before travelling. You should check any exclusions, and that your policy covers you for all the activities you want to undertake. See our Travel insurance page for more details.

If things do go wrong when you are overseas then this is our how we can help page.

Replacing a lost or stolen passport

If your travel document is lost or stolen you should notify the police immediately and obtain a police report. A replacement passport can be applied for at New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata. Straightforward applications are normally issued within 10 working days.

Cults

There have been media reports about the activities of some cults and religious movements in India. For further information please contact the charity Information Network Focus on Religious Movements (INFORM), which aims to help people by providing them with accurate, balanced, up-to-date information about new and/or alternative religious or spiritual movements. The INFORM website offers guidance and information about seminars and events.

Consular Registration

Register with our LOCATE service to tell us when and where you are travelling abroad or where you live abroad so our consular and crisis staff can provide better assistance to you in an emergency. More information about registering with LOCATE

Purchasing Property

You are advised to seek comprehensive legal advice from a reliable source before investing in immovable property or businesses in India. There have been a significant number of cases where British citizens and other foreign nationals have encountered serious difficulties, often apparently as a result of misleading advice from unscrupulous agents and by not adhering to strict visa and FEMA regulations resulting in (often unwitting) illegal acquisition of property. There are strict rules preventing the purchase of property by non-Indian nationals (for example in Goa), which cannot be bypassed (e.g. by registering a local company for the sole purpose of acquiring a property). If the purchase is judged to violate local laws (including if you purchase whilst on a tourist visa), you are likely to lose all the money you have put in to the purchase, and may even face prosecution.

Information about purchae of property in India.

British Overseas Missions in India

NORTHERN INDIA: The British High Commission in NEW DELHI covers Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan and the new State of Uttaranchal. Chanakyapuri, New Delhi 110 021 (tel: +91 11 2419 2100 Consular fax: +91 11 2611 6094); e-mail:conqry.newdelhi@fco.gov.uk Office Hours: (GMT) Mon-Fri: 03:00-07:30 and 08:30-11:30; {Local time): Mon-Fri: 09:00-13:00 and 14:00-16:00
Consular Hours: (GMT) Mon-Fri: 04:30 to 10:00; (local time): Mon-Fri: 10:00 to 15:00. Out of Hours contact: +91 11 2419 2100.

British High Commission, Shantipath, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi, 110 021. Tel (91 11) 2687 2161 (24 hours) Fax (91 11) 26 11 6094. e-mail conqry.newdelhi@fco.gov.uk
Office hours GMT 0330 - 1130 Local Time 0900-1700. Consular hours GMT 0330 - 0830 Local Time 0900 - 1400. Out of Hours contact: +91 11 2419 2100.

EAST AND NORTH-EAST: The British Deputy High Commission in KOLKATA Kolkata@fco.gov.uk
Office Hours: (GMT): 03:00-07:30 and 08:30-10:30; (Local time): 08:30-13:00 and 14:00-16:00.
Consular Hours: (GMT) Mon-Fri: 03:30 – 07:30 and 08:00 –10:30; (local time): Mon-Fri: 09:00 -13:00 and 13:30 – 16:00.
Out of Hours contact: +91 11 2419 2100.

SOUTH INDIA: The British Deputy High Commission in CHENNAI (Madras) covers Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, the Union Territory of Pondicherry and the Lakshadweep Islands. 20 Anderson Road, Chennai 600 006 (tel: +91 44 4219 2151; fax: +91 44 4219 2322) E-Mail: bdhcchen@airtelmail.in.
Office Hours: (GMT): 03:00-07:30 and 08:30-10:30; (Local time): 08:30-13:00 and 14:00-16:00.
Consular Hours: Mon-Thur (GMT) 03:30 - 07:30 and 08:00- 09:30 (Local time) 09:00 - 13:00 and 13:30 -15:00; Friday: (GMT) 04:00 - 07:00 (Local time) 09:30 - 12:30 Out of Hours contact: +91 11 2419 2100.

WESTERN REGION: The British Deputy High Commission in MUMBAI covers Goa, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra. Naman Chambers, C/32 G Block, Bandra Kurla Complex, (Opposite Dena Bank), Bandra East, Mumbai 400051 (tel: +91 22 6650 2222) (fax: +91 22 6650 2324) E-Mail: Consular.bombay@fco.gov.uk (Calcutta) covers Bihar, Orissa, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand West Bengal, Sikkim, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. 1A Ho Chi Minh Sarani, Kolkata 700 071 (tel: +91 33 2288 5172/73/74/75/76; fax: +91 33 2288 3435) E-mail: Office Hours: Mon-Thur: (GMT) 02:30-07:30 and 08:30-10:30; (Local time): 08:00-13:00 and 14:00-16:00
Consular opening hours: (GMT) 03:00 - 08:00 (Local time): 08:30 - 13:30 (Mon – Thurs) Fridays (GMT) 0300 - 0700 (Local Time): 0830 - 1230.
Out of Hours contact: +91 11 2419 2100

The British Tourist Assistance Office in GOA provides consular assistance to British nationals. This office does not issue visas. S-13/14 Dempo Towers, Patto Plaza, Panaji, Goa- 403001. (Tel: +91 832 2438897 / 8734); (Fax +91 832 6641297) Email: assistance@goaukconsular.org Office Hours: Mon-Fri: (GMT) 02:30 - 10:30; (Local time): 08:00 - 16:00. Consular opening hours: Mon to Thu (GMT) 04:00 - 09:30 (Local time): 09:30 - 15:00; Fridays (GMT) 04:00 - 07:00 (Local time): 09:30 - 12:30. Out of Hours contact: +91 11 2419 2100.