NEW DELHI, November 7, 2026 (Nazrana Times): India has introduced conditional exemptions from passport, travel-document and visa requirements for specified categories of foreign nationals. Those covered include certain Pakistani residents, eligible religious minorities from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, registered Sri Lankan Tamils and specified categories of Tibetans.

According to government broadcaster Akashvani and Indian media reports, the changes form part of the Immigration and Foreigners (Exemption) (Amendment) Order, 2026, published in the Official Gazette on November 5. The scope and conditions of the exemptions differ between categories.

Which Pakistani nationals qualify?

The order covers Pakistani citizens who originally entered India on a valid Pakistani passport on or before December 31, 2009, intending to settle permanently, but have been unable to renew their passports because they do not possess Pakistan’s computerised identity card.

They are exempted from the requirement to hold a valid passport or other travel document for their stay in India. However, they must obtain an appropriate category of visa to continue residing in the country.

Conditions for six religious minority communities

The provisions also cover Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan who were compelled to seek shelter in India because of religious persecution or fear of persecution and entered on or before December 31, 2024.

This includes eligible people who arrived without valid passports or travel documents, as well as those whose documents subsequently expired. They must obtain an appropriate visa for their continued stay in India.

Provisions for Sri Lankan Tamils and Tibetans

Registered Sri Lankan Tamil nationals who took shelter in India up to January 9, 2015, are included in a category exempted from specified passport and visa requirements. Registration with the designated authority remains a condition.

For Tibetans, eligibility depends on entry dates, entry permits or special entry permits issued by the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu, and applicable registration requirements.

Relief for certain other longstanding residents

The order contains a separate provision for certain Muslim men who were originally Indian citizens, left family behind in India when moving to Pakistan between August 15, 1947, and December 31, 1965, and returned on or before December 31, 2009, settling in Kerala.

This category is subject to additional conditions concerning family circumstances, property ownership in Pakistan and security clearance, among other requirements.

Passport-related relief also applies to certain persons of Indian origin who acquired Malaysian or Singaporean citizenship and returned to India on or before December 31, 2009, whose passports have expired and cannot be renewed for the specified reasons. These categories must also obtain an appropriate visa for continued residence.

No blanket visa waiver or automatic citizenship

The changes do not permit all Pakistani citizens to enter India without a visa. They apply to defined categories meeting specified entry dates, documentation circumstances and other conditions.

The order does not itself confer Indian citizenship. In particular, the covered Pakistani residents and religious-minority categories must obtain an appropriate visa to continue living in India despite the documentation exemptions.