India has completed its transition to a paper-free border control system: every foreign passport holder—including Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card-holders—must now fill out a digital e-Arrival Card online or on the Su-Swagatam mobile app no earlier than 72 hours before landing in the country. The electronic form, which became mandatory on 1 April 2026 after a six-month grace period, replaces the decades-old paper disembarkation card that airlines handed out on board. The measure, confirmed again in a U.S. Embassy notice on 8 April and highlighted in an Envoy Global client alert of 7 May, captures basic biographical data, travel history and a health self-declaration. Once submitted, the system generates a QR-coded receipt that travellers must download or screen-shot; immigration officers cannot always retrieve a lost code at the counter, which could mean long waits at a staffed kiosk. For corporate mobility managers the change is operational rather than substantive: no fee is charged and no supporting documents are required, but employees must be reminded to complete the form within the 72-hour window and to carry the QR code with their passport. Airlines have started adding the e-Arrival Card to their online check-in checklists and some travel-management companies have programmed automatic reminders for India-bound staff. Failure to comply is not grounds for refusal of entry, but it may trigger secondary inspection and delays that cascade into missed connections and duty-of-care concerns. Companies with high-volume travel to India are therefore updating their pre-trip workflows and advising travellers to store the QR code in multiple places (phone gallery, cloud drive and e-mail) to avoid connectivity issues on arrival. In parallel, the government is working on integrating the e-Arrival database with its Fast-Track Immigration biometric gates so that compliant passengers can benefit from the shorter “DigiYatra” lanes planned for late 2026.
Source: Envoy Global
