India’s Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO) and local police in Jaipur removed nine women of Thai, Ugandan, Tanzanian, Nigerian and Laotian nationality on 27 July 2026 after discovering that their tourist and short-term visas had long expired. The mass action, reported by IANS news agency, follows weeks of unannounced inspections of wellness and massage centres across Rajasthan’s capital. Investigators allege that the women entered India legally but remained to work as therapists in high-street spas without employment authorisation. All nine were detained, produced before a magistrate, fined, and placed on the Bureau of Immigration’s ‘Prior Referral Category’ blacklist, which bars re-entry for at least three years. The FRRO has warned landlords, hoteliers and spa owners that failure to file the mandatory online C-Form for every foreign guest or employee will invite prosecution under the Foreigners Act and could lead to business-licence suspension. Officials also reminded employers that converting a tourist visa to an employment visa inside India is prohibited; applicants must obtain the correct category before arrival. Industry bodies say the crackdown highlights rising compliance risks in India’s fast-growing wellness sector, where demand for certified foreign therapists often outstrips the number of legally processed Employment (E) visas. Mobility managers deploying foreign staff to customer-facing roles should ensure contracts, credentials and visa categories align, and consider periodic internal audits of C-Form filings to avoid reputational damage. The Jaipur sweep is the largest group deportation linked to spa centres this year and is expected to be replicated in Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru, where immigration authorities have mapped clusters of suspected overstayers.
Source: IANS News Agency
