The increasing number of Indian visitors to the United Kingdom reflects the importance of travel in strengthening UK-India relations. In 2022 alone, 1 million visitors came from India to the UK, a figure which is expected to increase this year.
Though the long-standing cultural and historical links are rightly commented on, a less obvious driver for this growth are the changes to visa regime.
Research by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) & the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) for G20 countries revealed that ease in visa facilitation increased international tourist arrivals from 5-25% per annum.
India’s implementation of its e-visa for over 40 countries in 2014-2015 led to a 21% uplift in inbound travel and the creation of 800,000 jobs.
Likewise, the ease of the visa process for Indians travelling to the UK is a key factor that differentiates it from other countries. The availability of longer-term visas, for five or ten years, offers flexibility and encourages frequent travel between the two nations. In addition, the UK's priority visa service – giving a visa decision within five days - and super priority visa service - which gives a decision within the next working day- meets the urgency required by many entrepreneurs and business leaders.
In 2022, the UK issued over 700,000 visas to Indian nationals, the highest number issued to any country. These connections must give the UK a competitive advantage, and is a major driver in the country’s status as a preferred destination for Indian business ventures.
The UK, particularly London, remains a top destination for Indian tourists, driven by iconic attractions and its vibrant youth culture. This has resulted in a considerable rise in the number of Indian tourists visiting the UK. Indian students are increasingly choosing UK universities for their higher education, with a projected figure of 145,000 Indian students studying in the UK this year. In the year ending September 2022, the UK government granted 127,000 student visas to Indians, an increase of 273 per cent over the same period in 2019.
These huge numbers of connections developed through travel and study are further strengthening the economic relationship between the UK and India. The UK Department for International Trade (DIT) report for 2022 shows that the two countries now have bilateral trade worth over £20 billion per year. This trade is expected to grow even further in the years to come as both countries look to expand their economic ties.
Business travel has also experienced notable growth, particularly amid ongoing discussions surrounding a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the UK and India. Recently, India’s Tata Group has chosen the UK to build its first £4 billion giga factory outside India to bring a huge boost to the UK’s automotive sector. Meanwhile, HSBC, UK’s banking giant has also re-launched its Global Private Banking business in India after eight years in July, which will strengthen its presence in India.
British citizens are also increasingly favouring India as a holiday destination. The United Kingdom was the third-largest market for India in 2021, making up 10.7% of total visitors in 2021 compared to 9.2% in 2019.
Given this significant increase in tourism between the UK and India, new flight routes have been introduced connecting major cities in India and the UK. This year, Air India, for instance, commenced flight operations from London Gatwick to India’s second-tier cities such as Amritsar, Ahmedabad, Goa, and Kochi. They have also expanded their services from London Heathrow to New Delhi early this year. Meanwhile, Vistara carrier has also enhanced its London services by adding more frequencies, offering six weekly flights.
The surge in UK-India travel has also seen an increase in demand for services to make the visa application process smoother. E-visa services have been reintroduced by the Indian government at the same time, new services have been introduced to make travel more seamless. For travellers from the UK to India, VFS Global have introduced optional tailored service such as Visa at Your Doorstep (VAYD) whereby applicants don’t have to visit the visa centre and can submit the visa application from the comfort of their home, office or any other preferred location. Form-filling service is another optional service which ensures that forms are not rejected because key details have been missed. Such measures are making travel as seamless as possible.
