Home » Blog » Outdated visa norms for dependants in India
Planning a move to India for employment as an expat with your spouse? Make sure you read this report on India’s visa norms for dependant spouses of employment pass holders. It’s a pity that while on one hand India seeks the best talent, especially in non-IT areas where there is a lack of talent, it still holds onto regressive immigration policies. Under the present system, spouses as dependants of employment visa holders can enter the country on an “X visa” commonly referred to as the “entry visa”. All is well so long as the spouse does not intend to take up employment. If however, the spouse decides to take up a job, he/she will have to go back to the port of origin and apply for an employment visa from there. Added to that, is the uncertainty of the visa outcome and the lengthy processing time. As a result, companies in India often hesitate to make job offers to expat spouses. The net result? There is a good chance that the family decides to re-locate to another country or the spouse comes to terms with the situation. In most cases, the former is likely to happen.
With India’s transformation in the recent years – the booming corporate sector, hefty salaries and higher living standards – many of its ex-citizens (i.e. people of Indian origin who have taken foreign citizenship) are wanting to go back to their “home country”. But they find themselves in no different a situation when it comes to the trailing spouse wanting to seek employment.
In stark contrast, consider Singapore’s rules for spouses who are dependant pass holders. They are allowed to work in Singapore as a DP holder as long as their potential employer is willing to apply for a Letter of Consent from the authorities. It takes only about three weeks to receive an outcome from authorities and the result is usually positive.
If India wants to woo valuable human resource it should perhaps consider adopting a more liberal immigration policy, akin to that of Singapore’s.
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