New Delhi: More than 15 lakh foreigners came to India last year, the home affairs ministry said. Most of the foreigners who have arrived in the country are American citizens. 4.29 lakh Americans arrived in India in 2021. Second place goes to Bangladesh. 2.4 Bangladeshis have visited India. The third position is assigned to Great Britain, the fourth and fifth respectively to Canada and Nepal. It is also interesting to note that more than 15 lakh foreigners have come to India at a time when visa restrictions were tight due to the Covid pandemic.
From 1 January to 31 December 2021, 15,24,469 foreign nationals arrived in India. 74.39% of foreigners who have come to India are from 10 countries. People from Afghanistan, Australia, Germany, Portugal and France have also arrived.
All international flights were suspended from 25 March to 21 April 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The government had announced a gradual resumption of flight services from June 2020, but restrictions continued into early 2021. In March 2021, the MHA re-established the e-Visa system for citizens of 156 countries. Subsequently, tourist and e-tourist visas were also permitted from 15 October.
