Bid adieu to passport issues! India proposes visa-free travel in 15 countries

You can soon bid farewell to passport issues such as standing in long queues, filling forms, complex and lengthy procedure of verification as the government is going to propose a system that will allow visa-free and short business trips to 15 countries.

These nations are part of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) free-trade agreement. The new system will boost regional commercial ties between the member nations.

In this regard, the Department of Commerce has sought the Home Ministry approval for pitching the idea to RCEP members.

RCEP is a 16-country group that includes 10 Association of Southeast Asian Nation Asean members and their trading partners— India, South Korea, Japan, China, Australia and New Zealand.

The business travel card is modelled on that of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec), said a commerce department official. "We have discussed this idea with the ministry of home affairs and they don't seem to have much of a problem with it."

The card will help bonafide business travellers avoid visa documentation and long queues at passport control. However, the card will be valid for a short period of time.

The official cited above said: "We plan to get business travelers vetted by established trade organisations like the Federation of Indian Exports Organizations and industry chambers like Ficci (Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry) and CII (Confederation of Indian Industry)."

The 16-member grouping is working on initial proposals to be made public at its next meeting on October 12-16 in Busan, South Korea.

The partnership agreement covers goods, services, investment, intellectual property rights and competition and is scheduled to be finalised this year, a deadline the commerce department is not sure of meeting. The traveller card suggestion will serve to sweeten the terms of the RCEP deal, which has a three-tier structure on the goods side, according to experts.

(Image: Indiatimes)