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IN CONVERSATION
6 TRAVELBIZ MONITOR OCTOBER, 2024
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At a time when outbound Q Do you see Indians opting for visa free
or visa on arrival destinations amid
travel is seeing a surge, delay in obtaining visas?
The choice of a travel destination is influenced
a fact well supplemented by several factors beyond the visa process,
such as the destination’s appeal and whether
by the growth in visas, the traveller has visited before. With the
Indian outbound travel market growing at a
Yummi Talwar, COO promising CAGR of 11.4%, destinations are
actively working to attract these travellers,
– South Asia, VFS offering a wide range of expanding travel
opportunities.
Global spoke to Disha For a smooth visa application process, we
recommend applicants review the checklist
Shah Ghosh about this available on our website before applying.
As a trusted partner to governments, VFS
trend, and the segments Global handles the front-end administrative
tasks, ensuring a reliable and efficient
that are driving traffic process. However, it’s important to note that
we play no role in visa decisions, which are
abroad. solely made by the respective embassies or
consulates.

‘Visa demand rises in tandem In India, travel agents are critical partners in
How are you engaging with the travel
Q
trade in India?
with outbound travel growth’ the travel ecosystem, playing a vital role in
guiding clients through the visa application
process. We regularly communicate with
them about any updates or new requirements
Q What is your overview of the outbound
travel market considering your half
yearly performance of 2024? ‘‘ In India, travel agents are critical partners in the
In recent years, the Indian outbound market
has experienced remarkable growth, and its travel ecosystem, playing a vital role in guiding
upward trajectory shows no signs of slowing
down. According to a joint study by FICCI and
Nangia NXT, this market is poised to grow at clients through the visa application process. We
a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of
11.4%, reaching a staggering USD 55.39 billion regularly communicate with them about any
by 2034. This reflects not only the growing
affluence of Indian travellers, but also their updates or new requirements mandated by the 52
increasing aspiration for global experiences.
A significant driver of this growth is the client governments we serve in India.
rising number of Indian students seeking ‘‘
educational opportunities abroad. The
Indian Student Mobility Report 2023 reveals
that 1,090,000 students travelled overseas increased spending power are key factors, mandated by the 52 client governments we
in 2019. By 2022, this number had surged with Indians ranking among the top spenders serve in India.
to approximately 1,320,000, and projections in many destinations. We deeply value our collaboration
indicate that by 2025, around 2 million Indian Student travel, a rapidly growing segment, with major travel associations like TAAI,
students will be pursuing higher education in is outpacing other categories. The expanding TAFI, and ETAA. We advise them to avoid
foreign institutions. Indian diaspora is also contributing to the fraudulent entities that charge for scheduling
Mirroring this trend, VFS Global saw its growth, particularly in the VFR segment. appointments, which are freely available on
application volumes in the first half of this Looking ahead, this trend is expected to our website. We also encourage agents to
year exceed pre-pandemic levels by 2%, with continue well into 2025, indicating sustained advise their clients to apply for visas well in
an 11% growth in the same period in 2023. growth in India’s outbound travel market. advance, considering the processing times of
It highlights VFS Global’s role in supporting These are key reasons that are driving the different governments.
India’s growing global mobility. growth of visa applications from India. At the local level, we engage with agents
As a market leader and trusted partner to to address region-specific issues and
Q What are the factors driving the growth 68 governments, VFS Global’s unique value offer solutions within our services. We
consistently emphasise that our role is
in visa applications from India?
proposition has enabled governments to
The demand for overseas travel from India has focus solely on the critical visa decision- limited to handling the front end of the visa
surged, driven by leisure, business, Visiting making process and helped significantly in process, a message well understood by our
Friends and Relatives (VFR), employment, and driving cross border mobility benefiting visa partners.
student travel. Rising disposable income and applicants worldwide. disha.shah@saffronsynergies.in

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