India resumes tourist visas for Chinese nationals, ending 5-year freeze after Galwan clash

After years of freeze, India reopens tourist visas for China amid a broader diplomatic reset

November 22, 2025

Major diplomatic reset: India restores tourist visas for Chinese nationals

After Galwan freeze, India resumes tourist visas for Chinese citizens

In a major step toward normalising bilateral relations, India has resumed issuing tourist visas to Chinese citizens worldwide, ending a five-year suspension imposed after the 2020 Galwan Valley clash.

Officials familiar with the development confirmed that the decision followed a directive issued in July 2025 authorising the restoration of tourist visa services for Chinese nationals.

The move comes on the heels of a series of confidence-building measures between the two Asian neighbours over the past year. In January 2025, India and China agreed to restart direct passenger flights, a key marker of thawing ties. The Kailash Mansarovar Yatra, suspended since 2020, was also revived in June 2025, with the first batch of Indian pilgrims entering Tibet.

Diplomatic engagement intensified through 2025. On April 1, marking 75 years of diplomatic relations, President Xi Jinping and President Droupadi Murmu exchanged congratulatory messages, joined by Premier Li Qiang and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, signalling renewed intent for stability.

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar’s July visit to Beijing underscored the shift, with the minister noting that ties were “gradually moving in a positive direction” and that a “fundamental basis for mutual strategic trust” was re-emerging. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi followed with a visit to New Delhi in August, engaging with NSA Ajit Doval and EAM Jaishankar on border disengagement and normalisation.

This diplomatic momentum culminated in Prime Minister Modi’s landmark trip to China on August 31—his first in seven years—for the SCO Summit in Tianjin, where he and President Xi pledged to view each other as “partners rather than rivals.”

The reset was further evident on November 10 when India’s Consul General in Shanghai, Pratik Mathur, welcomed the first batch of passengers arriving from New Delhi as direct commercial flights officially resumed.

“Fair winds & clear skies! India emerges as a global hub as people-to-people ties grow stronger,” the Consulate posted on X, sharing images of the arrival.

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