Travel between USA - India amid Coronavirus: Frequently Asked Questions

COVID-19: India’s Repatriation Plans for Citizens Abroad 

Following nationwide calls and mounting pressure for Indian citizens, students, migrant workers, senior citizens, and other professionals who were stranded in the United States all over the world, the Ministry of External Affairs is finally allowing repatriation. In early April, petitions were filed with the Supreme Court to allow for these citizens to return home but were dismissed due to the nationwide lockdown, limited healthcare resources in the country, and rising COVID-19 cases. Nevertheless, with registration forms active as of today, the Indian Government is giving clear indication that they are ready to evacuate distressed citizens currently stranded abroad. 

The Foreign Ministry working with the Civil Aviation Minister, Air India, and Indian consulates abroad, has presented a detailed evacuation plan in order to coordinate special flights for evacuation of top government officials as well as the number of Indian citizens stranded abroad. These plans are likely to be enacted after India’s nationwide lockdown eases, which is projected to end in two weeks. 

The plan for repatriation is two fold:

(1) All those seeking to return home must have a negative COVID-19 clearance certificate procured from a recognized health care facility in the country they are currently in. Without the certificate, they will not be permitted to board special flights to specific origin airports. Additionally, upon arrival in India, they must self-quarantine for a certain number of days. 

(2) Those seeking repatriation must pay for their own flights back to India. The prices of the flights will vary depending on the country citizens are flying out of and the city they are flying into. Further, evacuation flights from the United States that are US Government-organized are expected to be priced lower at a special fare. 

For Indian origin immigrants in the USA, who wish to enter India to visit their sick parents or some other unavoidable “humanitarian” reason may also register for the special flights organized by the Indian Government. These special evacuation flights will be planned based on the feasibility of the receiving State Government officials and quarantine measures necessary. 

For Indian nationals in the United States, the Consulate General of India in Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, and San Francisco have started registering details for evacuation and repatriation. All Indian nationals from Delaware, the D.C., Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina, and Virginia can register with the Embassy of India in D.C. For those in New York, the Consulate General has not yet posted any updates. 

276,000 expatriates from Kerala have all been registered for repatriation flights from 150 countries, according to the NYTimes. Many states in India like Gujarat, Kerala, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana all have a sizable number of expatriates abroad, many of whom wish to return home. In fact, the COVID-19 help lines of these states have already received thousands of distress calls and messages. The government of Kerala has announced they are ready to receive 200,000 expatriates. And there is hope for other states to follow suit as well. 

With these plans in place for special flights and registration of Indian nationals underway in many countries around the world, the Foreign Ministry and the Civil Aviation Ministry are just awaiting the green light from the Prime Minister. If things go according to plan, many Indians can expect to be brought back home in May. 

 Safe & fun travels if you choose to travel! Wash your hands and keep calm! 

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