Attention: This Country Has Allowed Visa-Free Entry For Indian Nationals From Dec 1: Get Details Here

India nationals will be allowed visa-free entry to Malaysia for up to 30 days from December 1. This was announced by the Malaysia's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Sunday. Along with India, the country has also granted visa-free entry to Chinese citizens.

The visa exemptions will be in effect until December 31, 2024, confirmed Malaysia's Home Affairs Ministry in a statement on Monday.

The news has come as a big development for the tourists from the two countries - China and India which represent Malaysia's fourth and fifth-largest tourist markets according to a PTI report. Government data shows that between January and June of this year, a total of 9.16 million tourists arrived in Malaysia. Of these, 498,540 were from China, and 283,885 were from India compared to 1.5 million arrivals from China and 354,486 from India in the same period of 2019, prior to the pandemic.

The decision to grant visa-free entry to Chinese and Indian nationals is expected to boost the country's tourism sector. Thailand, a neighboring country that is heavily dependent on the tourism sector, has also followed suit and adopted measures such as exempting Chinese and Indian nationals, among others, from visa requirements.

Earlier, Sri Lanka's Cabinet also approved the issuance of free visas to tourists from several countries including India, China, Russia, Malaysia, Japan, Indonesia, and Thailand as a pilot project until March 31, 2024.
Beginning November 1, Thailand also started a 30-day visa-free entry program for visitors from India and Taiwan. This policy will be in effect until May 10, 2024.