Published: 12:08 AM, 03 May 2026
Bangladesh, India set to resume 'full-scale' visa operations
Bangladesh and India have taken steps to resume full-scale visa operations as part of a broader effort to normalise bilateral relations following 18 months of tension.
Dhaka has already resumed issuing all categories of visas, while Delhi is set to gradually return to full visa processing within the next few weeks, according to the Indian Express.
The report said visa normalisation was among key issues discussed when Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman visited India last month, with Dhaka pressing for early reciprocal steps from New Delhi.
All Bangladeshi visa centres in India, including the High Commission in Delhi and consular divisions in Kolkata, Agartala, Mumbai, and Chennai, are now fully operational.
Bangladesh High Commissioner to India Riaz Hamidullah told the newspaper, "After the visa operations at some of our centres had to be held in abeyance in December last year, they were restored in February."
The push to restore services comes as both countries move to recalibrate ties after a period of strain that followed political changes in Bangladesh after August 2024.
The diplomatic distance between the two neighbours widened following the fall of the Awami League government during the July Uprising.
Tensions deepened in December following the death of Inqilab Moncho leader Sharif Osman Hadi while undergoing treatment in Singapore.
After news of his death on Dec 18, attacks were carried out on two newspaper offices and the Chhayanaut building in Dhaka that night.
On the same night, a group staged protests outside the Indian Assistant High Commission in Chattogram, where stones were also thrown at the mission.
Following the incident, operations at the Indian Visa Application Centre in Chattogram were suspended from Dec 21 until further notice.
In response, Bangladesh announced suspension of visa and consular services from its missions in Delhi and Agartala the next day.
Relations began to improve after the BNP secured a landslide victory in the election.
Before the full results of the national election were announced, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Tarique Rahman in a statement on Feb 13.
He later spoke to him by phone the same day after the results were declared, conveying support for his work.
Dhaka invited Modi to attend the new government's swearing-in ceremony, but India's foreign ministry later said he could not attend due to the AI Impact Summit.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla represented India at the ceremony instead.
Officials in Delhi said while security concerns last year severely impacted visa services for Bangladeshi nationals, they were never completely shut down.
"Considerations were made on a case-to-case basis, especially for those dealing with medical or family emergencies," the Indian Express quoted.
At present, visa operations for Bangladeshis travelling to India are running at around 15-20 percent of pre-December 2025 levels, with priority given to medical and family visas.
Efforts are under way to gradually expand services, as per the Indian daily.
It says a full-scale resumption is expected once India's incoming high commissioner Dinesh Trivedi assumes office.
According to figures provided by the Bangladesh High Commission to The Indian Express, the country has issued more than 13,000 visas to Indian citizens in the past two months since services resumed around Feb 20, covering business, tourism, medical and family visits.
