India will resume issuing tourist visas to Bangladeshi citizens starting June 28, 2026, ending a suspension that began nearly two years ago amid political turmoil in Bangladesh [1, 2, 3]. The ban on tourist visas followed the overthrow of Bangladesh's Awami League government in July 2024 and the exile of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who fled to India and was later sentenced to death in absentia [1, 2].
Relations between the two neighbors improved after the Bangladesh Nationalist Party’s Tarique Rahman won a landslide election and took office earlier this year [1, 2, 3]. Since the suspension of tourist visas, India continued to issue medical visas to Bangladeshi nationals, ensuring limited cross-border travel remained possible [1, 2, 3].
The countries share a roughly 4,000-kilometer land border and long-standing cultural and historical ties, with about 170 million people living in Bangladesh alone [1, 2, 3]. However, tensions persist due to India’s policy of deporting alleged illegal migrants back to Bangladesh, which the government there protests [1, 2, 3].
In February 2026, Bangladesh resumed issuing all visa categories for Indian nationals after temporarily halting services following attacks on its diplomatic missions in India [3]. The upcoming resumption of Indian tourist visas for Bangladeshis will complete the reopening of major visa channels and restore one of the world’s busiest cross-border travel corridors [3].
India’s High Commissioner to Bangladesh, Dinesh Trivedi, said, "Tourist visa services for Bangladeshi travelers would resume on Saturday," adding, "We hope this will further strengthen people-to-people ties between our two sovereign nations" [1, 2, 3].
The reopening of tourist visa processing on June 28 marks the latest step in the gradual normalization of bilateral relations since the upheaval in 2024.
