New Zealand to open Mumbai visa facilitation office

Posted on Tuesday 21 September 2010 in New Zealand

Come January, Indian tourists may have a better experience applying for a visa for travel to New Zealand.

According to Travel Biz Monitor (TBM), New Zealand will be opening a second Visa Facilitation Office in Mumbai. A significant increase in the number of inbound Indian tourists prompted the new location, which will help the New Zealand Tourism Department's New Delhi office with processing visa applications.

The Mumbai office will help expedite the visa process by assisting more than 20,000 travelers, TBM reports. This will make it easier for those heading to the South Pacific area on family vacation to cross borders.

Currently, the New Delhi office enlists the help of visa facilitation company TT Services to help with the large number of applications, and workers are outsourced from nine different Indian cities.

“Our New Delhi office is encountering resource issues as we have applications from Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan along with India," said Gavin Young, Indian trade commissioner of New Zealand Consulate General. The Mumbai office will open to "manage the growing number of applications."

TBM reports that Indian tourists have been steadily increasing in the island country, and is expected to increase by 10 to 15 percent in the next year.

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