India publishes a single e-Visa eligibility list of roughly 174 countries that covers all four e-Visa sub-types (tourist, business, medical, conference) — we explained that unified list last time. But a handful of nearby passports fall into its gaps and are genuinely confusing: some are visa-free, some get the e-Visa for free, some pay full price, and one is not on the list at all. Here is exactly where five of them stand in 2026, each checked against an official source.
Maldives — no visa needed (90 days)
Maldivian citizens do not need any visa to enter India for stays of up to 90 days. This is a bilateral arrangement dating back to March 1979 and reaffirmed by the 17 December 2018 visa-facilitation agreement; the High Commission of India in Malé confirms visa-free entry for tourism, medical and business visits with no visa fee. Maldives is therefore NOT on the e-Visa list — because its citizens never need to apply. See the detail on the India e-Tourist visa from the Maldives.
Mauritius & Seychelles — e-Visa, and the tourist one is free
Both Mauritius and Seychelles are on India's official e-Visa country list, so their citizens use the ordinary online e-Visa. The twist: the e-Tourist visa is GRATIS — issued free of charge — because both appear on India's zero-fee e-Tourist nationality list (alongside Argentina, Fiji, Indonesia, Jamaica, Uruguay and others). The e-Business, e-Medical and e-Conference sub-types are still charged the standard USD 80. Check the India e-Tourist visa from Mauritius or from Seychelles.
Taiwan — e-Visa at the standard fee
Taiwan (ordinary passport) is on India's e-Visa country list and can use all four sub-types at the standard fee — confirmed by the India Taipei Association, India's representative office in Taipei. This is a useful distinction from mainland China, whose passport holders cannot use the e-Visa at all (see our previous post). See the India e-Business visa from Taiwan.
Hong Kong — not on the e-Visa list, regular visa required
Hong Kong SAR passport holders are NOT on India's e-Visa country list. Despite India extending e-Tourist visas to China, Hong Kong and Macau back in 2015, the current official list does not include Hong Kong — so HKSAR travellers must apply for a regular visa at an Indian mission. If a site or agent offers you an "India e-Visa" on a Hong Kong passport, treat it as a red flag. The India visa page for Hong Kong holders now reflects this.
Why this matters — and what we fixed
All five of these passports had previously defaulted to a plain "visa required" answer in our database, because we had deliberately held them back pending per-country verification rather than guess. That default was wrong for four of the five: Maldives is visa-free, and Mauritius, Seychelles and Taiwan are e-Visa-eligible (two of them for free). Only Hong Kong's "visa required" was correct. We have now written verified, dated rules for every one, on all four e-Visa sub-types. Explore any passport in our e-Visa & ETA guide, or read how we verify every figure in our Editorial & Data Standards.