The Rising Cost of Travel Visas

Illustration created with artificial intelligence for Coromandel Research.

Coromandel Research · Research reference date: 9 November 2026

A family holiday can become expensive even before anyone buys an airline ticket. For travellers who need visas, the first bill may be for permission to make the journey at all. Multiply that bill by four, add the paperwork and the time needed to apply, and a holiday begins to look rather less inviting.

Governments encourage visitors to enjoy their cities, landscapes and culture. Yet the cost and complexity of obtaining entry permission can make those same visitors think twice. For a family working within a fixed budget, the question is practical: how much money must be spent, or set aside, before the trip can begin?

Coromandel Research has examined tourism and short business-meeting entry costs for travellers of five nationalities—Colombian, British, Kenyan, Indian and Chinese—across eight destinations: the United States of America (USA), Colombia, the United Kingdom (UK), the Schengen States, India, Thailand, Cambodia and mainland China.

The comparison reveals considerable differences. The passport a traveller holds, the purpose of the visit and the application route can all change the bill. A visa exemption may remove an application fee, while a paid electronic authorisation can still be required. A refundable deposit can impose a much greater upfront burden than the fee itself.

How the comparison works

The study covers ordinary passport holders normally applying from their country of nationality, taking a short holiday or attending business meetings without local employment. Each of the 40 destination–nationality pairs is assessed for both purposes. Citizens entering their own countries are marked “Home”.

All comparison figures are expressed in United States dollars (USD), using the research conversion basis dated 9 November 2026. Electronic visas (eVisas) are distinguished from conventional visas and travel authorisations. The shortest suitable route is used where available; the visas and authorisations therefore do not all have the same validity or conditions. Someone who already holds a valid visa may not need a new application.

These figures are documented subtotals, rather than universal all-inclusive prices. Compulsory local service charges, eligibility conditions and source discrepancies are identified in the notes. Optional agency services, travel to application centres, translations and other incidental expenses are outside the main table.

Visa and authorisation costs by nationality

Each cell: Tourism / Business meetings — USD per adult.

0 means a qualifying visa-exempt visit; ≈ indicates a currency conversion; + indicates additional compulsory local charges may apply. The destination notes below explain the principal conditions. The destination notes and stated research limitations form part of this comparison.

When a separate visa is not required

For example, an Indian tourist holding a qualifying US visa with at least 180 days of validity remaining on arrival can visit Colombia without obtaining a separate Colombian visa; airport-transit visas do not qualify. The exemption also covers qualifying Schengen visas or valid US or Schengen residence permits. It is based on the traveller’s nationality and qualifying document, not on departure from the USA: the tourist can arrive from India or another country. This is conditional visa-free entry, subject to immigration admission checks, rather than a visa issued on arrival. Indian Embassy advisory, Colombian exemption rules

The USA row illustrates why different entry routes must be identified. An eligible British citizen may use the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA), while many other travellers need a B visitor visa. Chinese holders of qualifying ten-year B visas also require enrolment in the Electronic Visa Update System (EVUS). These authorisations serve different purposes and should not be described as interchangeable visas. The October 2026 fee notice sets ESTA at US$40.62 and EVUS at US$31.75. Official US authorisation fee notice

Tourism and business meetings do not always require different fees. The US visitor categories and the UK’s Standard Visitor route accommodate relevant visits for both purposes. Elsewhere, a tourism exemption should not automatically be extended to a business visit. US visitor visa guidance, UK permitted business activities

What a family of four pays

Four new US B-visa applications cost US$740 in application fees alone. The published fee is US$185 per applicant and is non-refundable. Paying it does not guarantee a successful application. US visa fee schedule

For four ESTA-eligible British travellers needing new authorisations, the corresponding authorisation total is US$162.48. That is US$577.52 less than four B-visa application fees. These are different entry routes, with different eligibility and validity; the figures illustrate the initial expense rather than an identical product. Official authorisation fees

Children’s ages also matter. For a family requiring Schengen visas, two adults and two children aged eight and ten ordinarily pay €270 in basic fees: €90 for each adult and €45 for each child. That is approximately US$302.21 at the study’s conversion rate, before service charges and insurance. A comparison using four adult fees would overstate that family’s basic visa bill. European Commission fee guidance

The UK takes a different approach: each family member needs a separate application and pays the applicable fee. At the published £135 Standard Visitor rate, four applications amount to £540, before any additional charges. Actual amounts collected outside the UK follow the Home Office’s country payment schedules. UK Standard Visitor fees

These sums come before flights, accommodation and spending money. They also leave out the value of time spent completing forms, gathering evidence and attending appointments. For a family saving for a single annual holiday, those demands deserve a place in the travel budget.

US visa bonds: refundable money still has to be found

The United States also requires certain B-1/B-2 visa applicants to post a visa bond of US$10,000, US$15,000 or US$20,000, in addition to the application fee. None of the five nationalities examined in this study—Colombian, British, Kenyan, Indian or Chinese—is currently subject to this nationality-based requirement. Although the bond is conditionally refundable, repayment is not necessarily made immediately after departure. For affected travellers from listed countries, it substantially increases the money needed upfront and may leave those funds unavailable after the trip. US Department of State bond requirements

Adding the US$185 application fee produces upfront subtotals of US$10,185, US$15,185 or US$20,185 for an affected applicant. Only the bond portion is potentially refundable. It should therefore be shown separately from the non-refundable fee, while still being counted in the money that must be found before travel.

This distinction matters beyond the USA. A useful affordability comparison separates fees paid, refundable deposits and savings that must be demonstrated. All can affect whether someone can travel, but they are different financial demands.

The paperwork has a personal cost

Visa applications can require employment details, financial evidence, accommodation information, invitations and biometric data. These requests turn a travel application into a detailed account of a person’s circumstances.

Colombia’s tourist-visa application requirements—for travellers who need to apply—include bank statements covering the preceding six months. Colombian visa requirements

The US central visitor-visa guidance permits requests for evidence of trip purpose, ability to pay and intention to depart. It does not impose a universal six-month bank-statement rule on every visitor. The UK guide similarly discusses evidence of financial circumstances without one blanket six-month requirement. The distinction is important when assessing the burden fairly. US supporting evidence, UK supporting-document guidance

Governments need to assess whether applicants meet their entry conditions. Travellers can still reasonably ask whether the information collected is proportionate, how securely it is handled and how long it is retained. A bank statement may disclose much more than the money available for a holiday. That supports a serious discussion about privacy, without assuming that every request amounts to a violation of a legal right.

Waiting is part of the burden

The time needed to obtain a visa can affect the choice of destination as much as the fee. There is also a difference between waiting for an appointment and waiting for a decision after submitting an application.

The UK ordinarily indicates three weeks for a Standard Visitor decision after identity verification and documents. Schengen processing normally takes 15 days and can extend to 45. Neither figure should be read as a promise covering every stage of preparing the application and securing an appointment. UK processing guidance, Schengen processing guidance

For business travellers, uncertainty may mean missing a meeting or trade event. Families may have school holidays and fixed leave dates to consider. Clear requirements and dependable processing help people plan; unexplained delays make even an affordable fee harder to accept.

Recent fee changes

The UK short visitor fee rose from £127 to £135 on 8 April 2026, an increase of approximately 6.3%. ESTA rose from US$40.27 to US$40.62 on 16 October 2026. These increases provide further examples of rising entry costs, although the trend is not uniform: Cambodia reduced its electronic tourist and ordinary visa fees from US$36 and US$42 to US$30 and US$35 in January 2025. UK fee changes, US fee adjustment, Cambodian government report

What are visa fees paying for?

It is reasonable to ask whether travellers are funding the staff who process their applications. In the Schengen case, the European Commission provides an explicit answer.

The adult fee rose from €80 to €90 in June 2024, an increase of 12.5%. The Commission cited inflation and civil-service salary developments in its review and said the additional revenue would support processing resources, including staff. This is documented evidence of an administrative funding purpose. It does not establish the motives behind every country’s fees. European Commission explanation

There is also a fair question about the service travellers receive in return. If higher charges are intended to support processing, applicants have reason to expect clear instructions, accessible appointments and decisions within published standards.

Welcoming tourists while making entry difficult

Visitors spend money with accommodation providers, restaurants, guides, transport operators and other local businesses. Entry policy therefore has an economic dimension as well as an immigration-control purpose. An application fee is only one part of the wider relationship between a destination and its visitors.

Thailand illustrates the need to examine that relationship carefully. Its revised measures took effect on 15 September 2026, replacing the previous 60-day exemption scheme. The government’s stated considerations included security, tourism, economic interests and reciprocity. It also distinguished tourism exemptions from travel for other purposes. Thai government policy announcement

China offers another example of selective facilitation. Its published policy permits qualifying British ordinary passport holders to visit for tourism or business for up to 30 days without a visa, under arrangements extending through 31 December 2026. Such exemptions reduce the application burden for eligible visitors, while other nationalities still face it. Chinese Embassy visa-waiver guidance

This study compares entry costs and procedures. It does not measure how many travellers abandoned a holiday because of them, or how much visitor spending a destination lost. Those questions would require further evidence. The comparison does, however, show why the cost and convenience of entry belong in any discussion about attracting visitors.

A welcome begins before arrival

The holiday experience starts when a family begins planning. Fees, appointments and document requests help shape its first impression of a destination.

Governments have reasons to maintain entry controls and recover administrative costs. They also have an interest in ensuring that those systems are understandable, proportionate and efficient. Families should be able to see the full compulsory bill, understand what evidence is required and plan around realistic timelines.

For a country asking visitors to come and enjoy its hospitality, the application process is part of the invitation.

Notes on the comparison

USA. The British figure is for eligible ESTA travellers; others may need a US$185 visitor visa. The Chinese figure adds US$31.75 EVUS enrolment for holders of qualifying ten-year visitor visas. Neither route applies automatically to every passport holder. The table excludes the Visa Integrity Fee, which the research records as not currently collected, and assigns no nationality-based bond to the five study nationalities. US fees · Authorisation fees

Colombia. The visa-required totals include assessment and issuance. Indian and Chinese nationals can qualify for short-visit exemption with a US or Schengen visa having at least 180 days of validity remaining on arrival, or a qualifying valid residence permit. Airport-transit visas do not qualify for the Indian exemption. Eligible visitors do not need a separate Colombian visa, so their Colombian visa fee is US$0. The table assumes the traveller does not hold qualifying third-country permission. The assessment charge remains payable when a visa application is required but refused. Requirements · Tourism fees · Business fees · Indian Embassy advisory · Colombian exemption rules

UK. The table converts the £135 statutory fee at the study rate and excludes location-dependent application-centre charges. The Home Office schedules checked on 9 November quote US$188 for a short visitor application from both Colombia and Kenya. Local payment rates differ from the study conversion rate. Visitor fees · Colombia payment quote · Kenya payment quote

Schengen States. Qualifying Colombian and British visitors are visa-exempt. Other adult applicants in the comparison pay €90 plus applicable centre charges. The European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS), a travel-authorisation system for eligible visa-exempt visitors, was not operational at the research date; no future ETIAS fee is included. Age concessions and other exemptions apply. European Commission

India. Eligible tourist eVisas use the 30-day July–March tariff plus the published 3% bank charge; April–June is cheaper. Business fees and validity differ by nationality. For Chinese applicants, the table shows only the dated embassy government tariff, including its welfare charge: 716 Chinese yuan for tourism and 855 for business. Centre and payment charges are additional. The centre links the same dated tariff and separately lists a 32.01-yuan service charge, but an undated advisory quotes 888 yuan for business. The comparison uses the dated government tariff and does not present the disputed centre total as settled. Electronic visas · Beijing fees

Thailand. The Colombian amounts use the Royal Thai Embassy in Lima, Peru’s published single-entry tariff: US$40 for tourism and US$80 for business. This embassy handles online applications from Colombian residents. The Lima tariff page was last updated on 11 February 2025; London’s £60 single-entry Non-Immigrant tariff page was last updated on 1 September 2022. The dagger (†) identifies these published tariffs: their current payable amounts have not been independently confirmed through an embassy reply or checkout. September 2026 exemption changes do not, by themselves, establish a change to these fees. British and Indian tourism exemptions are distinguished from the paid Non-Immigrant B route. India’s business cell prices that visa route; New Delhi’s general page also retains broader short-business wording, while its September announcement specifies tourism. It is not a finding that every Indian meeting visitor must pay. Chinese qualifying visits use the bilateral exemption. Regional applications · Lima fees

Cambodia. The published electronic-visa fees are US$30 for tourism (T) and US$35 for ordinary visits (E). Cambodia’s government news agency reports that these replaced US$36 and US$42 in January 2025; the older totals are not added back as processing charges without current official evidence. Both categories have an initial one-month stay and a published three-business-day processing indication. The payment screen was not accessible during checking, so the study reports published fees rather than a tested checkout total. The Chinese exemption trial ran from 15 June to 15 October 2026 and is not applied to this November comparison. Official electronic-visa portal · Government fee-reduction report

Mainland China. The British exemption covers qualifying visits of up to 30 days under the policy extending through 31 December 2026. Other figures follow the relevant application location. Nairobi lists a 3,000 Kenyan-shilling visa fee and a 4,958-shilling service fee labelled tax-inclusive. Its generic formula also refers to additional tax: the displayed subtotal follows the inclusive table heading, and a plus sign flags the conflicting wording. Hong Kong and Macao have separate rules. British exemption · Nairobi fees · Colombia fee chart · India fees

Processing times and principal documents

Times are published indications, not guarantees. Appointment queues, online pre-review, requests for further documents and passport return can add time. Where no nationality-specific time has been verified, the record says so rather than applying another embassy’s service standard.

Currency basis and limitations

Conversions use the European Central Bank reference rates republished by the Austrian National Bank for 9 November 2026: one euro equals 1.1193 US dollars, 0.83430 pounds sterling, 105.1435 Indian rupees and 7.4689 Chinese yuan. The Colombian reference rate is 3,237.83 pesos per US dollar for 9 November. Kenyan figures use the Central Bank of Kenya rate of 129.96 shillings per US dollar posted for 9 November 2026. Conversions are rounded to the nearest US cent and are not consular or card-payment quotations.

The table covers 40 destination–nationality pairs for two purposes, including four home-country entries. It compares published fees for specified routes with differing validity and conditions. A plus sign identifies excluded local charges or an unsettled additional charge; it does not indicate a verified all-inclusive total. UK local payment rates, the India-in-China centre advisory and Nairobi tax wording are explained above. Schengen service charges depend on the destination and centre. Some mission-specific processing times could not be independently confirmed and are identified as such. These limitations form part of the study.

Official sources

Official sources are linked beside the relevant claims and destination notes.

For the tables: US fees, Colombian requirements, UK visitor guidance, Schengen requirements, Indian electronic visas, Thai Embassy in Lima: regional applications and fees, Cambodian electronic visas, and Chinese visa-waiver guidance.

Exchange-rate sources: Austrian National Bank, Central Bank of Kenya and Colombian central bank.

Disclaimer

Coromandel SAS has taken reasonable care to research and verify this study using official government, immigration and diplomatic sources wherever available. It is published for research and comparison purposes, not as a visa application guide or a guarantee of current fees, requirements or processing times. Governments may change these at any time, with or without notice. Travellers should consult the relevant official government or embassy website and contact the appropriate diplomatic mission before making arrangements.