India’s battery dreams trip on visa hurdles for Chinese pros

Problems in renewal of visas for Chinese technicians have slowed the pace of buildout of India’s lithium-ion battery manufacturing factories for electric vehicles and energy storage, according to two people aware of the matter.

- Rituraj Baruah & Manas Pimpalkhare

Chinese workers get visas only for 6 months in India. BLOOMBERG

The issues are happening despite bilateral relations between India and China having eased in the past few months. India had stopped approving visas for Chinese nationals after the 2020 Galwan clashes, but began issuing short-term visas in August 2024 under the production-linked incentive (PLI) schemes.

The first person cited above said on condition of anonymity that Chinese workers currently receive six-month visas, after which they must return home and wait for some months before returning, creating long gaps in their availability and pushing project timelines out.

To be sure, as per ministry of home affairs norms, business visas with multiple entry facility can generally be granted for a period up to five years or for a shorter duration as per the requirement.

Chinese technicians are critical because stringent warranty clauses for the machinery involved may lapse if the machines are handled by local or non-authorised technicians, slowing progress further. Technicians involved here are ground level commissioning engineers for construction, and erection, the first person added.