Dhaka, Nov. 12 -- Foreign nationals travelling for tourism, medical treatment, education and business will have access to a simplified visa framework under changes announced by the Indian government.

The new system reduces the number of main visa categories from 13 to nine and cuts the number of fields in application forms by 65 to 70 percent.

The changes also reduce visa sub-categories from 49 to 23, according to India's Ministry of Home Affairs.

The revised framework is likely to be used for visa issuance by the end of 2026, once the ministry completes updates to its information technology systems.

The Indian broadcaster NDTV reported the changes on Wednesday, saying they cover visitors, medical travellers, foreign students, researc...