Chennai Entry Requirements

Chennai greets arrivals with a warm, humid gust of sea air and the low drone of palm-fringed runways. Once the aircraft door swings open, you walk a corridor scented with jet fuel and filter coffee toward immigration desks where officers stamp passports beneath bright LED panels. Most visitors need either a pre-approved eVisa or a traditional visa, so keep your paperwork handy before you reach the glass-fronted booths. Baggage reclaim comes next: conveyor belts clatter against tile floors and taxi touts shout over announcements in Tamil and English. The whole entry routine at Chennai usually lasts 45, 90 minutes, stretching longer during morning rushes when the baggage hall fills with the smell of sambar and flashes of colourful woven straps marking local luggage. Hold copies of hotel bookings, return tickets, and proof of funds close. Officers may ask to see them. Push through customs and the sliding doors deliver you straight into the humid night air, or the bright coastal sun, ready for your first auto-rickshaw ride into the city.