India's Manufacturing Dream Runs Through China. Beijing Just Made It Harder With A Visa Squeeze
News explainers India's Manufacturing Dream Runs Through China. Beijing Just Made It Harder With A Visa Squeeze India's Manufacturing Dream Runs Through China. Beijing Just
News explainers India's Manufacturing Dream Runs Through China. Beijing Just Made It Harder With A Visa Squeeze India's Manufacturing Dream Runs Through China. Beijing Just Made It Harder With A Visa Squeeze Written By, Last Updated: August 07, 2026, 13:52 IST India wants to build more at home, but its factories still depend on China. Tighter business visa scrutiny could disrupt the engineers and executives keeping those links running Rapid Read China’s tighter business visa scrutiny for Indians could disrupt factory visits, technical cooperation and supply-chain coordination as manufacturers continue to rely on Chinese inputs and expertise. (AI-Generated Image) China is making it harder for Indian business executives and technical teams to travel to the country, and some Indian companies say the impact is already being felt on the factory floor. According to The Economic Times, approval rates for Chinese business visas for Indian professionals have fallen sharply in recent months. Companies that previously saw almost all applications approved are now reporting approval rates of just 20-40 per cent, particularly in electronics and automobile contract manufacturing. The tighter scrutiny is making it harder for Indian teams to travel to China for factory visits, quality checks, technical discussions and other work linked to production.
That may sound like a visa problem. However, for Indian manufacturers, it is potentially much more than that. A large part of India’s manufacturing ecosystem still depends on China for components, machinery and technical expertise. So even when a product is being assembled or manufactured in India, an Indian company may still need to send engineers or managers to China to inspect a supplier’s facility, check machinery or sort out a production problem. This dependence makes the visa issue more significant. Why Do Indian Companies Send People To China? Manufacturing supply chains don’t work simply by placing an order and waiting for the goods to arrive. Companies often need people on the ground. An engineer may have to inspect a production line. A quality-control team may need to approve a batch. A company buying Chinese machinery may need its staff trained at the supplier’s factory. If those trips are delayed because visas are stuck, the problem can eventually show up as a delay in production in India. The Indian government has itself acknowledged the importance of Chinese technical personnel to domestic manufacturing. In a 2024 Rajya Sabha reply, the government said business visas were being issued to Chinese specialists, engineers and technical personnel engaged by Indian companies under the PLI scheme and similar programmes.
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