Ok, so I learned something EXTREMELY important this week! As a foreigner, you are not allowed to bring rupees into India, or out either. You can exchange dollars, euros, or traveler's checks right at the airport, but you are not allowed to bring any rupees in. Some places will say that you cannot even buy them outside of India which is confusing when your local bank can order as many of them as you want.
You would think that something this important would be highlighted in many places, but no. I would have found it very useful to have received my visa with a little note saying: "Hey, you are about to travel to India and we just thought you should know....". But, no.
Many blogs and other places claim that this is not an issue and they (customs) never check anyway. But from what I have read, this is not a frivolous idea just to make it harder for the tourist and it can have serious consequences. Think about that for a moment. If it doesn't bother you that you are conciously violating a foreign nation's rule, do you really want to take that risk??
I have no problem with a country having rules about things. Their country, their rules. We have rules too, so no whining about that. I just wish this had been more publicly known. The company issuing the visas could easily insert a little note, banks could easily have a little flag pop up on the computer screen etc. It is indeed a traveler's duty to research the facts before going, but I have researched for months and not once did I find this important fact until just last week. How do you know to look for something when you don't know you need to. At a certain point you have to rely on experts who deal with certain aspects. If I call the doctors for immunizations, should I have to know all the ones I need or can I trust they will tell me which ones I need?
I am so, so glad I found out this important fact BEFORE leaving instead of standing at the border and.....well, you fill in the rest.
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