Germany has announced a visa-free transit facility for Indian passport holders travelling through its airports, a move expected to significantly ease international travel for Indian nationals and strengthen people-to-people ties between the two countries. The decision was included in the India–Germany joint statement issued on Monday following German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s official visit to India from January 12 to 13. This was Merz’s first visit to India and his first official trip to Asia as Federal Chancellor.
Under the new arrangement, Indian travellers transiting through German airports on their way to another country will no longer be required to apply for a separate transit visa, reducing paperwork and making journeys smoother. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed the decision, thanking Chancellor Merz for the announcement. The joint statement said the step “will not only facilitate and ease travel of Indian nationals, but will further intensify people-to-people links,” describing such ties as a vital pillar of the Strategic Partnership.
On the second day of his India visit, Chancellor Merz travelled to Bangalore, where he praised India’s “very well-trained” workforce and their strong willingness to work. He said these professionals are an important resource for German companies in India and also working from India for global markets.
Merz noted that around 250,000 people in India are currently enrolled in German language courses, making India the country with the second-highest number of German learners worldwide. He also said that more visas for Germany are issued in Bangalore than anywhere else globally, with about 40,000 granted each year. Many young Indians, he added, are expected to come to Germany as welcomed skilled workers in IT, healthcare and other sectors.
The chancellor said Germany provides language and cultural training and described this exchange as “an enrichment for both sides.” He added that India is moving into the top tier of Germany’s economic partners, with significant future potential. Merz said that immediately after his visit he would inform Ursula von der Leyen and ask her to accelerate work on a free trade agreement between the European Union and India.
During his stop in Bangalore, a major economic hub and key aerospace center, Merz visited a Bosch facility and a nanotechnology research center. The visa-free transit decision was announced alongside a broader roadmap on higher education cooperation, with India inviting German universities to establish campuses in the country.
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