Question:
I am just starting to plan a trip 1 year from now. I plan to drive from the UK to india. Please could you advise the best borders to cross?? how long is a transit visa??
Answer:
If you are British, there is not much difference in getting a tourist or a transit visa.
Transit visa which is less than 7 days can be short for you and is not extendable. You will need Pakistani visa beforehand for getting an Iranian transit visa. However, this is not needed for a tourist visa.
Travelers to Iran can apply for visa in three ways:
1. Fill in the visa form on Iran visa application, it takes about 3-7 working days to get your reference number and two working days to collect your visa at the embassy by direct referral or one working week by posting the docs to the embassy. You can pay the visa fee in cash in Iran.
2. Fly to Iran and get a 30-day on arrival visa at the airport. This kind of visa is issued for 98 nationalities excluding USA, England, Canada, Colombia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, Jordan, Bangladesh, and Somalia. If your nationality is among the countries authorized to get it, you can easily collect you visa against offering your passport, a passport-size photo and about 10-150€(depends on the nationality) to the staff at the airport. There is no need to fill in any form beforehand.
3. Refer to the Iranian embassy in your country and ask for a visa to be issued for you. Usually this way takes longer time about 30 days.
You should collect your Carnet de Passage before commencing your trip. The Carnet de Passages en Douane (CPD) is a customs document that identifies a driver's motor vehicle. Many people drive to Iran via the borders. This requires a Carnet De Passage unless you wish to pay import tax. A Carnet can be acquired from your local drivers association. An international driver's license with translation into Farsi is highly recommended. Don’t count on chance and unreliable sources.
Petrol stations can be found on the outskirts of all cities and towns and in car-filled Iran, a mechanic is never far away.
