Permit for Restricted Areas Sikkim

Due to its proximity to international borders, Sikkim has several restricted zones that require licences to access.

You require photocopies of your passport, visa, and the ILP—Inner Line Permit—for practically all permissions. A passport-sized picture of yourself is furthermore required.

HIGH ALTITUDE TREKKING ROUTES IN SIKKIM SPECIAL PERMIT AREAS

Once a guide is secured, these permissions are often handled by the trekking agent. Through agents in Yuksom, Gangtok issues the other licences. Typically, these permissions are organised in a single day.

Sikkim: Far North

Foreigners require Restricted-Area Permits to get past Singhik up the Lachung and Lachen valleys in North Sikkim (RAP). The Tsopta and Yumthang valleys may then be reached with these permissions. Indian nationals, however, also require a permission, albeit a straightforward police permit. It is necessary to have this permission to travel north of Singhik, but it can also go farther up the Thangu Valley, to Gurudongmar Lake, or past Yumthang to Zero Point. The permits are only delivered the morning before departure, however they may be purchased in Gangtok. The necessity of a guide is also emphasised.

Dzongu

Unique permission is necessary for this location. Usually, your prearranged homestay organises it. Although the permission is free, the home-stay owners charge a lot for document copies and travel expenses to Mangan to organise things on your behalf. However, it is advisable to leave it to your travel company or the proprietors of your homestay. You may instead arrange your own permission in Mangan.

Tsomgo Lake

Your travel agency can get the permission that is required for the lake.

Ministry of Home Affairs in New Delhi ISSUES PERMITS FOR RESTRICTED AREAS.

Offices for the Registration of Foreigners

• Indian Missions Worldwide
• Airport immigration desks in Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, and New Delhi
• Department of Tourism in Siliguri’s Deputy Director
• Assistant Director, Sikkim House, New Delhi, Tourism Department
• Departments of tourism
• Sikkim Tourism Office Assistant Director of Tourism, Kolkata
• Melli’s Department of Tourism Assistant Director
• Rangpo, East Sikkim, Assistant Director of the Tourism Department
• New Delhi’s resident commissioner
• Darjeeling Deputy Commissioner
• Kolkata-based Deputy Secretary/Under Secretary of the Home Department

RESTRICTED AREA PERMITS (RAP) FOR SELECTIVE SIKKIM DISTRICTS

District East

Police Check Post issues Tsomgo and Baba Mandir licences for domestic tourists.

Foreign visitors are permitted to visit Tsomgo Lake, and the department of tourism and civil aviation issues the necessary permits at the police checkpoint.

For domestic travellers, the Nathula Pass permits are given by the Tourism Department and Police Check Post.

District West

Permits for Dzongri Trek and Singalila Trek are issued by Sikkim’s Adventure Cell of Tourism and Civil Aviation.

Although the Ministry of Home Department in New Delhi issues the Green Lake Trekking Permission, it may only be done with a valid permit obtained there.

District South

Any foreign tourist with a valid RAP may go hiking anywhere in the South District.

HOW DO I OBTAIN RAPs?

For frequent travellers, using a licenced tour operator or travel agency is the fastest and most effective option to get Restricted Area Permits. To facilitate the process of acquiring the permission, a straightforward form must be filled out. The permits are inexpensive and won’t break the bank.

Due to the morning submission of the permit application and the afternoon issuance of the permits, this procedure takes place in a single day.

However, if you give your documentation to your travel agency in advance, they may prepare the permission before your arrival, saving you from the one-day procedure.

When you are pressed for time and would like not to spend the entire day attending to formalities rather than touring, this method may be helpful for you.

PERMITS FOR SENIOR CITIZENS AND CHILDREN TO ENTER PROTECTED AREA

If you are travelling with a baby, you must have the child’s birth certificate with you. This is so that the age can be verified by the permit-issuing authorities, who typically inspect the certificate.

The age evidence is crucial because permits for children under the age of five are not an issue. This is due to the fact that Sikkim’s high-altitude regions have lower oxygen levels, making it unsafe for elderly people and newborns to travel in.

We are certain that after reading this, you will have a clearer notion of how to go to Sikkim and how to secure the necessary licences. All you need to do is let the travel agency know, then unwind.