India has expanded its guidelines for blacklisting foreign nationals to cover cybercrime, child abuse, and terror funding. The updated framework, reported by News18, sets clear rules for restricting entry or stay. It keeps the existing Grade A to D classification system to manage violations by foreigners in the country.
India has expanded its guidelines for blacklisting foreign nationals to expressly cover cybercrime, child abuse, child trafficking and cryptocurrency-related racketeering, as well as financial support for terrorist or subversive activities, according to an exclusive News18 report. The updated framework sets out grounds for restricting foreigners' entry or stay and placing them on a blacklist. It retains the existing Grade A, B, C and D classification, with different categories applying according to the nature of the violation, News18 reported. Sources cited by News18 said the guidelines were prepared and issued while US national Matthew VanDyke and six Ukrainian nationals were in custody following their March 2026 arrests by the National Investigation Agency. The case concerns allegations that they trained Myanmar-based ethnic armed groups in drone warfare. Expanded grounds for restrictions Under the earlier system, foreigners could already be blacklisted for serious offences, immigration violations, forged documents and security-related activities, according to News18. The consolidated guidelines expressly identify digital crime, child abuse and specified financial activities among the grounds for action. The financial provisions cover support for terrorist or subversive activity, including money laundering and hawala. Human trafficking is expressly stated to include child trafficking, the report said. Several of these grounds also appear in the Immigration and Foreigners Order, 2025, notified on September 1 last year. The order permits refusal of entry or stay to foreigners convicted of, or found involved in, specified offences, including espionage, terrorism, narcotics trafficking, human trafficking, cybercrime, child abuse and racketeering in currency, including cryptocurrency. The order also requires the Bureau of Immigration to maintain an updated list of foreigners prohibited from entering India. Listed cases must undergo periodic review, and an affected foreigner may submit a representation to the Ministry of Home Affairs seeking review. Immigration and Foreigners Order, 2025 Categories and approval requirements According to News18, Grade A covers the most serious security and criminal cases. These include foreigners considered dangerous from a security perspective, members of organisations declared unlawful under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, persons covered by UN blacklisting requirements and specified cases involving forged or fraudulently obtained travel documents or visas. Grade A decisions require an officer of at least joint secretary rank in the home ministry or the Commissioner of the Bureau of Immigration, the report said. Grade B covers foreigners convicted of, or found involved in, offences punishable with imprisonment of less than three years, excluding offences under the Immigration and Foreigners Act. It also includes repeat violations of that Act and its rules, orders or directions, alongside specified financial irregularities, illegal funding, tax evasion and Foreign Exchange Management Act violations. Grade D covers specified lower-level violations, including certain overstays or failures to register of up to 90 days and other minor offences, subject to the nationality-specific provisions and exemptions set out in the guidelines. News18 also reported that foreign children up to seven years of age will not be blacklisted. Action against foreigners who threaten, abuse or obstruct immigration officials is restricted to exceptional cases. Such decisions require clear documentary evidence and prior approval from the Commissioner of the Bureau of Immigration, according to the report. The VanDyke case VanDyke and the six Ukrainians were arrested on March 13, 2026. The NIA's September 8 chargesheet invoked Sections 21 and 23 of the Immigration and Foreigners Act, covering unauthorised entry and visa-related contraventions, while the investigation into alleged UAPA offences remained open. A Delhi court granted VanDyke default bail on September 18. The six Ukrainians received default bail on September 23 and were discharged from the immigration offences after those offences were compounded by the Foreigners Regional Registration Office. The court subsequently allowed all seven to travel to the United States and Ukraine for one month, subject to conditions, News18 reported.