Crossing the Dawki/Tamabil Border Post from India to Bangladesh as a Foreigner
I crossed from India to Bangladesh by land using the Dawki/Tamabil Border Post in October 2024, and here is everything you need to know!
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Land Border Posts Between India and Bangladesh
Seven land border posts between India and Bangladesh are currently open to foreigners. This does not include the three inter-country trains that are currently suspended due to the protests in Dhaka in July.
Bangladesh is now safe and stable, so there is nothing to worry about, but it is unknown when the trains will resume. You can read more about safety in Bangladesh in my upcoming guest post for Been Tours: Is Bangladesh Safe for Tourists in 2024/25? (If you do not want to read that post then the answer is basically "yes" - Bangladesh is safe for tourists, with the usual precautions for female travellers.)
These seven India/Bangladesh land crossings are:
Benapole/Petrapol (Jessore in West Bangladesh/West Bengal close to Kolkata)
Darshana/Gede (Chuadanga in West Bangladesh/West Bengal)
Sonamasjid/Mahadipur (Chapao Nawabganj in Northwest Bangladesh/West Bengal)
Banglabandha/Fulbari (Panchagarh in North Bangladesh/WestBengal close to Nepal border)
Burimari/Changrabandha (Lalmonirhat in North Bangladesh/West Bengal)
Tamabil/Dawki (Sylhet in Northeast Bangladesh/Meghalaya)
Akhaura/Ramnagar (Brahmnbaria in East Bangladesh/Tripura)
Related Post: Is India Safe for Female Travellers? |
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About Dawki
Dawki is a village in the state of Meghalaya, in Northeast India. It is an area of outstanding natural beauty and most visitors come to Dawki for activities on the Umngot river - hailed as 'the cleanest river in Asia.'
I can't verify if that claim is true, but the water is like glass... it is so crystal-clear that the boats appear as if they are floating on air, and the area is surrounded by beautiful emerald forests.
The issue is, Dawki is very popular with road-trippers, and combine that with the amount of trucks coming in and out of Bangladesh, on the one narrow road - Dawki is horrifically congested. Stand-still, incessant beeping, exhaust-choking, congested. It can take hours to crawl a few km, which is a real shame!
Meghalaya is famous for its Living Root Bridges, and you can find out the best way to experience them by reading my guide: Meghalaya’s Living Root Bridges Off the Beaten Path.
It is always best to attempt border crossings early in the day, to give you ample energy and time for formalities and delays. I would suggest sleeping in Meghalaya the night before your border crossing into Bangladesh. I stayed at Lamin Guesthouse which had a little restaurant underneath, there was no wifi or phone signal, so make sure you have all arrangements made prior if you decide to stay here. Otherwise, there are other options (albeit limited) on booking.com.
This post may contain affiliate links, which means I may get a commission if you make a purchase through this website, at no cost to you. I only link to products I use and love.
Leaving India
The Dawki/Tamabil border post between India and Bangladesh is open from 9am - 5pm.
It is 1km from the main hub of Dawki so is easily reached on foot, but if you have luggage and it’s raining (it normally is in Meghalaya) - it is not the most pleasant walk along muddy, pot-holed roads.
Luckily, one of the staff members from my guesthouse gave me a free lift on the back of his moped, which took only 5 minutes. The border is sort of spread out and there are multiple entrances, you need to go to the farthest gate to get stamped out of India. Once you get past the guards there is a waiting room with air-conditioning, a luggage scanner, and then two sets of immigration officers.
I don’t think they see many foreigners at this border post as they were a bit confused by my presence, they kept asking me for my Bangladeshi visa and did not seem to understand when I was trying to explain I was able to get a Visa on Arrival for Bangladesh.
They asked me to wait in an office while they ‘called Bangladesh’ to see if I was allowed to enter, as it’s a new interim government so they weren’t sure. Luckily, around 20 minutes later I was allowed through.
So next I was processed by customs, and I left the building the same way I came in and boarded a complimentary golf-cart-style shuttle to take me to the Bangladesh entry point.
Not sure what to pack for your trip to India and Bangladesh? Check out my article:
Documents Needed at the Dawki/Tamabil Crossing
Here is a list of documents you should have with you for crossing the Dawki/Tamabil border posts between India and Bangladesh. Whether you’re asked for them or not is up to the discretion of the immigration official, and they are rarely consistent, so it is best to have all of them just in case.
Passport
Photocopies of Passport
Indian Visa (if it is an e-visa, you should print copies)
Letter of Invitation for Bangladesh (Been Tours did mine)
Address of first stay in Bangladesh, a hotel reservation is fine
Printed proof of onward travel from Bangladesh (flight or bus)
Bring a pen!
Visa On Arrival Fee (it should be $51 USD, I was asked for $52. Bring the correct change)
Related Post: A Pre-departure checklist for travelling India |
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Entering Bangladesh
The Bangladeshi side is a little hectic, but people will be very eager to point you in the right direction (and probably ask for a selfie).
You need to go to three different offices, the first will ask for your Indian visa and passport and take copies of those, the second will be customs and they'll just write your name and other details in a log book, and the third will process your visa.
When I reached the third office, I was ushered to the front of the queue to sit down in the office and fill out a few forms. I only brought $51 with me, and they asked for $52 so I topped it up with 100 rupees and they were OK with that.
IMPORTANT NOTICE - They asked how long I was planning to stay and I foolishly said 8 days, so they only stamped my visa for 8 days. If they ask you how long you’re staying, always overestimate, just in case your plans are delayed (like mine were) and you end up overstaying your visa (like I did).
The entire process took about two hours, everyone was very nice and professional, and there was just the usual amount of faff that comes with these things.
I actually booked a tour in Bangladesh, as I only had a short amount of time and I didn’t want to waste it ‘figuring it out’. I always travel independently, so this was a first for me and I was really happy with the experience - I especially loved visiting all the remote tribal villages on the India/Bangladesh border. My tour guide was Opu Been of Been Tours, and he was able to arrange something for me to suit my lower budget. Bangladesh is one of the most captivating countries I have ever been to, I would love to go back!
P.S. I do not get any type of reward or discount for promoting Been Tours, I just really enjoyed my experience so I wanted to help them out by recommending them and writing some blog posts for their website.
Re-entering India
This is the first time I have ever been turned away at a border, and it was mostly my fault so I’ll explain what happened and keep it brief.
I was under the impression that with a multiple-entry Indian e-visa, as long as your first entry is by air at the qualifying airports, your subsequent entries can be at any land border. This turns out to be true in some cases, but some e-visas issued to UK citizens specifically say they cannot be used at land borders. There is no explanation for this, and I did not double-check, so when I reached the Banglabhanda border after a 12-hour bus from Dhaka I was turned away by India.
After some arguing back and forth I gave up, and my heart sank as the Bangladeshi immigration officials helped me plan my return bus journey to Dhaka to fly back into India. Yes, that was a 24-hour round bus trip for nada!
Anyway, I went straight to the airport (tired and very stinky) and explained to immigration the next flight I could get was the following day, meaning I would overstay my visa. They were incredibly nice about it and said not to worry, they would excuse my extra day and I could go to my hotel and get a night's rest in peace.
Normally, if you overstay your visa you have to pay a 200 Taka daily fee PLUS a one-off payment which differs for each nationality, for UK citizens this is 105 GBP. I did not have to pay this thankfully and the next day I flew to Kolkata without a hitch.
Kolkata was a disaster, I ended up booking a scam hotel with blood-stained sheets and bad electrics, I got electrocuted in the bathroom, and with cyclone Dana tearing in I made an emergency exit back to the safety of Kerala. Yep, even with 8 trips to India and 2 years travelling the country, I can still fall for a scam. Watch out for airport hotels guys! If they are too cheap, you will surely find yourself in a crap hole!
Thank you for reading my post about crossing at the Dawki/Tamabil border post as a foreigner!
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Happy Travels
xx
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