Foreign travel expenses of PM Modi increase fivefold

Since 2021, the total expenditure on the Prime Minister's foreign trips has exceeded ₹550 crore.

Expenditure on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's foreign trips has increased fivefold since 2021. The Ministry of External Affairs informed the Rajya Sabha on Thursday that the annual expenditure on these trips was over ₹36 crore in 2021, which rose to more than ₹180 crore in 2025.

According to a report by Business Standard, Minister of State for External Affairs Pabitra Margherita stated in a written reply that the total expenditure on the Prime Minister's foreign trips since 2021 has exceeded ₹550 crore. In 2026 alone, more than ₹74.58 crore has been spent on these trips. However, some figures are still provisional, and the expenses for the France trip in June are yet to be finalized. Margherita mentioned that among the trips accounted for this year, the Norway visit during the Prime Minister's five-nation tour in May incurred the highest expenditure of ₹17.46 crore.

According to the data shared by the Ministry of External Affairs,

expenditure on Prime Minister Modi's foreign trips was over ₹36 crore in 2021, ₹55 crore in 2022, ₹93 crore in 2023, ₹109 crore in 2024, and more than ₹180 crore in 2025.

Defending this expenditure, the Ministry of External Affairs stated that since July 2021, 316 Memorandums of Understanding and agreements have been signed during the Prime Minister's foreign trips. These agreements cover areas such as defence, digital technology, artificial intelligence, semiconductors, renewable energy, healthcare, education, agriculture, space cooperation, mobility and migration, climate action, and cultural exchange. The ministry also reported that between April 2021 and December 2025, India received $381.8 billion in foreign direct investment.

According to the Ministry of External Affairs, approximately ₹74.59 crore has been spent on the Prime Minister's foreign trips in 2026 so far. This includes trips made between February and July this year. The government stated that the figures for some trips, including those to France and several countries in May, are still provisional. The final expenditure will be determined after all bills are settled.

The highest expenditure on PM Modi's foreign trips was in 2025. According to the data, the highest annual expenditure during the period covered in the response was in 2025, with a total of approximately ₹187.83 crore spent. In 2025, the Prime Minister visited France, the USA, Mauritius, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Saudi Arabia, Cyprus, Canada, Croatia, Ghana, Trinidad and Tobago, Argentina, Brazil, Namibia, the UK, Maldives, China, Japan, Bhutan, South Africa, Jordan, Oman, and Ethiopia.

In 2024, the government spent approximately ₹109.51 crore on the Prime Minister's foreign trips. During this period, Modi visited several countries, including the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bhutan, Italy, Russia, Austria, Poland, Ukraine, Brunei, Singapore, the USA, Laos, Nigeria, Brazil, Guyana, and Kuwait.

The Ministry of External Affairs stated that Prime Minister Modi's high-level foreign visits help strengthen India's relations at bilateral, regional, and global levels. According to the ministry, these trips have promoted partnerships in areas such as technology, innovation, trade and investment, defence, energy cooperation, and robust supply chains. The ministry reported that between April 2021 and December 2025, India received $381.8 billion in foreign direct investment.

Meanwhile, according to a report by The Wire, information filed by the Ministry of External Affairs in the Lok Sabha on 13 February 2026 revealed that,

between 2015 and 2025, ₹762 crore was spent from the government exchequer on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's foreign trips. On 13 February 2026, the Ministry of External Affairs provided a written response detailing the expenditure on the Prime Minister's foreign trips along with information about the delegations accompanying him. According to the response, the annual expenditure on these foreign trips was over ₹100 crore in 2024 and exceeded ₹175 crore in 2025. During this period, Modi visited European countries, the American continent, Africa, and East Asia.

The Ministry of External Affairs stated that during these trips, the host country bears most of the hospitality-related expenses, while the Indian government primarily spends on security arrangements, the official delegation, media teams, and other logistical arrangements. Since May 2014, the Prime Minister's delegation has included between 27 and 72 members as needed. According to the ministry's response, during a five-country trip in 2025, the delegation included 95 members. Documents also revealed that the government spent the least on these trips during the post-pandemic period, but expenses increased due to the rise in bilateral and multilateral meetings and activities thereafter.

The Ministry's response also mentioned that during the Manmohan Singh government, much less was spent on trips to these countries. In 2011, ₹10.74 crore was spent on a trip to the USA, ₹9.95 crore on a trip to Russia in 2013, ₹8.33 crore on a trip to France in 2011, and ₹6.02 crore on a trip to Germany in 2013.