Indian missions across the United Arab Emirates confirmed that Alhind Tours & Travels will replace existing service providers on 1 July 2026, creating 16 Indian Consular Application Centres (ICACs) that bundle passport, visa, OCI and attestation services under one roof. The transition coincides with India’s global passport-fee hike, which raises costs for UAE-based applicants by up to 75 %.
![Indian Expats in UAE Face Higher Passport Fees and New Single-Window Consular Centres]()
Travellers looking for a smoother way to handle their paperwork during this transition can turn to VisaHQ, whose online platform streamlines Indian passport and visa processing, offers real-time status updates, and provides courier pickup options. Applicants in the UAE can start an application or explore other consular services at https://www.visahq.com/india/ potentially avoiding queues and reducing administrative stress.
Between 26 and 30 June, legacy vendors BLS International and SGIVS have halted new bookings to migrate data; only emergency services continue at the embassy and consulate windows. Indian expatriates—over 4.5 million people—processed more than 560,000 consular transactions last year, so the five-day blackout is significant. Community groups have set up help desks for travellers with imminent departures. Alhind will charge a flat AED 19 per application and promises walk-in passport renewals within 30 minutes once operations stabilise. Yet mobility managers warn of teething troubles: new staff must be security-cleared, and the ICAC IT platform is still awaiting final penetration tests. Airlines flying the busy UAE–India corridor are advising passengers to complete the mandatory Air Suvidha 2.0 health declaration online 24 hours before departure to avoid airport delays. For employers running rotational workforces—shipping, oil-and-gas and hospitality in particular—the dual impact of higher fees and a service-provider switchover could inflate annual documentation budgets by 20–25 %. Companies are bulk-booking renewal appointments this week and negotiating cost-sharing arrangements with staff whose passports expire after July. Consular officials say the consolidation will ultimately shorten queues and allow biometric e-passport services to roll out across the Gulf by early 2027, but they acknowledge that July could be a “stress test” month for the new system.
Travellers looking for a smoother way to handle their paperwork during this transition can turn to VisaHQ, whose online platform streamlines Indian passport and visa processing, offers real-time status updates, and provides courier pickup options. Applicants in the UAE can start an application or explore other consular services at https://www.visahq.com/india/ potentially avoiding queues and reducing administrative stress.
Between 26 and 30 June, legacy vendors BLS International and SGIVS have halted new bookings to migrate data; only emergency services continue at the embassy and consulate windows. Indian expatriates—over 4.5 million people—processed more than 560,000 consular transactions last year, so the five-day blackout is significant. Community groups have set up help desks for travellers with imminent departures. Alhind will charge a flat AED 19 per application and promises walk-in passport renewals within 30 minutes once operations stabilise. Yet mobility managers warn of teething troubles: new staff must be security-cleared, and the ICAC IT platform is still awaiting final penetration tests. Airlines flying the busy UAE–India corridor are advising passengers to complete the mandatory Air Suvidha 2.0 health declaration online 24 hours before departure to avoid airport delays. For employers running rotational workforces—shipping, oil-and-gas and hospitality in particular—the dual impact of higher fees and a service-provider switchover could inflate annual documentation budgets by 20–25 %. Companies are bulk-booking renewal appointments this week and negotiating cost-sharing arrangements with staff whose passports expire after July. Consular officials say the consolidation will ultimately shorten queues and allow biometric e-passport services to roll out across the Gulf by early 2027, but they acknowledge that July could be a “stress test” month for the new system.
