From today (2 July) India’s embassy in Abu Dhabi and its consulate in Dubai will provide only walk-in, first-come-first-served passport, visa, attestation and miscellaneous services between 09:00 and 12:30. The stop-gap arrangement follows the transfer of the government’s multiyear outsourcing contract from BLS International to Kerala-based Alhind Tours & Travels, which officially took over on 1 July. The embassy told applicants to bring exact cash and complete forms in advance. No escorts will be allowed inside the premises except parents accompanying minors. Officials stressed that the curtailed hours are temporary while Alhind finalises 16 new application centres across all seven emirates, including hubs in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Fujairah. More than 3.5 million Indians live in the UAE, forming the country’s largest expatriate community.
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For those keen on avoiding lengthy queues altogether, VisaHQ offers an online alternative: through its UAE portal (https://www.visahq.com/united-arab-emirates/) the service arranges Indian passport renewals, visas and document attestations end-to-end, with courier pickup and real-time tracking that can save applicants several trips to the embassy.
Any slowdown in passport renewals can derail university admissions, job changes and summer travel. Airlines can refuse boarding if a passport has less than six months’ validity, so the transition is being closely watched by travel managers and HR teams. Alhind, which bid the lowest service fee in last year’s tender, has promised extended evening hours, a mobile-app tracker and home-collection of biometrics once fully operational. Industry experts say the competitive pricing should reduce ancillary charges paid by applicants, but warn of teething issues until new staff reach full productivity. Corporate mobility managers should advise Indian employees to renew documents early, monitor embassy announcements, and keep buffer time before critical travel or immigration deadlines while the new vendor ramps up.
For those keen on avoiding lengthy queues altogether, VisaHQ offers an online alternative: through its UAE portal (https://www.visahq.com/united-arab-emirates/) the service arranges Indian passport renewals, visas and document attestations end-to-end, with courier pickup and real-time tracking that can save applicants several trips to the embassy.
Any slowdown in passport renewals can derail university admissions, job changes and summer travel. Airlines can refuse boarding if a passport has less than six months’ validity, so the transition is being closely watched by travel managers and HR teams. Alhind, which bid the lowest service fee in last year’s tender, has promised extended evening hours, a mobile-app tracker and home-collection of biometrics once fully operational. Industry experts say the competitive pricing should reduce ancillary charges paid by applicants, but warn of teething issues until new staff reach full productivity. Corporate mobility managers should advise Indian employees to renew documents early, monitor embassy announcements, and keep buffer time before critical travel or immigration deadlines while the new vendor ramps up.
