Indian Australians and Australia-based travellers to India have been left scrambling after VFS Global suspended all visa, passport, OCI and consular services across its nine Australian centres from 1 July 2026. The outsourcing giant issued a notice citing a Delhi High Court injunction that prevents its renewed contract with India’s Ministry of External Affairs from taking effect. With the previous contract expiring at midnight on 30 June, no alternative provider is in place, forcing a complete halt just as the winter-school-holiday travel rush begins. Thousands of students and family visitors who lodged applications are unable to retrieve passports or obtain visas, and new lodgements are not being accepted. A court hearing scheduled in Delhi on 2 July may lift the injunction, but officials at India’s High Commission in Canberra have warned applicants to expect delays even if services resume quickly because of the backlog. Emergency consular appointments for life-and-death cases remain possible through the mission directly, yet routine travel is effectively frozen. Travel agents report a spike in flight cancellations and re-booking requests, while corporates with India-bound assignees are seeking last-minute route changes to avoid visa-on-arrival bottlenecks in third countries. Mobility managers should verify whether electronic tourist or business e-visas—processed directly by Indian authorities—can serve as temporary work-around solutions for short trips and ensure travellers’ passports are not trapped in VFS centres.
Source: NRI Affairs
