Thousands of Indian expatriates—by far the UAE’s largest foreign community—flooded the Indian Embassy in Abu Dhabi and the Consulate General of India (CGI) in Dubai this weekend after outsourced passport centres shut down unexpectedly on 30 June. The contract hand-over to new provider Alhind Tours & Travels was stalled by a Delhi High Court challenge, forcing the mission to handle applications in-house on a walk-in basis. Khaleej Times reporters counted more than 1,400 applicants queuing outside the CGI on Friday, 4 July. What has changed: • Walk-in only, 9 a.m.–12:30 p.m., Monday–Saturday. • Cash payments—card machines are offline. • Revised passport fees (first increase since 2012): Dh 450 for a 36-page booklet (normal), Dh 900 Tatkaal; Dh 630/1,080 for 60-page passports. Stop-gap measures: To relieve pressure, the mission organised pop-up attestation desks in Sharjah (4–5 July) and Fujairah (5 July) and set up shade tents, token systems and breastfeeding areas. Consular staff from all seven emirates were redeployed to Dubai for the weekend peak. Hotline 800 INDIA and a new WhatsApp number (+971 54 309 0571) are fielding queries round-the-clock.
![Indian Consular Shake-Up Triggers Passport-Renewal Rush Across the UAE]()
If the backlog or sudden rule changes threaten your itinerary, VisaHQ can step in to streamline visa and document logistics. Through its UAE platform (https://www.visahq.com/united-arab-emirates/), travellers and corporate mobility teams can submit applications online, access real-time tracking and get professional guidance—an efficient workaround while embassy counters remain congested.
Why it matters: • Mobility schedules jeopardised—employers planning July travel for Indian staff face delays of up to two weeks while manual processing beds in. • Visa stamping: many outbound destinations require six-month passport validity; assignees with documents expiring in 2026 could miss project start-dates. • Dependants: families returning home for school holidays may need emergency certificates. Looking ahead: Alhind says 16 new Indian Consular Application Centres are ready across the UAE, but the legal injunction must be lifted before operations begin. Corporates should monitor embassy channels and build contingency timelines into August travel plans.
If the backlog or sudden rule changes threaten your itinerary, VisaHQ can step in to streamline visa and document logistics. Through its UAE platform (https://www.visahq.com/united-arab-emirates/), travellers and corporate mobility teams can submit applications online, access real-time tracking and get professional guidance—an efficient workaround while embassy counters remain congested.
Why it matters: • Mobility schedules jeopardised—employers planning July travel for Indian staff face delays of up to two weeks while manual processing beds in. • Visa stamping: many outbound destinations require six-month passport validity; assignees with documents expiring in 2026 could miss project start-dates. • Dependants: families returning home for school holidays may need emergency certificates. Looking ahead: Alhind says 16 new Indian Consular Application Centres are ready across the UAE, but the legal injunction must be lifted before operations begin. Corporates should monitor embassy channels and build contingency timelines into August travel plans.
