Consular processing for the Indian diaspora in Australia is back on track. On the evening of 23 July 2026, the High Commission of India in Canberra confirmed that outsourcing partner VFS Global had restarted accepting applications for Indian passports, visas and other consular documents across six Australian cities. Services had been abruptly halted on 1 July after two rival service-providers challenged the government’s tender process in the Delhi High Court, creating an unexpected 23-day blackout that left thousands of travellers and overseas Indians in limbo. Under the relaunch, VFS has opened upgraded centres in Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Adelaide, Brisbane and Canberra with longer opening hours, additional counters and expanded appointment slots. The High Commission said the overhaul is designed to be “accessible, efficient and customer-friendly”, noting that all existing appointments cancelled during the legal dispute have been re-scheduled at no extra cost. For corporates, mobility managers and travel agencies, the resumption ends weeks of uncertainty that forced travellers to reroute through third-country missions or postpone trips. HR teams that rely on bulk renewals of passports for assignees and their dependants can again bundle applications, while Australian businesses that send staff to India for short-term projects regain a predictable visa timeline. The upgraded capacity should, in theory, reduce average turnaround times below the pre-suspension norm of 5–7 working days for most visa categories. Legal observers say the episode highlights the operational risks that can flow from procurement disputes in the consular outsourcing market. India is one of the world’s largest users of private visa service contracts – spanning more than 40 countries – and similar tenders for Singapore, the US and parts of Europe are still before the courts. Mobility planners are therefore advised to monitor tender outcomes and keep contingency lead times in future travel calendars. In the short term, the High Commission has urged applicants to use VFS’s online appointment tool, arrive with complete documentation and track applications via the company’s real-time portal. A dedicated helpline (+61 3 8593 9124) has been set up for urgent travel cases involving medical emergencies, bereavements and business critical trips.
Source: Business Standard
