Indian Passport

Golden Visa, or Golden Passport, and how to choose the best country option?

The two immigration pathways of migrating abroad are the Golden Visa and Golden Passport. There are some differences, even though they are generally the same and occasionally used interchangeably

2.16 lakh gave up Indian citizenship in 2023: What's behind this exodus?

In 2023, the number of Indians who renounced their citizenship stood at 2,16,219 (2.16 lakh).

MEA rendered 16.5 mn passport related services in 2023: S Jaishankar

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) rendered 1.65 crore passport-related services to citizens in 2023, registering an annual growth of nearly 15 per cent. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said this while commending the personnel for efficient passport-related service delivery. The MEA commemorated the 12th Passport Seva Divas on Monday to mark the enactment of the Passports Act on June 24, 1967. Coinciding with this, a three-day Regional Passport Officers (RPO) conference was organised in Delhi. "I am happy to note that in 2023, the ministry rendered 1.65 crore passport-related services to our citizens," Jaishankar said in a message to the conference. "The year 2023 noticed a commendable annual growth of nearly 15 per cent in passport and other related services," the minister said. The monthly submission of applications crossed the 14 lakh mark in 2023, he said. The external affairs minister also underlined the need for leveraging the power of the latest technologies to

K'taka CM writes to PM Modi seeking cancellation of Revanna's passport

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has written a second letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging him to take "prompt and necessary" actions to cancel the diplomatic passport of Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna, who is facing charges of sexually abusing women. He said that it is "disheartening" that his previous letter on the issue had not been acted-upon, despite the gravity of the situation. The chief minister earlier on May 1 had written to Modi urging him to move the Ministries of External Affairs and Home Affairs to take swift action to cancel the diplomatic passport of Prajwal. Recently, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) set up by the state government to probe the serial sex abuse charges against the MP, had also written to the Ministry of External Affairs to cancel his diplomatic passport, on the basis of an arrest warrant issued against him by the court. "I write to you once again to draw attention to the grave series of incidents that Prajwal Revanna has been accused of

The world's most powerful passports in 2024: Here is where India stands

The Henley Passport Index data show that worldwide mobility has changed significantly during the previous two decades

India has visa-free access to just 62 nations in the world: Full list

ndia stands at the 80th rank in the list of most powerful passports. Its passport has visa-free access to 62 nations, including Angola, Barbados, Bhutan, Bolivia, Djibouti, El Salvador, Jamaica

Henley Passport Index 2024: What is India's rank among other countries?

World's most powerful passport: The least powerful passport in the world is Afghanistan, which ranked at 104th spot with visa-free access to 28 countries

Lost your passport abroad? Here's how to get back to your country

Losing your passport abroad can be a scary and exasperating experience. The most common way of replacing a lost passport can be a cumbersome exercise, however, it works

Over 240,000 Indians surrendered passports in last 8 years: Govt data

As many as 2,46,580 Indians surrendered passports from 2014 to 2022 across India with Delhi registering the maximum 60,414, according to data provided by the government in Rajya Sabha. In Punjab, 28,117 people surrendered passports during the period while the numbers in Gujarat, Goa and Kerala were 22,300, 18,610 and 16,247, respectively. The state-wise number of Indians who surrendered passports were provided by Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan while replying to a question. The total number of Indians who surrendered their passports from 2014 to 2022 stood at 2,46,580, he said. According to the data furnished by the minister, over 24,000 Indians surrendered their passports in over 35 countries during the period 2019-2022.

Every citizen has right to hold passport, renewal can't be refused: HC

Every citizen has a legal right to hold a passport and authorities cannot refuse to renew it merely on an apprehension that the earlier passports might have been misused, the Delhi High Court has said. The court, while dealing with a petition by an Indian citizen seeking a change in the date of birth mentioned in his passport, said denial of the travel document seriously impedes the rights of a citizen, and the authorities can refuse to renew a passport or cancel it only on grounds prescribed in law. In the present case, the authorities had refused to renew the petitioner's passport with the updated date of birth on the ground that the claim for correction did not seem to be genuine. The counsel for the passport authority told the court that approximately 14 years have passed since the issuance of the first passport to the petitioner, and he might misuse the travel document if the same is renewed or re-issued with a new date of birth. Rejecting the objection, the court noted that t

Indian passport 80th most powerful: Visit these countries visa-free

With the Indian passport's rank improving in the latest Henley Passport Index, Indians can now travel to 57 destinations without a visa

India passport ranking improves, jumps five spots in Henley Passport Index

Singapore replaced Japan to become the country with the most powerful passport. India also jumped five positions, ranking 80th. Indians can travel to 57 destinations without any visa

1.6 mn Indians renounced citizenship in last 10 yrs, 70K gave up passports

90% of passports were surrendered in just eight states, with Goa topping the list

Father's name can be removed from a minor's passport, says Delhi HC

The Union of India's submission, which said that the OM would only apply to "single unwed parents," was also dismissed by the court

India falls 6 spots to rank 144 in Passport Index 2023: All you must know

The sharp fall in India's ranking has been attributed to the change in European Union's policy

Govt developing platform to update DigiLocker documents using Aadhaar

The IT ministry plans to first approach departments that issue important documents such as driving licenses, ration cards, voter ID cards, etc. Passports are likely to be brought in later

'mPassport Police App' to fast track passport verification process

The move will not only streamline the passport verification process but will also help for timely updation and issuance of the passports as all verifications will take five days now

Want to change your passport photo online? Check instructions, details

To change the photo in the passport, you have to apply for a re-issue of the passport

Passport applicants can apply online for police clearance certificates: MEA

Passport applicants will now be able to apply for police clearance certificates (PCCs) at all online post office passport seva kendras, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Monday. The MEA is the nodal ministry for the issuance of passports. The PCCs are a pre-requisite for the issuance of passports to the applicants. Often, the issuance of the PCCs by the local police takes time that results in a delay in the grant of passports. "To address the unanticipated surge in demand for Police Clearance Certificates (PCCs), the ministry has decided to include the facility to apply for PCC services at all online Post Office Passport Seva Kendras (POPSKs) across India, starting from September 28," the MEA said in a statement. "This step would significantly add to the availability of PCC appointment slots, and at an earlier date," it added. The MEA further said: "The action taken by the ministry in extending this PCC application facility to POPSKs would not only help Indian citize

What is the Henley Passport Index?

Every year, London-based immigration consultancy 'Henley & Partners' comes out with a ranking of 199 passports. It is called the Henley Passport Index. Find out about it in this segment