hcilondon.in How to Apply for Indian Passport From London : High Commission of India

Organization : High Commission of India
Facility : How to Apply for Indian Passport From London
Location : London,UK

Apply Here : http://in.vfsglobal.co.uk/NEW_Indian_Passport.html
Website : https://www.hcilondon.in/index.php

Overview :
Applications can only be submitted with prior appointmnets, please click here.
Indian Passports are issued with a validity of 10 years (except in the case of children up to the age of 15 years where it is initially issued for a validity of 5 years). Wherever any change is to be effected in personal particulars in the laminated pages of the Passport, a new Passport needs to be obtained as the practice of hand written endorsements in the existing Passport has been done away with. Similarly, a new passport needs to be obtained where the existing Passports have run out of available pages.
Applications for Passport Services should be submitted in person with prior appointment at the authorised Indian Visa & Consular Application Centres. If, due to any reason, an applicant is not in a position to apply in person, only an immediate family member (Spouse or blood relatives) can apply on behalf of an applicant with a proper authority letter authorizing the immediate family member (Spouse or blood relatives) to apply on applicant’s behalf. The immediate family member will be required to produce this authority letter and his/her original passport/identity paper/document establishing the proof of his/her relationship with the applicant while submitting the application on behalf of the applicant.

Jurisdiction information :
Applicants must fill ‘Online Application’ as per the Jurisdiction Applicable.
Please click here to find the offices, where you can apply.
Applicants residing in the consular jurisdictions of the High Commission of India, London are advised to submit their applications at any of the 3 offices in London (Goswell Road, Hounslow and London – Paddington), Bristol, Cardiff and Belfast. Such applicants must select UK- London as Jurisdiction, while filling the application form Online for Indian Passport Services.
Applicants residing in the consular jurisdiction of Consulate General of India, Birmingham are advised to submit their applications at offices in Birmingham, Leicester, Manchester, Liverpool, Bradford and Newcastle. Such applicants must select UK- Birmingham as Jurisdiction, while filling the application form Online for Indian Passport Services.
Applicants residing in the consular jurisdiction of Consulate General of India, Edinburgh are advised to submit their applications in Edinburgh or Glasgow. Such applicants must select UK-Edinburgh as Jurisdiction, while filling the application form Online for Indian Passport Services

Collection Procedure for New or Renewed Indian Passports:
New & Renewed Passports will be delivered by Post/Courier only once ready. Applicants are required to provide the Self Addressed Return Envelope or seek information from the advisor at the application centre for courier services.
Applications submitted directly at the High Commission of India, London or at its respective consulates in Birmingham or Edinburgh by post prior to 16th March 2015, will be returned by the concerned office as per the routine process.

FAQ :
What passport services are offered by the Indian Visa & Consular Application Centre in UK?
The following five services are offered:
Re-issue of passport on expiry of full validity passport or on exhaustion of pages or change of name/surname/signature or change/addition/deletion of name of spouse or change of address.
Re-issue of short validity passport.
Issue of fresh passport in lieu of lost/stolen/damaged passport.
Issue of first time passport to a new born child.

What is Re-issue of passport on expiry of full validity passport?
Full validity passports have a life of ten years (five years in the case of minors). The expiry date is always mentioned in all passports. A passport holder can apply for reissue of his/her passport one year before expiry of the passport or after final expiry of the passport.

How to avail the service of re-issue of passport on expiry of its life or exhaustion of pages or change of name/surname/signature or change/addition/deletion of name of spouse or change of address?
Fill up the online application form carefully without leaving any column or item blank. Four colour photographs of size 2 inch X 2 inch with white/off white background are required to be enclosed. Paste one photograph on the application form and hand over the others in an envelope with the application at the centre. The Indian passport, requiring re-issue, needs to be submitted with the application. The applicant also needs to produce document (valid visa/ILR) to prove that he or she has valid landing rights/ stay permit in the UK. The prescribed fee is also payable by the applicants. Also please see the relevant page (s) for availing passport services.

Can one apply for Machine Readable Passport of normal 10-years validity as a replacement of 20-years validity passport or as a replacement of a hand written passport as this is causing difficulty in obtaining visa for many countries whose authorities are objecting to a 20-years validity passport or a hand written passport?
Yes. It is in the interest of the applicant to get a new 10-years Passport as the Government of India has dispensed with the issuance of 20-years Passport and hand written Passport in accordance with extant rules. Please follow the same procedure as is meant for re-issue of a passport on expiry of its validity. The International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) has set a deadline of the 24th November 2015 for globally phasing out all non-Machine Readable Passports (MRPs). From 25th November 2015 onwards, foreign Governments may deny visa or entry to any person travelling with a non-Machine Readable Passport. All handwritten passports with pasted photos earlier issued by Government of India are considered non-Machine Readable Passports. All 20-years validity passports will also fall in this category. The Government of India started issuing Machine Readable Passports since 2001. All new Indian passports are ICAO-compliant Machine Readable Passports .Indian citizens residing in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and holding handwritten passports as well as 20-years passports with validity beyond the 24th November 2015, should, therefore, apply for re-issue of passports and obtain Machine Readable Passports well before the deadline in order to avoid any inconvenience in obtaining foreign visa or immigration problem.

What is a Short Validity Passport (SVP) and under what circumstances such a passport is re-issued?
A SVP is often issued directly by the High Commission of India or its respective Consulates directly, to meet exigencies especially when certain requirements for the issue of full validity passports have not been met by an applicant at the first instance. Usually, a SVP is issued for a period ranging from six months to two years. For instance, SVPs are often issued to applicants whose Indian nationality has been established beyond doubt but have no valid landing rights/stay permit and yet their circumstances strongly indicate the possibility of obtaining such landing rights/stay permit from the competent UK authorities. Besides facilitating such Indian nationals in obtaining landing rights/stay permits in UK, short validity passports are also issued to Indian nationals under certain other circumstances to facilitate their journey to India.

How to avail the service of re-issue of Short Validity Passport (SVP) to Full Validity Passport (FVP)?
Please follow the same procedure as is meant for re-issue of a passport on expiry of its validity. The re-issue of such short validity passports is dependent upon the applicant having used the period of validity of their passport in meeting the conditions that could not be met at the time of issue of SVP. For example, a SVP issued in anticipation of a positive police verification report from India is upgradable to FVP on receipt of such report. Another example could be a SVP issued to facilitate grant of valid visa/stay rights by competent UK authorities is convertible to FVP when such rights are obtained by the applicant.

What procedure is to be followed and documents enclosed with the application to obtain a fresh passport in lieu of a lost/stolen/damaged passport?
Please see the passport document section for details. Usually, the applicant is interviewed by an officer at the Passport Section of the High Commission and its respective Consulates before accepting the application. The most important requirement in lost/stolen cases is to provide documentary evidence of the applicant’s current nationality as an Indian. Needless to say, a photocopy of the lost Indian passport is of great value. In the absence of a photocopy of the lost passport, important details of it such as number, date of issue, place of issue are of great help. If neither photocopy nor the details of the lost passport are available, the applicant is advised to produce as much evidence as possible of being an Indian. Indian voter’s identity card, Aadhar Card, Indian driving license, PAN card issued by income tax authority or any other photo identity paper/card issued by a Governmental authority in India are examples. The other documents required would be a certificate from local police indicating registration of the loss of the passport. Separately, the applicant has to furnish a self-certified statement detailing the circumstances in which he or she lost the passport. Documents such as utility bills (electricity, water, and telephone, and bank statement, NHS card) to prove place of residence in UK also need to be enclosed. The common requirement of proving availability of valid stay rights in UK (visa/ILR) is also applicable to this service. In case the ILR of the applicant is more than one year old, he or she would be required to additionally prove that he or she has not acquired British nationality. This can be done by furnishing a certificate from the UK Home Office.
The applicants may also have to furnish an affidavit stating that (a) he/she has not acquired foreign nationality/does not hold the travel document of a foreign country, (b) has not applied for asylum in UK/a foreign country, (c) his current landing rights is not that of a political refugee and (d) he has not entered UK illegally. In case, the applicant is an illegal immigrant he may have to additionally mention the circumstances in which he or she entered UK. It is also a requirement that the applicant has to satisfy that his visa/stay rights in UK are not based on grant of asylum directly or indirectly.
The applicant may have to truthfully disclose if he or she had ever applied for asylum. All cases where an application was made to UK Government for asylum would need disclosure about the current status of such application. The status could be either of the following: (a) rejected, (b) under consideration before an appellate authority after rejection, (c) accepted, (d) under consideration. The onus of proving the current status of such application with credible documents would be on the applicant. In case the applicant’s application for asylum has been rejected or withdrawn, an affidavit stating his recant from his earlier position against government of India would also become necessary. This affidavit can be made under oath before the competent officer of the High Commission or at its respective Consulates on payment of the prescribed fee. Alternatively, such an affidavit can be made before a notary public, which is also acceptable.

Is it essential to have valid visa/stay rights in UK to apply for a replacement passport in lieu of a lost/stolen or damaged one?
This is an essential requirementdepending upon circumstances of each individual case. An applicant is required to satisfactorily convince the passport officer that grant of an SVP would facilitate obtaining of landing permit/ stay rights in the UK.