For many of us, our Indian passport is a document that is most important and there are a few critical pieces of information that we need to be aware of about.
Here are some key things to remember about your Indian passport:
- A regular passport is valid up to 10 years from the date of issue.
- It is illegal to hold more than one passport at a time.
- Under the Passport Act of 1967, it is illegal to provide false information at the time of application.
- All minors require a separate passport that will be issued up to 5 years or till they attain the age of 18, whichever comes earlier.
- After becoming a US citizen, you have to submit your passport for cancellation to the nearest Consulate/ Embassy. You will need a visa in order to travel to India.
- Persons holding a visa in the B1/B2 category cannot apply for renewal of passport without the approval of the Consulate.
- Applicants who wish to apply for services like an emergency passport, attestation, transportation of ashes, and a life certificate will need to contact the Embassy of India/Consulate General of India directly.
- AS6, AS7, and AS8 visa holders cannot apply for passport renewal in the US.
- IR 6 category applicants have to add their spouse’s name in the passport.
This is What You Need if You are Taking a Trip
Tips for Indian Passport Holders
There are certain things you can do as Indian passport holder to make the process of applying easy:
- Your passport can be submitted for re-issue a year before it expires. Submit it for re-issue as early as you can to avoid expiry of the passport.
- As soon as you get the passport in hand, check it for errors.
- If your Indian passport is lost or destroyed, the matter has to be reported to the nearest Indian mission and police station immediately.
- You should always keep photocopies of all the relevant pages of your current passport in a safe place away from where you keep the original passport. This will be helpful in case your passport is lost, stolen, or damaged.
