The Indian Embassy in UAE announced that consular, passport, visa and attestation services in UAE have been outsourced to AlHind Tours & Travels with effect on Wednesday, July 22, 2026.
These services and will be delivered through 16 Indian Consular Application Centres (ICACs). These services will no longer be available at the Embassy of India in Abu Dhabi or the Consulate General of India in Dubai.
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How to book appointments
In a circular, the embassy said that appointments can be booked online on the website consularsevainuae.com. The appointments will be released at 9am and 9pm daily.
Service timings at all ICACs is from 8am to 6pm. Entry into the ICAC will be allowed only 15 minutes prior to the appointment time.
Applications for Tatkal passport services, new-borns, Emergency Certificate (EC) and senior citizens (60 years and above) will also be available on a walk-in basis at all ICACs. These will be on first-come, first-served basis.
Service costs
The service charge levied by AlHind is Dh19, inclusive of VAT. This fee includes all the ancillary services related to passport, visa and attestation services such as form filling, photograph, typing documents, domestic courier, printouts and photocopies.
The Dh19 service charge will be taken in addition to the Government of India fees. The full breakdown is available at consularsevainuae.com.
AlHind gets contract: How it happened
Back in April this year, The Embassy of India in Abu Dhabi awarded a contract to Alhind Tours & Travels Pvt Ltd for outsourcing consular support services in the UAE. This came after India debarred BLS International Service Ltd, the previous service provider, from bidding for new Indian Mission contracts for two years. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) order, dated October 9, 2025, cited allegations that included court cases and complaints from applicants.
AlHind set up 16 offices across the UAE, however, these offices were left empty as a legal battle in India delayed the firm in providing consular and passport services to residents.
The dispute involved two failed bidders against the Government of India, who awarded the contract for consular services in UAE, Saudi Arabia. The bidders argued that the evaluation used to determine who would win the contract was arbitrary, among other claims.
Since the court case delayed services in the UAE, the Embassy of India in Abu Dhabi and the Consulate General of India in Dubai temporarily took over providing the required services to the public. These services were offered on an appointment-only basis.
Struggle to get passport renewal, other services
Many residents faced struggles in getting their passports renewed. Several residents told Khaleej Times they struggled to access appointment slots for passport reissue, some describing days of uncertainty and anxiety especially ahead of summer travel.
Then, just one day before the announcement about AlHind opening appointments was made, the Supreme Court of India permitted the Indian missions in the UAE, Kuwait, Singapore and Canberra to temporarily engage service providers whose contracts were previously set aside.
The court directed that the Ministry of External Affairs may engage the existing L-1 contractors (Alhind Tours & Travels in the UAE), or any other agency for the interim period. It said that such an arrangement would be purely temporary.
The latest announcement from the Indian Embassy in Abu Dhabi does not state whether AlHind taking over consular services is temporary or permanent.
(With inputs from Nasreen Abdulla and Nandini Sircar)
Source: Khaleej Times