Indian passport application in the UK — 2026 guide for NRIs

Indian citizens in the UK — whether applying for a first passport, renewing an existing one, replacing a lost or damaged passport, registering a baby born in the UK, or changing a name after marriage — apply through the authorised VFS Global Indian Passport Services route. The Indian High Commission (London) and the Indian Consulates General (Birmingham, Edinburgh) have delegated intake to VFS since the rollout of the Global Passport Seva Project (GPSP). This page covers the 2026 workflow, current fees, documents, and common situations.

Who should apply from the UK

• Indian citizens resident or travelling in the UK — renewal, re-issue, first-time adult passport, damaged / lost replacement.
• Minors (children of Indian citizens) born in the UK or brought to the UK — first passport or renewal.
• Indian citizens seeking a name change on their passport after marriage, gazette publication, or a court-ordered change.
• Indian citizens with a wrong date of birth on the existing passport — DOB correction filed as re-issue with change in particulars. See change DOB on Indian passport.

Who should not apply through this route:

• British citizens of Indian origin — file for OCI instead. See OCI card — complete guide.
• Former Indian citizens who acquired British citizenship — they are no longer Indian citizens (automatic loss under Section 9 of the Citizenship Act). File for a Surrender Certificate first, then OCI. See surrendering an old Indian passport and loss of Indian citizenship.

Where — the VFS Global network and the missions

The Indian missions in the UK are:

• High Commission of India, London — jurisdiction over England south of Humber plus Wales.
• Consulate General of India, Birmingham — Midlands and parts of northern England.
• Consulate General of India, Edinburgh — Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Passport applications do not generally go direct to the mission. VFS Global runs Indian Visa and Consular Application Centres across the UK:

• London — Hammersmith.
• Birmingham — city centre.
• Manchester — city centre.
• Glasgow — central.
• Edinburgh — serviced.
• Cardiff, Leicester, and some roving / satellite centres.

The applicant picks the centre closest to home when booking the appointment online. Each centre handles biometrics, document intake, fee collection, and return despatch.

The services offered

Under one application workflow the applicant can request:

• Fresh passport (first-time adult, or an adult whose previous passport was surrendered / cancelled).
• Re-issue of a passport (renewal of an expiring passport, replacement of a full-pages passport, or change in particulars such as name, address, DOB, appearance).
• Duplicate passport for a lost or damaged passport (additional documentation applies).
• Child's first passport (born in the UK or brought to the UK).
• Police Clearance Certificate (separate service, same VFS route).

The process — step by step

Step 1 — Register on the Passport Seva portal

• Go to passportindia.gov.in.
• Create an account (or log in).
• Choose the "User Login" for citizens abroad.
• Select the country United Kingdom and the mission with jurisdiction (London / Birmingham / Edinburgh).
• Fill the application form online.
• On submission, the system directs you to the UK VFS India passport services portal for appointment booking.

Step 2 — Book appointment at a VFS centre

• Pick the centre closest to your address.
• Select a date / time slot.
• Appointments are typically available within 1–2 weeks; some centres have longer queues.
• Walk-in is not accepted — appointment mandatory.

Step 3 — Gather documents

Core documents for a re-issue (renewal):

• Current Indian passport — original, plus self-attested photocopies of every page bearing any entry / stamp.
• Proof of UK residence — council tax bill, utility bill, bank statement dated within the past 3 months, tenancy agreement, driving licence.
• Proof of immigration status in the UK — BRP (Biometric Residence Permit), ILR vignette, student / work visa, Settled Status share code, or pre-Brexit EEA residence document.
• Photograph — 51 × 51 mm (2 × 2 inches), white background, Indian-passport specification (some specs differ from UK passport photos — confirm on VFS).

Additional for specific categories:

• First-time adult passport — school leaving certificate or birth certificate, current address proof, and an Indian address proof if one is claimed.
• Lost / damaged passport — police report (UK local police), affidavit of loss, copy of the lost passport if available.
• Name change — marriage certificate (UK registered), deed poll, or gazette notification from India, with the Indian-law newspaper requirements where applicable.
• Children's passport — see separate section below.
• Address update / appearance update — new address proof / photographs.

Step 4 — Attend the VFS appointment

• Bring originals and photocopies of every document.
• VFS captures biometrics (photograph, fingerprints where required) and scans the documents.
• Pay the fee at the counter — card or bank transfer.
• Collect the receipt and tracking reference.

Step 5 — Processing

• VFS forwards the application to the Indian mission.
• Mission issues the new passport; returned to VFS; dispatched to the applicant by Royal Mail Tracked / Special Delivery.
• Old passport (if being renewed) is cancelled (with a "cancelled" stamp) and returned with the new one — retain it permanently as a reference document.

Step 6 — Typical timelines (2026)

• Normal re-issue — 3 to 5 weeks end-to-end.
• First-time adult passport — 4 to 8 weeks (may need police verification in India).
• Lost / damaged replacement — 4 to 8 weeks; longer if the Indian police-side verification is triggered.
• Children's passport (born in UK) — 3 to 6 weeks once birth registration is complete.
• Tatkaal (expedited) service — 3 to 7 working days, with a premium fee, for qualifying cases (genuine emergency / medical / bereavement).

Current fees (2026 indicative)

Fees are set in GBP by the mission and revised periodically. 2026 typical:

• 36-page adult passport (re-issue / fresh) — approximately £117 to £140.
• 60-page adult passport — approximately £127 to £150.
• 36-page child passport (under 18) — approximately £77 to £100.
• Tatkaal premium — an additional ~£75 to ~£100 over the normal fee.
• Damaged / lost passport replacement — standard fee plus a penalty (typically £100+) depending on the circumstances.
• VFS service charge — a per-application fee collected by VFS in addition to the statutory consular fee (£15–25 per application).
• Return postage — Royal Mail Tracked or Special Delivery charged separately.

Confirm the exact fees on the VFS Global / HCI London page at the time of application.

Children born in the UK

The most common family scenario — Indian-citizen parents living in the UK; baby born in the UK.

Step 1 — Register the birth with the Indian mission within a year

• File a registration of birth with the Indian High Commission / Consulate within one year of the child's birth, under the Citizenship Act, 1955.
• Documents:
  • UK birth certificate (full certificate, not short).
  • Both parents' Indian passports (originals
    • copies).
  • Parents' UK immigration status (BRP / ILR / settlement).
  • Parents' marriage certificate.
  • Declaration that the child has not acquired British citizenship — a material issue because UK citizenship by birth on UK soil is conditional (the child is British by birth only if at least one parent is British or settled in the UK at the time of birth). If both parents are Indian citizens without ILR / settled status, the child is not British and is Indian by descent.
  • Affidavit from both parents.
  • Registration fee (currently around £15-20; verify).
• The mission enters the child's name in the Register of Births of Indian Citizens Abroad and issues a birth certificate.

Step 2 — Apply for the child's Indian passport

• File on passportindia.gov.in as with adults; appointment at VFS.
• Both parents must typically be present for the minor's biometric appointment; single-parent submissions require a notarised consent from the absent parent, or a court order where parental rights are disputed.
• Fee — child's rate (~£77–100).

If birth registration is delayed beyond one year

• Apply with an additional affidavit explaining the delay.
• Supply Home Office documentation confirming the child's immigration status in the UK.
• Pay a late-registration penalty on top of the registration fee.
• The process takes longer (add 2–4 weeks).

For the parallel UK-born-baby exit permit / foreign passport chain where the baby is a British citizen, see the broader baby born in India or abroad and register birth at consulate.

Expired more than one year — the old rule relaxed

The old guidance required an affidavit of non-acquisition of British nationality and a Home Office letter for any Indian passport that had expired more than a year earlier. This has been relaxed in practice as of 2020 onwards:

• Affidavit of non-acquisition — still required for long-expired passports (typically over 3 years).
• Home Office letter — requested by the mission on a case-by-case basis; not automatically required for the one-year-past cases.
• Short delay renewal (passport expired less than a year) — treated as a routine renewal.

Practically, if your Indian passport has been expired a long time and you have not taken British citizenship, bring:

• Your old expired Indian passport.
• Your current UK immigration document (BRP / ILR / Settled Status share code).
• An affidavit (notarised in the UK) stating you have not acquired British citizenship.
• Home Office letter if the mission so requests after initial intake.

Name change

For applicants whose name has changed (marriage, deed poll, legal change):

• Marriage-based — UK marriage certificate (full), signed affidavit, a newspaper publication of the name change in the UK and (for Indian-law compliance) in the applicant's Indian residence area.
• Deed poll — the UK deed poll document.
• Gazette notification — optional but recommended for Indian-law compliance.

See name change guide for the newspaper and gazette mechanics.

Surrender Certificate — for British naturalisations

If the Indian citizen has acquired British citizenship (naturalised), Indian citizenship ends automatically by Section 9 of the Citizenship Act, 1955 from the date of British naturalisation. The passport procedure is different:

• Do not apply for an Indian passport renewal. It cannot be renewed — you are no longer Indian.
• Apply for a Surrender Certificate — the Indian passport is cancelled and a certificate issued. Required for OCI.
• Post-1 June 2010 naturalisations attract a graduated penalty based on delay.

See surrendering an old Indian passport for the surrender mechanics. Once surrendered, file for OCI — see OCI card — complete guide.

Common pitfalls

• Applying at VFS without first filing on passportindia.gov.in. Filing order matters; VFS needs the Passport Seva reference.
• Photograph wrong size. Indian passport photos are 51 × 51 mm, not 35 × 45 mm. Use an OCI / Indian-passport-spec studio.
• Minor's application without both parents present at biometrics appointment. Brings the file to a halt.
• Missing UK immigration proof. BRP or ILR must be produced; a visa sticker in an old passport is not enough if the BRP has been issued.
• Using the UK address on the application but bringing no UK proof. Council tax / utility bill must match.
• Long-expired passport without an affidavit of non-acquisition of British citizenship. Easy to fix at the notary; don't be caught at the counter.
• Applying for passport renewal when you are now British. Surrender Certificate, not renewal, is the path.
• Trying to renew at the mission directly — VFS is the intake channel.
• Late birth registration of a UK-born child beyond one year without the late-registration paperwork.
• Forgetting to update OCI / PAN / Indian bank / demat after passport renewal. The new passport number needs to propagate.

Checklist — Indian passport in the UK

1. Confirm you are still an Indian citizen — if you have taken British citizenship, you need Surrender + OCI, not passport renewal.
2. Register on passportindia.gov.in and fill the application.
3. Book VFS appointment at the nearest centre (London, Birmingham, Manchester, Glasgow, Edinburgh).
4. Gather documents — current passport, UK residence proof, UK immigration status, 51 × 51 mm photograph, additional documents for the specific service.
5. Pay the fee online (or at the VFS counter).
6. Attend the appointment with originals and copies.
7. Track the application at passportindia.gov.in and the VFS tracker.
8. Receive the new passport by Royal Mail Tracked; old passport cancelled and returned.
9. Update OCI / PAN / Aadhaar / Indian banks with the new passport number.
10. For a UK-born baby, register birth within one year, then apply for the child's Indian passport.

Summary

• Indian passport services in the UK run through VFS Global India Passport Services, linked from the passportindia.gov.in portal, serving the High Commission (London) and Consulates General (Birmingham, Edinburgh).
• VFS centres in London, Birmingham, Manchester, Glasgow, Edinburgh, and satellite locations.
• Fees (2026 indicative) — £117–140 for a 36-page adult passport, £77–100 for children, Tatkaal adds ~£75–100.
• Processing — 3–8 weeks normal; 3–7 working days Tatkaal.
• Children born in the UK — birth registration at the mission within one year; then child's passport application.
• British naturalisation ends Indian citizenship automatically — apply for Surrender Certificate, then OCI.
• Photograph specification is 51 × 51 mm, white background; the main cause of rejection.

For the US parallel, see Indian passport in the USA. For the Canada workflow, see Indian passport in Canada. For the Australia workflow, see Indian passport in Australia. For the DOB correction process, see change DOB on Indian passport. For the Surrender Certificate path, see surrendering an old Indian passport. For the OCI framework, see OCI card — complete guide.