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Passport is a very important document. It
should be kept upto date by renewing it
before it expires. Its loss should be
reported immediately to the local police
authorities and also to the nearest Indian
Embassy / Consulate General.
Indian passports can be renewed any time
from one year before, to six months after
the actual date of expiry. If the passport
is already ten years old and has finally
expired, a new passport will be issued.
Final expiry is indicated on the passport by
the letter "F" or the word "Final" mentioned
after the date of expiry on the passport.
Three passport size photographs are to be
submitted along with the application duly
filled in for issuance of a new passport
booklet. In case there is any change in
appearance, one of these photographs should
be duly attested by a Notary Public.
However, if the passport has not expired
finally, the same booklet is renewed.
The forms for renewal of Indian passports
and for issuance of new passport booklets
are different and appropriate forms are
required to be filled in. All applicants for
passport services are also required to
submit photocopies of their Resident Alien
Cards or proof of their lawful residence in
USA. Passports of visitors can be extended
only for a short period to facilitate their
return to India.
» Duplicate Passports :
The issuance of duplicate passports in lieu
of lost or damaged passports is handled
under a special procedure. A duplicate
passport can only be issued to an applicant
on confirmation of the particulars of the
lost passport from the original Passport
Issuing Authority and receipt of the
clearance of the Ministry of External
Affairs. All applicants for duplicate
passports must fill out
(i) one copy of the new passport application
form and
(ii) six copies of 'Personal Particulars
Proforma'.
These forms must be filled in correctly,
completely and legibly. Generally it takes
at least eight to ten weeks to obtain
confirmation of passport particulars and the
clearance from the Government of India.
However, if one pays fax charges,
telegraphic references are made. Paying fax
charges cannot guarantee issuance of a
duplicate passport within any fixed
time-frame.
» Emergency Certificate :
Emergency certificates are one-way travel
documents to return to India and are
generally issued to visiting Indians who
lose their passports or to people who need
to be deported. However, such certificates
can be issued if the Indian citizenship of
the person is confirmed.
» Miscellaneous Passport &
Consular Services : Applicants for
miscellaneous Passport and Consular services
are required to fill out a 'Miscellaneous
Service' form and submit their passports
along with photocopies of their Resident
Alien Cards or proof of lawful residence in
the foreign country.
» Endorsement of Child's Name
: On either parent's passport but it is
necessary to send passports of both parents
and a photocopy of the child's birth
certificate. A child may be endorsed in one
of the parent's passport only if the father
was an Indian national at the time of the
child's birth and if the child does not hold
a passport of another country. (Documentary
evidence to this effect would be required
i.e., either a resident alien card or an 'A'
number endorsement for the child on either
parent's passport.
» Change of First Name/Full
Name : An applicant has to submit (a) a
Court Order from a court in India or a
notarized affidavit. (b) a newspaper
clipping of notice in the city of
applicant's domicile in the foreign country.
(c) a newspaper cutting of notice in the
state of the applicant's domicile in India.
» Change to Married Name :
An applicant is required to enclose a
copy of the marriage certificate, a sworn
affidavit giving maiden and married names
duly notarized by a Notary Public and the
husband's passport. In case the first name
also changes after marriage, additional
requirements as indicated in "Change of
First Name / Full Name" are to be met.
» Documents for Attestation :
These are required to be notarized by a
Notary Public and submitted in duplicate
(original and a photocopy). The applicant's
valid passport should also be submitted.
Submission of passports can be exempted in
cases of attestation of Adoption papers when
applicants do not hold any passports.
» Sending Human Remains :
A copy of the death certificate and a letter
from the mortuary stating that the body has
been embalmed properly and hermetically
sealed in a casket is required to be
attested by the Consulate. For sending an
urn containing human ashes, a copy of the
death certificate and a letter from the
crematorium stating that the urn contains
nothing else but the cremated remains of the
deceased and that it has been sealed
properly should be authenticated by the
Consulate. The Indian passport of the
deceased should also be cancelled.
» Time Taken for Consular and
Passport Related Services Counter
Applications : Except for issuance of
New Indian Passports, other services like
renewal of a passport, issue of a Birth,
Life or a Police Clearance Certificate,
endorsement of child's name, etc. can be
given the same day if it is otherwise in
order and the applicant applies at the
counter before 12.00 noon. Processed
documents / passports are returned the same
day between 4.00 pm and 5.00 pm. New Indian
Passports issued on the expiry of old
passports which expired recently are given
the next working day between 4.00 pm and
5.00 pm.
» Overnight Mail Applications
: Applications received through
overnight mail are processed on a priority
basis and the passports and services
documents are returned by overnight mail
provided an overnight mailing charge is paid
to the Consulate in addition to the normal
fee. It normally takes two/three working
days to process such cases.
» Certified/Registered Mail
Applications : Applications received by
certified or registered mail are processed
within 7 working days and returned by
certified mail only. A self-addressed and
stamped certified mail envelope or
additional amount (as required) may be
enclosed.
» Obtaining Forms :
Renewal, Miscellaneous Services and New
Passport application forms are distributed
free of cost. These forms can also be freely
duplicated. The application forms can be
downloaded from web sites at the following
address:
www.positiveindia.com
www.indianconsulate-sf.org
www.indianembassy.org
Forms can also be obtained from the
Consulate by sending a request in writing
and enclosing a self-addressed and stamped
envelope. These can also be obtained from
the Indian Associations and some Travel
Agencies.
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Fee in US$: Issue of New Passport
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$24 |
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Renewal of Indian Passport |
$16 |
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Endorsement /Deletion of Child's
name |
$21 |
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Change of name |
$11 |
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Change of married name |
$11 |
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E.C.N.R. |
$8 |
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Police Clearance Certificate |
$8 |
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Life/Birth/ Marriage/Death
Certificate |
$8 |
Attestation of documents :
For Property |
$21 |
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Commercial documents |
$52 |
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Others |
$11 |
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Additional Visa Sheet |
$11 |
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Change of address |
$8 |
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Additional Endorsement |
$11 |
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Duplicate passport in lieu of lost
or damaged passport |
$200 |
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Outstation Processing Fee (charged
for each case Processed at our camp
office) |
$10 |
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Fees once received cannot be
refunded, even if the application is
withdrawn. |
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Mailing charges :
Certified Mail return charges for
one passport |
$3 |
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Overnight Mail Return charges for up
to 3 passports |
$14 |
All fees and mailing charges can be paid by
personal checks, cashier's checks, travelers
checks or money orders. Cash is accepted
only at the Counter.
» Certified Mail cases :
Processing such cases take about 7 working
days from the day of receipt of an
application. Enquiries should be made only
if the serviced passports are not received
after at least 15 days of despatch keeping 7
days for two-way mail.
» Overnight Mail cases :
Enquiries in respect of an application sent
by overnight mail and also requesting return
by overnight mail should be made at least 6
days after despatch of application and not
earlier.
» Emergencies on Working Days
: In case of emergency, services are
rendered in approximately one hour on
payment of an additional charge of $30/- for
each service except issuance of a New
Passport which takes three hours.
» Emergencies during weekends
and holidays : Emergency services except
issuance of New Passport booklets are
available on weekends and holidays only in
cases of genuine emergencies on payment of
an additional charge of $30/- for each
service.
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