Dubai: Indian expatriates in the UAE can now collect their passports on Sundays from Alhind-operated Indian Consular Application Centres, providing relief to those who find it difficult to visit the centres during busy working days.
Alhind Global Services, which operates 16 Indian Consular Application Centres (ICACs) across the UAE, has introduced special counters for passport collection on Sundays at all its centres. The Sunday collection facility will be available from 10:00 AM to 12:00 noon.
Alhind Group, a Kerala-based company, took over consular services such as passport renewal and document attestation in July. Although the company had won the tender in November 2025, the launch of services was delayed due to legal disputes.
During the interim period, when the Ministry of External Affairs was directly managing the services, a significant backlog of applications had accumulated. Alhind officials said that after taking over operations, they were able to clear the entire pending backlog within a short period. At present, appointments are reportedly available at all centres without major difficulty.
Alhind provides several additional services—including form filling, photography, photocopying and courier services—at a uniform charge of AED 19 (around ₹495). Since the required supplementary services are available directly at the centres, applicants do not need to depend on outside agencies.
The new Indian Consul General in Dubai, Dr. E. Vishnu Vardhan Reddy, has also advised applicants to remain cautious about fraudulent agents who demand large amounts of money for booking appointments.
Applicants can book appointments online through Alhind’s official website. New appointment slots are released daily, including at 9:00 AM and 9:00 PM, to help manage demand.
The centres operate from 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM, and applicants will be allowed inside only 15 minutes before their scheduled appointment time.
At the Bur Dubai centre alone, 45 counters have been set up to reduce waiting times and improve the handling of applicants.
