The Supreme Court of India has provided a much-needed reprieve for Indian expatriates in the UAE by allowing Indian missions to temporarily outsource consular services. Following a legal dispute that previously halted the contract with Alhind Tours and Travels, the top court ruled that Indian embassies in locations like Abu Dhabi and Dubai can now engage service providers on an interim basis. This decision aims to prevent further backlogs in passport and visa processing while the government works toward completing a fresh tender process.

This development follows a complex legal challenge where the Delhi High Court had previously struck down the original tender process for outsourcing Consular, Passport, and Visa (CPV) services. To ensure services remained functional during the transition, missions had briefly taken over these operations directly. With the Supreme Court’s latest directive, the Ministry of External Affairs now has the flexibility to utilize existing contractors—provided their past performance was satisfactory—or appoint alternative agencies. While Alhind Tours and Travels has already signaled its readiness by preparing 16 centers across the UAE, the court has emphasized that these arrangements are strictly temporary and will not influence the outcome of the upcoming long-term bidding process.