Indian passport holders in the UAE are facing fresh adjustments to consular services following the sudden closure of four Indian Consular Application Centres (ICACs) as of October 22. The affected locations include facilities in Musaffah, Al Reem, Dubai Investment Park-I, and Sharjah Al Majaz, which reduces the total number of operational centers from 16 to 12. Despite these closures, the remaining centers—managed by Alhind Tours & Travels—continue to function as usual, with the embassy prioritizing walk-in services for urgent cases like Tatkal requests, newborn applications, and for seniors aged 60 and above. To manage traffic, the embassy mandates that applicants arrive no earlier than 15 minutes before their scheduled time, with appointments available via the official portal at 9:00 am and 9:00 pm daily.

These operational shifts stem from a broader legal battle regarding the outsourcing of consular services. Following a Delhi High Court directive that invalidated previous bidding processes due to transparency concerns, a fresh re-tendering process is currently underway to appoint a long-term service provider. While Alhind Tours & Travels continues to operate these services on an interim basis, the Indian Embassy has officially invited new bids with a deadline of October 26. As the situation remains fluid, residents are encouraged to stay informed through official channels and avoid last-minute delays, keeping in mind that passport service fees were recently adjusted in July—the first such increase in over a decade—and now include an additional Dh19 service fee for administrative assistance.