India has increased overseas passport fees by up to 75% starting July 1, 2026, heavily impacting millions of expatriates living across the UAE.
An estimated 4.5 million Indian expatriates living in the United Arab Emirates are facing a major financial adjustment following an official passport fee hike. Beginning Wednesday, July 1, 2026, the Indian Government has implemented its sharpest increase in document fees in years. The sweeping policy change stems from an official gazette notification issued back on June 20 by India’s Ministry of External Affairs under the newly updated Passports Amendment Rules. This means that any Indian national trying to renew their passport or apply for a fresh one from within the UAE will now pay significantly higher prices.
According to the official chart released by the Embassy of India in Abu Dhabi and the Consulate General of India in Dubai, standard adult passport costs are jumping by nearly 70 percent. Under the old system, an adult applying for a normal, 36-page ordinary passport booklet paid 285 Dirhams. As of today, that base price has risen to 450 Dirhams. For frequent travelers who require the larger 60-page jumbo passport booklet, the standard price has risen from 380 Dirhams to 630 Dirhams.
The price hikes become even steeper for individuals requiring urgent or emergency documentation. Under the specialized Tatkal scheme, which expedites processing times, a standard 36-page adult passport will now cost 900 Dirhams, while the 60-page alternative has climbed to 1,080 Dirhams. The single most aggressive price increase targets those who need to replace a lost or damaged passport. A normal replacement for a lost 36-page document has skyrocketed to 900 Dirhams, which jumps up to 1,350 Dirhams if processed under the urgent Tatkal system. Miscellaneous services, including essential Police Clearance Certificates and passport surrender documents, have also been standardized to a flat rate of 145 Dirhams.
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The decision behind this worldwide price adjustment comes down to rising administrative and processing costs, marking the first time India has revised its global passport fee layout since 2012. However, this massive price hike is happening at an incredibly busy time for Indian citizens living in the Emirates. Exactly on July 1, the entire outsourced processing network across the UAE is undergoing a total structural overhaul. A new vendor, Alhind Tours and Travels LLC, has officially taken over all consular responsibilities, replacing the long-time service providers BLS International and IVS Global.
To prepare for this major transition, routine passport bookings were temporarily frozen across the country for five days at the end of June. Moving forward, Alhind is opening a network of 16 unified Indian Consular Application Centres spread across Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, and the other northern emirates. These new centers are designed to act as a single, centralized platform handling everything from routine passport renewals and Overseas Citizenship of India cards to visas and document legalizations under one roof. While the steep jump in base fees will undoubtedly put a strain on family budgets, officials hope the new service centers will make the physical application process smoother, promising regular appointments within five working days and rapid 30-minute processing times once inside the center.
