Indian Expats in UAE Turn to Alhind Centres as Takeover Takes Effect After Weeks of Delay

DUBAI - Indian expats across the UAE turned to a new network of consular centres run by Alhind Tours & Travels on Wednesday, as the long-delayed outsourcing of passport, visa and attestation services finally took effect after weeks of uncertainty and long queues at the country's Indian missions.

The Indian Consulate in Dubai and the Embassy in Abu Dhabi announced late on Tuesday that, with effect from July 22, all consular, passport, visa and attestation services would be delivered through 16 Indian Consular Application Centres (ICACs) operated by Alhind. These services are no longer available at the Embassy or the Consulate themselves.

Applicants are being asked to book appointments through a newly launched portal, consularsevainuae.com, with slots released at 9am and 9pm daily. The centres operate from 8am to 6pm, and walk-ins are permitted for urgent Tatkal applications. Alhind is charging an all-inclusive service fee of Dh19 per transaction, on top of government charges, and has promised reduced waiting times.

The 16 centres span all seven emirates, including six in Abu Dhabi, two each in Dubai (Bur Dubai and Dubai Investment Park) and Sharjah, and others in Ajman, Fujairah, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah and the eastern region. The Kerala-based company, which has operated in the UAE since 2007, is reported to have hired several hundred staff and set up its largest centre in Bur Dubai.

The handover ends a turbulent transition. Alhind won the contract — at the lowest bid of Dh19 per transaction — to replace BLS International, which had handled passport and visa work since 2011, and SGIVS Global, which managed attestation since 2013. Their contracts expired on June 30, but the planned July 1 launch was derailed after the tender was challenged in court.

On July 15, the Delhi High Court quashed the Ministry of External Affairs' technical evaluation of the bids and ordered a fresh process, a decision that was subsequently taken up in the Supreme Court. In the interim, the Indian missions began offering limited walk-in services directly from their own premises from July 2 — the first time in around 17 years — a stop-gap arrangement that drew hundreds of applicants daily and, at times, hours-long queues in the summer heat.

With Alhind now formally in place, the missions have urged applicants to rely only on official channels and the new booking portal, and warned against agents seeking to exploit the confusion. The changes affect one of the UAE's largest expatriate communities — more than four million Indian nationals, who make up nearly 40 percent of the country's population.