Indian Passport Surrender: All You Need to Know About

Passport surrender is a process for individuals who have acquired citizenship of a foreign country after previously being an Indian citizen.

According to Indian law, you cannot have dual citizenship in India. If you want to get citizenship of another country, then you cannot hold your Indian passport and need to surrender it to the official authorities. 

In this blog, we will discuss all the details about the Indian passport Surrender, along with the documents required, processing time, fees, and the difference between passport surrender and Renunciation of citizenship. 

What is a Surrender Certificate?

A surrender certificate is a document that you get after getting a foreign citizenship issued by the Government of India. 

According to the Indian Citizenship Act 1955, India does not allow dual citizenship. You must surrender your Indian passport after getting a foreign citizenship.

After that, you will get a certificate which is called the Surrender certificate. This document is official proof that:

• You have successfully surrendered your Indian passport to the authorities. 
• Indian Citizenship will end after getting a foreign citizenship. 
• You can apply for OCI (Overseas Citizen of India) or an Indian visa service.

Why is the Surrender of an Indian Passport Required? 

An Indian passport surrender is required because it is an official certificate that proves that your Indian passport is invalid. 

If you hold or use your Indian passport, then you need to pay the penalties. 

Here are the following key points why surrendering an Indian passport is important for individuals getting a foreign citizenship: 

• Surrendering an Indian passport helps you to avoid paying any penalties and saves you from any legal action by Indian authorities. 
• All individuals after foreign Naturalization need to get their surrender certificate. 
• Through the Surrender certificate, you can also apply for an OCI card and visa applications. 

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Who Needs to Surrender their Indian passport?

The following individuals need to submit their Indian passports: 

• If you have obtained citizenship in countries like the United States of America, Canada, Australia, or any other country. 
• Individuals with expired passports.
• If you are eligible to apply for an OCI card or an Indian visa. 

When Do You Need to Surrender Your Indian Passport?

If you failed to do so, then you will face problems such as: 

• You can face delays in the OCI application process. 
• Had to face many monetary penalties for not submitting an Indian passport after getting citizenship in a new country. 
• You can face many legal problems during the time of international travel.

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What are the Steps to Apply for the Surrender of an Indian Passport? 

Follow the steps given below to apply for the surrender of an Indian passport. 

• Go to the official Passport Seva portal.
• Fill out the Surrender application form by providing all the correct information. 
• Upload all the necessary documents for the surrender of the Indian passport. 
• You will get an ARN (Application Reference Number). 
• Register or log in at the VFS Global website. 
• Fill out the application form at the VFS Global and upload all the documents. 
• Pay the required Indian passport surrender fees. 
• Submit your application at the VFS Indian Consular Application Center. 
• Wait for the processing of your surrender certificate. You will get your certificate in 1-3 weeks. 

What are the Documents Required for the Surrender of an Indian passport? 

Here is the list of documents that you will need for the surrender of your Indian passport. 

• Submit your original Indian passport. 
• A copy of the foreign passport. 
• You need to provide proof of foreign citizenship. (Naturalization certificate). 
• Provide 2 passport-size photos. 
• Filled out the surrender application form. 

Make sure you submit all the documents and get your surrender certificate without any errors. 

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What are the Fees and Processing Time for Surrendering an Indian Passport? 

The fees for the surrender of an Indian passport are around 25$ to $175 + service charges, depending on the country from where you are applying. However, it depends on the country from which you are applying and the time of surrender. 

The processing time for the passport application is around 2-3 weeks. However, the application process also depends on the information and documents you have provided.

Difference Between Passport Surrender and Renunciation of Citizenship

Passport Surrender: It is a certificate that is issued to applicants who are renouncing their Indian citizenship and obtaining foreign citizenship. 

In simple terms, a passport submission is called a passport surrender. 

Renunciation of Citizenship: It is a formal act of renouncing one country's citizenship and obtaining citizenship of another country. 

Renunciation is simply a citizenship termination document.

Here are the main differences given below the Passport surrender and Renunciation of Indian citizenship in the table given below. 

What are the Benefits of Surrender of Indian passport? 

The key benefits of surrendering an Indian passport include: 

• It helps you to have a smooth and legal process without any inconvenience in international travel. 
• You can apply for an OCI application by submitting a surrender certificate. 
• If you submit your surrender certificate, then you can avoid all the legal action and penalties. 
• It ensures you have a smooth travel to India by getting an Indian visa. 

What are the Penalties for Not Surrendering an Indian Passport?

If you failed to provide your Indian passport to the authorities, then it can lead to many penalties. 

• You can face penalties up to 10,000 INR. 
• Not submitting an Indian passport can lead to delays in OCI processing and visa services. 
• You can face legal complications if your passport is misused. 

How to Check the Surrender Status of an Indian Passport? 

Once you have submitted your Indian passport surrender application, you will get a notification about the status or any changes in your application via email or SMS. 

To check the status of your Indian passport surrender application, you need to follow these steps. 

1. Go to the official Passport Seva website. 
2. Navigate to the 'Track Application Status'. 
3. Enter your 15-digit 'Application Reference number', and Date of birth. 
4. Now you can check the latest updates about your Indian passport surrender. 

Conclusion 

Surrendering your Indian passport is a must for the individual who has obtained citizenship of a foreign country. It helps an individual to avoid getting penalties and other legal actions by the Indian government. 

As India does not allow dual citizenship, if you get a foreign citizenship, you need to renounce your Indian passport and get the surrender certificate. 

If you are looking to apply for the Surrender of an Indian passport, then you can choose the Visament website, which provides a safe and quick application process.

At the Visament, you will get years of experience from experts who will help you in the application process of Indian passport surrender, handle documents, and deliver the surrender certificate on time. 

For more information about the Indian passport surrender, you can contact the Visament website, where our agents will provide you with all the details related to your queries and doubts.