Surrender of Indian passport for UK citizens

India is a country that does not allow dual citizenship for its citizens. The Indian citizenship act 1955 strictly prohibits dual citizenship, and as per Indian passport act 1967, any person who holds an Indian passport is not supposed to acquire a foreign citizenship. 

Indian law suggests that a person who acquires a foreign citizenship should immediately surrender his or her passport at the nearest Indian consulate or embassy. In case of any violation, the Indian government has the prerogative to take strict legal penalties and actions against the offender.

People of Indian origin who have obtained UK citizenship has a 90-day grace period to travel with an Indian passport. Within this time frame, the person should renunciate his or her Indian citizenship and should surrender the Indian passport. Once you surrender the Indian passport, the new UK citizen of Indian origin will be provided with a surrender certificate which should be kept safely.

Please find below all the necessary details you should know to obtain an Indian passport surrender certificate in the United Kingdom.

What is the necessity of surrendering an Indian passport?

Dual citizenship also is known as dual nationality is allowed in the United Kingdom. As per the laws in the UK, a British national can simultaneously maintain his UK citizenship and the citizenship of other foreign countries. 

However, Indian citizenship act does not allow dual citizenship for their nationals. It means, once an Indian national has acquired foreign citizenship, he or she should immediately surrender the Indian passport. You may be asked by the embassy to product the surrender certificate at the time of applying any visa for India.

Special note: If you are a former Indian citizen who is now a UK national, an OCI card (Overseas Citizenship of India) will help you to live and work in the Republic of India indefinitely when needed. This card was launched by the Indian government after continuous pressure for dual citizenship from the Indian diaspora in countries like the United Kingdom and the United States. It should be noted that all foreign nationals of Indian origin except that of Pakistan and Bangladesh can apply for an OCI card.

Which are the documents that should be submitted to get an Indian passport surrender certificate?

The new UK national who current holds an Indian passport should produce the below-mentioned documents to obtain the surrender certificate.

• Two recently taken 50mm X 50mm sized photographs. It should be noted that the face should cover almost 70 to 80 percent of the photo area. The photographs should be pretty clear, and it should have a white or light-colored background. In case if you are wearing a headcover due to religious reasons, you should make sure that the complete facial features are not obscured in any manner. You should always try to maintain a neutral expression in the photographs.
• An appointment should be taken with the VFS, and the appointment confirmation letter should be submitted.
• The application form should be completely filled. Click Here to download the application form
• The declaration form should be filled and signed by the applicant.
• The applicant should submit the original Indian passport. It should be noted that this passport should be the one you possess at the time of naturalization as a UK citizen.
• A self-attested copy of the current Indian passport should be submitted.
• If you have already acquired a UK passport, it should be produced.
• The applicant should submit the self-attested copy of the new British passport. In case if the applicant possesses more than one UK passport since neutralization, he or she should submit the original first British passport, along with self-attested copies of all the first passport pages.
• It is also necessary to submit the self-attested copy of the British naturalization certificate.

Special note 01: If you have not received the new UK passport, you should submit a declaration stating that your application for the UK passport is still under process.

Special note 02: If you are submitting the photograph of a child, always make sure that the baby or child is awake while taking the photo. The baby should look straight at the camera with a closed mouth.

Special note 03: If a minor is applying for the surrender certificate, the application form should be signed by either of the parents.

Special note 04: If the applicant had a name change after acquiring UK citizenship, he or she should use the name that is present in the Indian passport to obtain the surrender certificate.

How to apply an Indian passport surrender certificate?

The Indian High Commission in the United Kingdom has outsourced the Surrender of Indian passport service to a third party named VFS. In short, all Indian-origin people should approach the VFS to obtain the passport surrender certificate, and they will not get the same service even if they directly visit the Indian High Commission directly.

In order to get the passport surrender certificate, the first thing you should do is taking a prior appointment from the VFS. It should be noted that the surrender certificate application could not be processed if you are not taking this pre-booked appointment.

As of now, there are eleven appointment centers in the United Kingdom, and you can choose the one as per your comfort. Please find below the VFS appointment centers in the UK.

• London-Goswell
• London-Hounslow
• Birmingham
• Belfast
• Bradford
• Glasgow
• Edinburgh
• Cardiff
• Manchester
• Liverpool
• Leicester

Applicants can click this link (Click Here) to start your application process. After opening this page, you should click the ‘Schedule Appointment’ tab and should select the preferred center.

After selecting the preferred appointment center, you should also choose the date and time.

In the next page, you will be asked to enter the OCI registration number. As you are now trying to cancel your Indian passport, you will not have the OCI number. You can enter your Indian passport number in the field where you should enter the OCI number.

Your appointment will be successfully booked once you click the ‘Submit’ button. You will receive the appointment confirmation letter in your mail box soon. You should take a print out of this confirmation letter.

You should carry the above-mentioned documents along with the printed copy of the appointment letter, and should visit the processing center on time. After analyzing your application, the VFS staff will inform you about the fee which should be paid.

Once you pay the fee, your request will be processed by the VFS officials, and the surrender certificate will be sent to you via post or courier. It should be noted that the applicant is required to provide a self-addressed envelope along with the application to deliver the surrender certificate.

VFS usually charges £15 for courier option, while the charge for delivering the surrender certificate via Royal Mail is £7.30.

How much are the fees to obtain an Indian passport surrender certificate?

The the fee to obtain Indian passport surrender is determined by the Indian government, and it directly depends on the date in which the person of Indian origin has obtained the UK citizenship. Please find below the fee structure based on the date of obtaining foreign nationality.

Fee for UK citizens who obtained nationality before June 1, 2010: 

The applicant should pay a total of £22, and it includes miscellaneous charges and the consular surcharge. Apart from this amount, VFS will charge an additional £7.44. So totally, the applicant should pay £29.44 if the citizenship was granted before June 1, 2010.

Fee for UK citizens who obtained nationality after June 1, 2010: 

In these cases, the fee will be a bit higher. People who obtained nationality after June 1, 2010 should pay £119, and this includes the embassy surrender fees of £117 and £2 as consular charges. VFS will additionally charge £7.44, and thus the total amount that should be paid will be £126.44.

Fee for UK citizens whose Indian passport expired more than ten years ago: 

For these people, VFS will issue a deemed surrender certificate. In order to obtain this, the applicant should £22 along with £7.44 as VFS charge. The total amount that should be paid is £22.

What should I do if I have lost or misplaced my Indian passport?

It should be noted that producing the original copy of the Indian passport is a must to obtain the passport surrender certificate. However, if you have lost or misplaced the Indian passport, you can apply for a Renunciation Declaration. In the declaration, you should note that the original Indian passport is not surrendered.

Special note: In order to avoid misuse of the passport, you should submit a duly notarized affidavit along with a police report.

Even if you complete all the steps mentioned above, it is not possible to guarantee the issuance of the surrender certificate, as the Indian High Commission reserves complete right to sanction it. Sometimes, the High Commission may ask for more details or documents to issue the Indian passport surrender certificate.

Is it possible for me to simultaneously apply for OCI card and passport surrender certificate?

Until now, the government of the UK does not allow their citizens to apply for OCI card and passport surrender certificate simultaneously. Once you receive the surrender certificate, you can later apply for the OCI card.