On Passport Seva Divas, the MEA said that a passport does not by itself serve as proof of citizenship, despite being issued exclusively to Indian citizens. The clarification has sparked fresh debate over the documents that can be used to conclusively verify citizenship status.
Published: June 24, 2026, 8:13 PM IST
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Marking Passport Seva Divas on June 24, officials from the Ministry of External Affairs said a two-day Human Resource Mobility Forum will be organised next week. File image/PTI
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said a passport is a travel document, not a citizenship certificate on Wednesday. They also outlined the benefits of new chip-enabled e-passports, which use biometric data to strengthen security and curb fraud.
Marking Passport Seva Divas on June 24, officials from the Ministry of External Affairs said a two-day Human Resource Mobility Forum will be organised next week. The forum is intended to raise awareness about safe and legal migration options while providing opportunities for Indian workers to interact with overseas employers.
A passport should be viewed as a travel document rather than a citizenship certificate, officials said, noting that its primary purpose is to confirm an Indian citizen’s nationality overseas. One official added that passports are issued only after a thorough verification process involving several government departments.
E-passports contain personal particulars, biometric data
A total of 14.7 million e-passports have been issued since the chip-based documents were rolled out last year as part of a revamp of the Passport Seva Programme, the officials said. The e-passports, which have an embedded antenna and a radio frequency identification (RFID) chip containing personal particulars and biometric data, account for about 10 per cent of the total passports. All new passports are currently chip-based passports.
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According to officials, e-passports provide a higher level of security by protecting personal data from tampering and reducing the chances of fraud. “Creating fake passports is much harder now, and the added security helps foreign immigration authorities process travellers more efficiently,” an official said.
Officials said the e-passport chips are sourced by the India Security Press in Nashik from international suppliers. They added that global best practices were incorporated into the design and that work is continuing to enhance security standards.
While Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) acts as the technology and service provider for the Passport Seva Project, all data related to passports is stored on the servers of the external affairs ministry, the officials said.
Human Resource Mobility Forum
The upcoming Human Resource Mobility Forum, to be held on June 30 and July 1, will spotlight opportunities in Denmark, Germany, Italy, Japan and Russia. The MEA is working with the labour and education ministries to create a platform where Indian job seekers can connect with foreign employers and recruitment agencies.
Officials underscored the importance of training workers and promoting structured recruitment channels for overseas employment, citing cases of Indians being duped into joining the Russian military. “Ethical employers have to be matched with job seekers, who must also be made aware of potential risks,” an official said.
At the same time, efforts are on to expand the number of countries offering visa-free travel or visa-on-arrival services to Indian nationals and to further improve the functioning of Passport Seva Kendras and Post Office Passport Seva Kendras, including cutting the time taken to process applications.
The processing time for passport applications has been cut to an average of five to six days, and steps have been taken to ensure that applicants spend less than 45 minutes at a Passport Seva Kendra, the officials said. There are 544 such kendras across the country, up from 77 a decade ago.
Efforts are also underway to slash the time for police verification of passport applicants, with the focus on replicating the success of some states in reducing this to two to three days in other parts of the country, the officials said.
