Indian passport not proof of citizenship, says ministry

In what will come as a surprise to the millions of Indian citizens living in the UAE and across the world, a Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) official has said that the Indian passport is primarily a travel document, not a proof of citizenship.

Addressing the 14th Passport Seva Divas, the MEA said it issued 13.9 million passports in 2025.

Meanwhile, India’s external affairs minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday hailed the passport services.

In a message shared on X, Jaishankar noted that the event marks the anniversary of the Passports Act of 1967 and serves as a reflection on the modernisation of India's passport infrastructure.

Jaishankar credited Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of ‘Minimum Government, Maximum Governance’ as the driving force behind the success of the Passport Seva Programme.

He further affirmed that the MEA has achieved significant digital milestones, including the successful operationalisation of the upgraded Passport Seva Programme (PSP V2.0) domestically and the deployment of the Global Passport Seva Programme (GPSP V2.0) at diplomatic missions worldwide to better serve the Indian diaspora.

He noted that one of the defining features of this technological shift is the successful rollout of chip-enabled e-Passports, which meet international standards for security and authentication.

545 centres

The MEA official underlined how there are now 545 Passport Kendras across the country in comparison to 77 Passport Kendras present 10 years ago, a six-fold increase in the number of centres.

The MEA official further informed that now for Indians, countries with visa-free entry stand at 27, seeing an increase from 16 in 2019.

"47 countries have a visa on arrival for Indians and 66 countries offer electronic visa for Indians," the official added.

The official highlighted that mobility agreements are mostly with Europe.

"They facilitate easier mobility of academics, students, apprentices, regular tourists, and businesses. Also, creating a mechanism for easier return of illegal migrants.