[My experience of applying for Indian passport for my 3 month old daughter who was born in UK.]
BRP appointment location
Brent Council office for local birth registration
High commission of India for Birth Registration
VFS Goswell road Passport application center
1. Both me and my wife are Indian citizens.
2. Here is the link to submit and download your application: https://www.vfsglobal.com/india/uk/NEW_Indian_Passport.html
You can make the online application without any documents but before you visit the appointment center you should have procured these 3 documents:
A. Birth certificate from the local council
B. Birth registration certificate from High Commission of India(you need A. before this)
C. Valid VISA/BRP(you need A. before this)
A. Birth certificate from the local council
B. Birth registration certificate from High Commission of India(you need A. before this)
C. Valid VISA/BRP(you need A. before this)
A. First of all, get the birth certificate from the council in which your baby was born. The council in which you live doesn't matter. For me it was Brent council. I called them to book the appointment. On the website they mentioned that I had to bring parents' passports. But the lady didn't ask for anything. As an Indian, I am used to take 10 extra documents than the ones which were asked for though. For this appointment you can go there alone - no need to take your child or spouse. You will get the certificate on the spot.
B.C. Armed with this birth certificate you can apply for both the BRP and Birth Registration at High Commission of India in parallel. Both these require the birth certificate from council. For getting appointment at HCI, the online system wasn't working due to Covid. I mailed them multiple times at cons2.london@mea.gov.in and info.london@mea.gov.in to get the appointment. But before doing that, fill the form on their website and take its printout. They mention that you have to bring the photographs for your baby but at the center nobody asked for the photos since it was already there in the application form which I had printed. You don't have to print it in color, print the form in black and white only. You don't have to pay the fees online while taking the appointment. They asked for cash payment of 19 pounds at the center.
For the birth registration at HCI, you can go alone - no need to take your baby or spouse. You will get the certificate right there.
For BRP you need to take your baby since they would take a picture on the spot. You can take your spouse for help but it's optional.
B.C. Armed with this birth certificate you can apply for both the BRP and Birth Registration at High Commission of India in parallel. Both these require the birth certificate from council. For getting appointment at HCI, the online system wasn't working due to Covid. I mailed them multiple times at cons2.london@mea.gov.in and info.london@mea.gov.in to get the appointment. But before doing that, fill the form on their website and take its printout. They mention that you have to bring the photographs for your baby but at the center nobody asked for the photos since it was already there in the application form which I had printed. You don't have to print it in color, print the form in black and white only. You don't have to pay the fees online while taking the appointment. They asked for cash payment of 19 pounds at the center.
For the birth registration at HCI, you can go alone - no need to take your baby or spouse. You will get the certificate right there.
For BRP you need to take your baby since they would take a picture on the spot. You can take your spouse for help but it's optional.
3. After filling the form you have to get an appointment at one of the centers. Sometimes you may have to wait and keep checking the site for available slots.
4. When you download the application form, make sure that all the details are visible. There is a bug in the VFS site due to which the form downloads as empty if done in a certain way. When I did it the details were missing so I found some other way to download it. At the application center they will simply turn you away if your form is empty. I saw it happening to one person.
5. You should have an address proof for the address you mention in the application. That address won't be used for police verification so you don't have to worry whether someone in India is present at that address. I gave the address of my in-laws but then at the application center I was asked to produce an address proof for that address which I didn't have. But luckily they accepted the electricity bill in the name of my mother-in-law because her name was mentioned in my wife's passport. It's better to give the address for which you can easily show an address proof. The best choice is to simply mention the address which is there in one of the parents' passports(i.e. you and your spouse).
If you want to make a change in the application form, they won't accept your request. You will have to redo the entire application. I saw the VFS staff asking people to redo the entire application and come back within 30 minutes or else take a fresh appointment. If you don't have a certain document, even then you will be given 30 minutes to come back or take a fresh appointment online which can be very difficult.
If you want to make a change in the application form, they won't accept your request. You will have to redo the entire application. I saw the VFS staff asking people to redo the entire application and come back within 30 minutes or else take a fresh appointment. If you don't have a certain document, even then you will be given 30 minutes to come back or take a fresh appointment online which can be very difficult.
Also the printer at VFS Goswell road wasn't working when I went there. So if you need a printout or xerox, you would have to go out and find a shop. You can start walking towards Barbican underground station and you will see some shops on the way.
That 30 minute limit which they give you is negotiable. I argued and raised my voice and they made it 2 hours 30 minutes. Many others simply left in despair.
6. The original documents which they asked for at the center were - Both the parents' passports and BRP cards, my newborn's BRP card, parents' marriage certificate.
7. I still don't know whether I was required to take my 3 month old daughter to that crowded center in these Covid times. Nobody checked for her presence. We could have put a doll in the pram and nobody would have noticed. In fact, nobody asked for my wife as well. I could have gone there alone and got it all done since they don't even click photographs. But to be safe you should take your baby and your wife(husband/partner). Anything related to VFS and India is bound to be complicated and it's better to take all the documents you have in the house and all the distant relatives to their center. Better safe than sorry.
8. Regarding photographs, we had to submit 4 copies of my baby's photographs - 2 inch by 2 inch. And 1 copy for me and my wife's photograph. Better to take everyone's photographs 2 inch by 2 inch and 4 copies for each photo. I got the photos from Colorama in South Harrow. The person there is very experienced with these kind of photographs and will help you with the editing(background etc.) to get the right photo. Since it was Covid, I couldn't take my baby to photo shops and clicked multiple photos on my mobile and sent it to Colorama. He fixed the background etc.
That 30 minute limit which they give you is negotiable. I argued and raised my voice and they made it 2 hours 30 minutes. Many others simply left in despair.
6. The original documents which they asked for at the center were - Both the parents' passports and BRP cards, my newborn's BRP card, parents' marriage certificate.
7. I still don't know whether I was required to take my 3 month old daughter to that crowded center in these Covid times. Nobody checked for her presence. We could have put a doll in the pram and nobody would have noticed. In fact, nobody asked for my wife as well. I could have gone there alone and got it all done since they don't even click photographs. But to be safe you should take your baby and your wife(husband/partner). Anything related to VFS and India is bound to be complicated and it's better to take all the documents you have in the house and all the distant relatives to their center. Better safe than sorry.
8. Regarding photographs, we had to submit 4 copies of my baby's photographs - 2 inch by 2 inch. And 1 copy for me and my wife's photograph. Better to take everyone's photographs 2 inch by 2 inch and 4 copies for each photo. I got the photos from Colorama in South Harrow. The person there is very experienced with these kind of photographs and will help you with the editing(background etc.) to get the right photo. Since it was Covid, I couldn't take my baby to photo shops and clicked multiple photos on my mobile and sent it to Colorama. He fixed the background etc.
9. The passport arrived 13 days after the appointment. No police verification was done in India or London.
10. I had to fill some forms for 2 contacts in India and police station details etc. I don't know whether they would do the police verification for 3 month old babies. When I had applied for passport for my minor son in India - there wasn't any police verification.
11. I paid the fees for the passport at the center. I didn't have to pay it online while taking the appointment. It was 62 pounds and I paid with card. But as a backup you should be ready with cash.
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