Indian passport, visa, OCI and different consular providers have resumed throughout Australia by means of six upgraded Indian Consular Software Centres operated by VFS International.
The brand new centres grew to become operational on 23 July 2026 in Adelaide, Brisbane, Canberra, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney. The change impacts Indian residents residing in Australia, Australian residents travelling to India and anybody making use of for an Indian consular service by means of VFS International.
Indian Consular Companies Resume After Short-term Disruption
Indian Consular, Passport and Visa providers grew to become briefly unavailable by means of VFS International from 1 July 2026. The earlier utility centres had stopped serving the general public after 30 June 2026 whereas the transition to the brand new service preparations was accomplished.
From 23 July 2026, functions can as soon as once more be submitted by means of the brand new Indian Consular Software Centre community.
Companies out there by means of the VFS International system embrace:
- Indian visa functions
- Indian passport providers
- Abroad Citizen of India functions
- Police Clearance Certificates
- Give up of Indian passports
- Different eligible Indian consular providers
Candidates ought to choose the proper service class earlier than finishing the related Authorities of India utility type.
The place Are the New Indian Consular Software Centres?
The six centres are working from the next places:
| Metropolis | New Indian Consular Software Centre Deal with |
|---|---|
| Adelaide | Suite 8.01, Stage 8, 111 Gawler Place, Adelaide SA 5000 |
| Brisbane | Suite 0201, Stage 2, 127 Creek Avenue, Brisbane Metropolis QLD 4000 |
| Canberra | Half Stage 6, 40 Marcus Clarke Avenue, Canberra ACT 2601 |
| Melbourne | Floor Flooring, 324 St Kilda Highway, Melbourne VIC 3004 |
| Perth | Floor Flooring, 23 Barrack Avenue, Perth WA 6000 |
| Sydney | Stage 9, 22–24 Market Avenue, Sydney NSW 2000 |
These addresses exchange the earlier public utility centre places. Candidates mustn’t ship paperwork or attend an previous centre primarily based on saved directions, earlier utility data or outdated on-line data.
What Has Modified on the New Centres?
The upgraded centres have been established to handle rising demand for Indian passport, visa and consular providers in Australia.
The modifications embrace extra service counters, extra employees and elevated appointment capability. VFS International has additionally launched longer submission and assortment home windows to enhance the circulate of candidates by means of the centres. These modifications are supposed to cut back delays, though precise ready and processing instances will nonetheless depend upon demand, utility completeness and the service being requested.
Non-obligatory providers might also be out there, together with:
- Doc return or courier providers
- SMS utility updates
- Photocopying
- Passport {photograph} providers
- Help with finishing types, the place relevant
These are facilitation providers. Buying an non-compulsory service doesn’t decide whether or not an utility will likely be accepted or processed quicker.
Buyer help has additionally been expanded by means of multilingual phone assist, Interactive Voice Response providers and AI-enabled digital assist channels.
On-line Appointments Are Required
Candidates should e book an appointment on-line earlier than attending an Indian Consular Software Centre.
The VFS International visa steering particularly states that walk-in visa submissions should not accepted. Candidates should full the required Authorities of India type, put together their paperwork, e book an appointment and attend the centre serving their jurisdiction.
Don’t journey to a centre anticipating employees to simply accept an utility with out an appointment. An incomplete utility might also be rejected on the counter, forcing the applicant to appropriate the paperwork and e book one other appointment.
Biometrics Are Necessary for Visa and OCI Purposes
A significant procedural change applies to Indian visa and OCI functions.
From 1 July 2026, biometric enrolment grew to become necessary for all visa and OCI functions submitted in Australia. Candidates should attend a pre-booked appointment and supply biometrics when lodging their utility.
This implies candidates mustn’t assume that an utility might be accomplished totally by submit just because they used a postal course of beforehand.
Candidates utilizing passport, Police Clearance Certificates or different consular providers ought to verify the present directions for his or her particular service. Necessities should not an identical throughout each utility class.
Software Checklists and Postal Addresses Have Modified
The bodily centres should not the one a part of the system that has modified.
Candidates have been suggested to assessment the up to date VFS International web site as a result of a number of procedures have been revised through the transition. These could embrace:
- Software checklists
- Supporting doc necessities
- Designated GPO packing containers for postal functions
- Accepted cost strategies
- VFS International service prices
- Authorities charges
- Appointment procedures
- Software submission directions
Utilizing an previous guidelines is a foul thought. A doc set that was accepted below the earlier course of could not fulfill the present necessities.
Postal candidates should additionally use the designated deal with proven for his or her jurisdiction and repair. Sending an utility to an previous workplace, outdated submit workplace field or incorrect centre could trigger rejection, delay or document-return issues.
Verify the Present Opening Hours Earlier than Attending
On the time of writing, the dwell VFS International “Attend a Centre” web page lists all six centres as working Monday to Friday from 8:30 am to five:00 pm.
Nonetheless, some preliminary reopening bulletins reported closing instances of 4:00 pm. As a result of revealed hours haven’t been utterly constant, candidates ought to observe the time proven of their appointment affirmation and verify the dwell VFS International centre web page earlier than travelling.
Don’t depend on a social media graphic, an previous screenshot or data copied from one other web site.
Easy methods to Put together Earlier than Your Appointment
Choose the Appropriate Service
Affirm whether or not you might be making use of for a visa, passport, OCI card, Police Clearance Certificates, passport give up or one other consular service.
Full the Required Authorities Kind
Full the proper on-line Authorities of India utility type. Verify names, dates, passport numbers, addresses and household particulars rigorously.
Use the Present Doc Guidelines
Obtain the newest guidelines from the official VFS International service web page. Don’t reuse a guidelines from an older utility.
Guide the Appointment On-line
Choose the proper centre, service class and out there appointment. Make a copy of the appointment affirmation.
Affirm Charges and Fee Strategies
Verify the present authorities payment, VFS International service cost and any optional-service value. For visa functions, VFS International states that its service payment is paid by means of the appointment course of, whereas relevant authorities charges are collected on the centre when the applying is submitted.
Put together Full Supporting Paperwork
Convey the unique paperwork, copies, images, types and cost proof required by the present guidelines.
Attend in Particular person The place Required
Visa and OCI candidates should attend for biometric enrolment. Different candidates ought to observe the attendance or postal directions for his or her explicit service.
What Occurs to Purposes Submitted to the Previous Centres?
The earlier utility centres not present public providers.
Candidates mustn’t go to an previous location or ship a brand new postal utility utilizing an deal with that utilized earlier than 1 July 2026. New functions should observe the revised course of and use the proper centre or postal deal with proven on the present VFS International web site.
Anybody with an utility submitted earlier than the transition ought to use the official monitoring and customer-support channels to verify its standing somewhat than submitting a reproduction utility.
Closing Info for Candidates
The opening of six new Indian Consular Software Centres restores entry to necessary passport, visa, OCI and consular providers throughout Australia.
The brand new services are supposed to supply extra appointment capability and a greater utility expertise. That doesn’t take away the applicant’s duty to organize the applying appropriately.
Earlier than submitting something:
- Verify the present deal with
- Obtain the newest guidelines
- Affirm whether or not biometrics are required
- Evaluate the relevant charges
- Guide a web-based appointment
- Use solely the designated postal deal with
- Be certain that each type and supporting doc is full
Incomplete functions, outdated types and paperwork despatched to the incorrect deal with will not be accepted.
This data is basic and will change. Candidates ought to confirm the newest necessities by means of the official VFS International India–Australia web site and the Excessive Fee or related Consulate Common of India earlier than lodging an utility.
