Expats with no surname in passports ‘struggling to renew visas’
Many expatriates are finding it difficult to renew their visas as their passports don’t carry a surname, which is the most important thing that identifies a person’s origin, it emerged. A good number of them, mainly from India, having a blank surname are approaching the embassy visa service centre to get their names corrected in the passport. If there is a change in name the passports need to be re-issued. Many who applied for passport prior to the complete online system, have got their Indian passports with surname blank, according to social worker K T Salim.
“Many of them have to follow the name change process as well. You will need to publish and advertise in a reputed newspaper regarding name change and submit the newspaper clipping to the Indian embassy with supporting documents. The applicants must make sure that their surname or family name corresponds to their actual family name or initial in their certificates,” he added.
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