Centre Changes Citizenship Application Rules, Seeks Additional Passport Details From Some Applicants

The Centre has brought in another procedural change to the citizenship application process, this time asking certain applicants to disclose passport-related details connected to Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh.

The amendment has been introduced through changes to the Citizenship Rules, 2009, notified by the Ministry of Home Affairs. The revised requirement is expected to apply mainly to people applying for Indian citizenship under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act route, according to a recent Mint report.

Though the change may appear technical, it could affect applicants who migrated years ago and are now in the process of regularising their citizenship status in India.

Fresh Disclosure Requirement Added

As per the revised rules, applicants will now have to mention whether they currently possess, or previously possessed, passports issued by Pakistan, Afghanistan, or Bangladesh.

Where no such passport exists, applicants will have to state that clearly in the citizenship forms. But if a person had held such a passport earlier, additional information will now have to be provided. This includes details such as passport number, place of issue, issue date, and expiry date.

Officials believe this could make background verification easier during the citizenship approval process.

In several migration-related cases, authorities often face gaps in documentation because many families crossed borders years ago and may no longer have complete records available. By making passport disclosure mandatory, the government appears to be trying to build a clearer documentation trail for applicants.

Reports also suggest that some applicants may have to submit declarations connected to surrendering foreign passports after receiving Indian citizenship.

Citizenship Process Seeing More Documentation Checks

The Citizenship (Amendment) Act, passed in 2019, had opened a special citizenship pathway for Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis, and Christians from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh who entered India before December 31, 2014.

Since then, several operational and procedural changes linked to implementation have gradually been introduced.

In recent years, the government has increasingly relied on digital scrutiny, identity verification systems, and document-based checks across different departments. Similar tightening has already become visible in tax compliance systems, immigration processes, and financial reporting requirements.

Citizenship applications are also seeing a stronger focus on documentary proof and identity verification than before.

Officials have maintained that proper disclosures help reduce confusion during processing and allow authorities to cross-check nationality records more efficiently.

India does not recognise dual citizenship in the traditional sense. Because of this, earlier nationality documents and foreign passports often become relevant during the scrutiny of citizenship applications.

Why Applicants May Need To Pay Attention

For applicants covered under the CAA framework, the latest amendment may increase paperwork requirements during the application stage.

People who migrated many years ago may now need to gather older records or reconstruct details linked to expired passports and nationality documents. In practical terms, that could become difficult for families that relocated decades ago or no longer possess complete papers.

Lawyers and immigration observers say procedural changes of this nature often appear small initially, but they can significantly influence how smoothly applications move through the verification stage.

The latest amendment also signals that the government is continuing to tighten procedural checks around citizenship processing rather than relaxing them.

For many applicants, the focus may now shift from merely proving eligibility under the law to ensuring that all past identity and nationality records are fully documented and properly disclosed before citizenship approval is granted.

FAQs

1. What is the new change in the citizenship application rules?

Applicants covered under the revised rules must now disclose whether they currently hold, or previously held, passports from Pakistan, Afghanistan, or Bangladesh.

2. Who is likely to be affected by the new passport disclosure requirement?

The change is expected to mainly affect people applying for Indian citizenship under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act framework.

3. Why has the government introduced this additional disclosure requirement?

The government appears to be tightening documentation and identity verification checks during the citizenship approval process.