What to Do If You Lose Your Passport While Travelling Abroad?

Knowing what happens if your passport is lost abroad and what necessary measures can be taken to overcome this situation can help you gain better control over the situation. In the case of an Indian passport lost abroad, follow these steps:

1.Step 1: File a Police Complaint

The moment you realise that you have lost your passport while abroad, you will need to head to your nearest police station and file a complaint for your stolen passport. You may be expected to produce other documents verifying your identity and answer questions about your travel when you file a missing passport complaint.

Ensure that you keep a copy of the complaint report, as this will be needed when you apply for a new passport and raise a claim against your travelling insurance. When you file a report with the police, you may also be assisted with the formalities related to the embassy, such as applying for an emergency certificate or a new passport.

2.Step 2: Intimate the Nearest Indian Embassy or Consulate

After filing a report about your lost Indian passport abroad, you will be expected to contact or visit the nearest Indian Embassy or consulate. Embassies are located abroad, particularly to come to the aid of citizens when they find themselves in an unpleasant situation, such as passport theft.
Once you visit the Indian embassy, they will issue an emergency certificate or replacement passport after verifying your nationality so you can safely return home. Let’s understand how to apply for a lost passport.

Typically, if you have lost your Indian passport abroad, there are two ways in which you can return home:

Applying for a Replacement Passport

When you visit the Indian Embassy, you can apply for a replacement certificate for your lost passport. Here are the documents you will need for the re-application of your passport:

• Copy of the front and back pages of your lost passport
• Copy of the police report of the lost/stolen passport
• 4-6 Passport sized photographs of yourself
• Copy of your Visa
• Flights tickets
• Duly filled passport application form

Once you share the aforementioned documents, the embassy sends your application to India to print your replacement passport. This passport is then sent to the embassy where you have filed your application. This is approximately a week-long process during which the traveller must stay in the country they have travelled to.

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Applying for an Emergency Certificate

The emergency certificate is an authorisation document that is issued by the Indian embassy to citizens of India who have lost their passports and want to return to India. Here are the documents you will need if you are applying for an emergency certificate at the Indian embassy:

o Submitting the EAP-2 FORM application
o Copy of the front and back pages of your lost passport
o Copy of the police report of the lost/stolen passport
o 4-6 Passport sized photographs of yourself
Travellers can choose to apply for an emergency certificate if they don’t wish to wait for a week in a foreign country.

3. Step 3: Re-Schedule Your Flight and Raise a Claim Against Your Travel Insurance

It can be challenging (sometimes even impossible) to board your flight in time if you don’t have ample time to take care of the aforementioned steps. In such a scenario, connecting with the airline and rescheduling your flight is advisable. If you are uncertain about when you can fly, you can even cancel your flight and claim your flight cancellation insurance.

Your comprehensive travel insurance will also compensate you for losing your passport when you return to India. Individuals often use their travelling insurance to be compensated for the cost of getting a replacement passport.

The travel insurance plan by Tata AIG comes with a loss of passport cover. With this loss of passport cover in your travel insurance, you will be reimbursed for all the necessary expenses that had to be incurred to obtain a replacement passport. Along with the reimbursement, your travelling insurance will also help notify the assistance company of your passport loss, which helps you reach out to the respective authorities.

However, before investing in a travel insurance plan with loss of passport cover, you must read the policy exclusions to know the scenarios under which you will not be covered.

Now that you know the important steps to be taken if you lose your passport overseas and how to apply for a lost passport, you are better equipped to deal with this unpleasant scenario. Buying comprehensive travel insurance is one of the best ways to prepare for unpleasant scenarios like passport theft and other contingencies while away from home. And so, before you add the thrilling story of “lost my passport abroad” to your travel journal, ensure that you secure your journeys with reliable travelling insurance.