Right to Travel Abroad & Passport NOC When a Criminal Case Is Pending
A pending FIR or criminal trial can quietly bring life to a standstill. The passport comes up for renewal and the Regional Passport Office (RPO) says it cannot proceed without a court NOC. Often the application simply sits there — sometimes for months, sometimes for years — with no written reasons. This happens even to people who are on bail, have complied with every court condition, or already hold express judicial permission. Job offers lapse, work visas expire, and family events abroad are missed.
Since December 2025, the Supreme Court and the Bombay High Court have made the legal position unmistakable: being an accused is not the same as being a convict, and a pending case is not an automatic bar to holding a passport. This article sets out the constitutional foundation, the statutory framework, the latest rulings, the common errors passport authorities make, and a practical step-by-step remedy.
1. Travel Abroad Is Part of Personal Liberty under Article 21
The right to go abroad has been part of Indian constitutional law for nearly six decades. Once travel is recognised as part of dignity and liberty, every restriction on it must pass the test of proportionality. Administrative convenience is not enough.
Satwant Singh Sawhney v. D. Ramarathnam (1967)
The Supreme Court held that the right to travel abroad is part of personal liberty under Article 21 and cannot be taken away except by procedure established by law.
Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India (1978) 1 SCC 248
Any procedure restricting this right, including impounding a passport, must be fair, just and reasonable, not arbitrary. Article 21 includes the right to live with human dignity.
Francis Coralie Mullin v. Administrator, UT of Delhi (1981)
Life includes the freedom to move about freely and to mix with other people.
Satish Chandra Verma v. Union of India (2019)
The right to travel abroad is an important basic human right that extends to private life: marriage, family and friendship.
2. The Statutory Framework
Section 6(2)(f), Passports Act, 1967
The passport authority may refuse a passport where proceedings in respect of an offence alleged to have been committed by the applicant are pending before a criminal court in India. It is a discretionary ground, not an absolute prohibition.
Section 22 and Notification GSR 570(E) dated 25 August 1993
This notification allows a person facing criminal proceedings to be issued or re-issued a passport where the court concerned permits it.
- If the court order prescribes no period — passport issued for one year.
- If the court permits travel for less than a year but says nothing about validity — passport still issued for one year.
- If the court permits foreign travel for more than a year without specifying validity — passport issued for the period of travel mentioned in the order.
The applicant must also file an undertaking (available on the Passport Seva portal) disclosing pending cases and promising to appear before the court whenever required.
MEA Office Memorandum dated 10 October 2019
This Ministry of External Affairs memorandum directs passport authorities to follow court orders strictly, to give effect to judicial permission even where police verification is adverse, and to issue passports for the duration that the law and the court order allow.
3. Passport vs. Permission to Travel: The Key Distinction
A Passport
A civil document. Serves as proof of identity and nationality. Needed for visas, employment and banking. Does not give automatic permission to leave India.
Permission to Travel
Regulated exclusively by the criminal court, which retains full control over travel restrictions, bail conditions, and deposit or redeposit of the passport.
Because of this distinction, the passport authority cannot use the renewal process to do the criminal court's job, and it cannot override judicial supervision.
4. The Landmark Ruling: Mahesh Kumar Agarwal v. Union of India (2025 INSC 1476)
Bench: Vikram Nath and A.G. Masih, JJ. · Decided: 19 December 2025
Facts
The appellant was facing NIA proceedings under Section 120B IPC read with Section 17 UAPA. His passport expired in August 2023. The NIA Court at Ranchi gave a no objection to renewal, subject to redeposit of the passport. The Delhi High Court, while suspending his sentence in a separate conviction, expressly allowed a 10-year renewal. The RPO still refused under Section 6(2)(f), and the Calcutta High Court upheld the refusal.
The Supreme Court allowed the appeal and held:
No absolute bar. People with pending criminal cases are not absolutely disentitled to a passport. GSR 570(E) itself recognises this.
A passport is a document; travel is a judicial matter. Possessing a valid passport is different from actually travelling abroad, and the criminal court keeps control over the latter.
No journey-specific permission needed. Courts need not approve a particular trip before a passport is renewed. Conditions such as no travel without prior permission and redeposit of the passport are enough. Treating every permission as a one-time licence unduly narrows GSR 570(E).
No second-guessing. The passport authority cannot substitute its own view for the criminal court's assessment of flight risk, and it cannot insist on travel itineraries or visas at the renewal stage.
Proportionality. Refusing renewal indefinitely despite court permission is a disproportionate restriction on Article 21. Section 6(2)(f) cannot operate as a permanent prohibition.
Liberty is not a gift of the State but its first obligation.— Mahesh Kumar Agarwal, para 2
5. Conviction vs. Pending Trial
6. Bombay High Court Guidelines: Sagar Pradeep Oak v. State of Maharashtra
2026:BHC-AS:20892 · A.S. Gadkari and Ranjitsinha Raja Bhonsale, JJ. · 4 May 2026
Several petitioners had cases still at a preliminary stage — some without even cognizance taken — and were losing jobs and work visas abroad while waiting for NOCs. The Division Bench applied Mahesh Kumar Agarwal and issued the following guidelines:
10-year renewal is the norm
Passports should generally be renewed or reissued for 10 years under Rule 12 of the Passport Rules, unless a court specifically orders otherwise.
Administrative NOC route
Many NOCs can be handled administratively, based on a verified affidavit, a court report on case status, and confirmation from the Public Prosecutor.
Serious offences get judicial scrutiny
Cases involving serious or heinous offences, financial fraud, or offences against the State should be decided by the criminal court on the judicial side.
Renewal is not permission to travel
A renewed passport does not override any bail condition restricting travel.
Other High Courts have taken the same view. In Venkata Siva Kumar Yadhanapudi v. Union of India (Telangana HC, 2024), the court directed a full 10-year renewal despite a pending case.
7. Common Errors by Passport Authorities
Despite settled law, RPOs frequently make the following errors — each of which is contrary to Mahesh Kumar Agarwal and can be challenged:
Treating Section 6(2)(f) as an absolute prohibition
Ignoring or refusing to act on court-issued no-objection orders
Demanding specific foreign travel plans, tickets or visas at the renewal stage
Restricting validity to one year even where the court has permitted a regular renewal
Keeping applications pending indefinitely without a written, reasoned order
8. Permission to Travel: What Criminal Courts Consider
Where bail conditions require surrendering the passport or getting leave before going abroad, the application goes to the trial court (or the court that granted bail) under the relevant BNSS provisions. Courts usually consider:
Genuineness of purpose
Employment, business, medical treatment, education, family events.
Full itinerary
Dates, destination addresses, contact details and return tickets.
Security
Sureties or a deposit proportionate to the flight risk.
Undertakings
To return on time, appear on the dates fixed, and not tamper with evidence or influence witnesses.
Conduct so far
Regular attendance, cooperation with the investigation, compliance with bail conditions.
In Parvez Noordin Lokhandwalla v. State of Maharashtra (2020) 10 SCC 77, the Supreme Court restored permission to travel to the USA despite a pending FIR, subject to strict conditions. Where a Look Out Circular has been issued, it can be challenged or suspended for a specific trip if the accused shows bona fides.
9. Step-by-Step Remedy if Your Passport Renewal Is Pending or Refused
Follow these steps in order
Apply online with full disclosure
Truthfully disclose every FIR, trial, appeal or conviction. Suppression is an offence and invites refusal.
Check your bail order
Review bail conditions for passport surrender or travel restrictions before proceeding.
Obtain court permission or a no-objection
Apply to the court where the case is pending. Ask expressly for a 10-year renewal, citing Mahesh Kumar Agarwal and (in Maharashtra) Sagar Pradeep Oak. Offer to redeposit the passport and not to travel without prior leave.
File the GSR 570(E) undertaking
Submit the undertaking and certified court orders with the RPO at the verification stage.
Send a written representation if delayed
If the application is delayed, cut to one year, or refused, cite GSR 570(E), the 2019 MEA Office Memorandum, Mahesh Kumar Agarwal, and Article 21. Ask for a reasoned decision within a fixed time.
File a writ petition under Article 226
High Courts regularly direct passport authorities to renew passports where the law has been disregarded.
Seek travel permission for each trip
Where bail conditions require it, apply to the criminal court before each trip abroad.
10. Key Authorities at a Glance
11. Frequently Asked Questions
Q. Can passport renewal be refused only because a criminal case is pending?
A. No. Section 6(2)(f) is not an absolute bar. Where the criminal court permits renewal, the passport should be issued.
Q. Is court permission mandatory?
A. Ordinarily, yes, where criminal proceedings are pending. GSR 570(E) is built around court permission. In Maharashtra, however, the Bombay High Court has provided an administrative NOC route for many cases and has dispensed with the NOC for first-time applications and for page-exhaustion reissue.
Q. Can the RPO ignore a court order or insist on a travel itinerary?
A. No. Judicial permission prevails over adverse police verification, and the Supreme Court has held that the authority cannot demand journey-specific details at the renewal stage.
Q. Can a passport be issued for 10 years?
A. Yes. Where the court permits renewal without restricting validity, a regular 10-year passport should be issued. Since GSR 570(E) defaults to one year when the order is silent, it is best to ask the court to say 10 years expressly.
Q. Does a renewed passport mean I can travel freely?
A. No. Any bail condition requiring prior permission or redeposit of the passport continues to apply. You must apply to the court before each trip where required.
Q. What if the RPO keeps the application pending?
A. Send a written representation. If there is no response, or the application is refused, file a writ petition under Article 226 before the High Court.
Conclusion
A pending criminal case does not extinguish the right to a passport. The law balances personal liberty under Article 21 against judicial oversight to secure the accused's presence at trial. The criminal court carries out that balancing through proportionate conditions. The passport office cannot add restrictions beyond the statute and the court's orders. When courts have already put safeguards in place, refusing a passport or cutting its validity short is an unnecessary restriction on the dignity and liberty guaranteed by the Constitution.
Passport Renewal Delayed or Refused Because of a Criminal Case?
Aequitas Legis Associates advises on court permissions, NOCs, representations to the RPO, and writ petitions before the Bombay High Court. Contact our Pune, Mumbai or Delhi office.
Disclaimer: This article is for general information only and is not legal advice. Outcomes depend on the facts of each case, the stage of proceedings and the bail conditions.
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