This worries a lot of clients, so let me separate genuine risk from unnecessary fear. A civil divorce petition by itself does not bar your passport issuance or renewal. The passport authorities are not automatically informed of, and are not generally concerned with, an ongoing matrimonial suit. So a routine contested or mutual-consent divorce, on its own, should not stop your passport.

There are two situations where you must be careful. First, if the Family Court has passed a specific order restraining you from leaving the country or requiring a No-Objection Certificate before travel, you are bound to comply with it. Second — and this is the real trigger — if there is a pending criminal case connected to the matrimonial dispute, such as a complaint under Section 85 BNS (the old 498A), then Section 6(2)(f) of the Passports Act comes into play, and a passport can be denied unless you produce the court's permission or an NOC.

The safe course is honesty and paperwork: disclose the pending proceeding and obtain an NOC from the court, which is routinely granted where you are cooperating with the case. Concealment is what causes problems, not the litigation itself. A lawyer from the Agra matrimonial panel can move a simple application for travel permission so your passport and visa plans stay on track.

On visas, consulates sometimes ask about pending litigation, but a civil matrimonial case rarely bars a visa. What harms applications is non-disclosure. Answer truthfully, keep your court NOC handy, and a pending divorce need not derail your travel or immigration plans.