The short answer
A pending FIR, by itself, does not automatically stop you from travelling abroad. The line the law draws is not at the FIR stage. Under Section 6(2)(f) of the Passports Act, 1967, a passport can be refused where criminal proceedings are pending before a criminal court in India - a stage that comes well after an FIR is registered and investigated. And in Amardeep Singh Bedi v. Union of India (Delhi High Court, 1 October 2024, Justice Sanjeev Narula), the court held that the mere pendency of a criminal case does not automatically disqualify a person from a police clearance certificate or a visa. A court case that has reached trial, or bail conditions that restrict your movement, can change the answer - which is why you check the specifics, not the rumour.
What Section 6(2)(f) actually bars
The Passports Act lists the grounds on which a passport can be refused. Section 6(2)(f) covers the criminal-law ground: proceedings in respect of an offence alleged to have been committed by the applicant are pending before a criminal court in India. Read it literally. It speaks of proceedings before a court, not an FIR sitting at a police station. An FIR begins an investigation; proceedings before a court begin when the investigation ends and the court takes the case up. The statute's bar therefore attaches to a later stage than the FIR. This is the distinction the whole question turns on: an FIR is an allegation under investigation, and the passport provision is aimed at cases already before a judge.
What the Delhi High Court said
In Amardeep Singh Bedi v. Union of India (2024 SCC OnLine Del 7039), decided on 1 October 2024 by Justice Sanjeev Narula, the Delhi High Court held that the mere pendency of a criminal case does not automatically disqualify a person from getting a police clearance certificate or a visa. An unreasonable restriction on travel, the court said, violates Article 19 of the Constitution. The practical direction the court gave: where a case is pending, the police clearance certificate should be issued mentioning the pending cases, rather than refused outright. In other words, the system is supposed to record the fact of the pending case and let the destination country's authorities apply their own rules - not to silently close the door.
Before you book: check these three things
None of the above is a personal clearance. Before you make plans, work through this checklist:
- 1Bail conditions. If you are on bail, read the bail order line by line. Courts commonly impose conditions such as surrendering the passport or seeking the court's permission before leaving the country. A bail condition is a court order, and breaching it has consequences of its own.
- 2The destination country's rules. A police clearance certificate is usually needed for work, study, or immigration visas, and each country sets its own standard for what it accepts. The Delhi High Court's direction governs how Indian authorities issue the certificate; it cannot control what a foreign consulate decides.
- 3Your paperwork. Keep the FIR copy, any court orders, and bail papers together - and if the case has ended, the certified copy of the acquittal, discharge, or quashing order. If anyone asks about your record, the document answers faster than you can.
When travel genuinely can be blocked
Two situations change the picture. First, a court order: if the court trying your case, or the court that granted bail, has restricted your travel, that order binds you until it is modified. Second, a case that has reached the court: once criminal proceedings are pending before a criminal court, the statutory bar in Section 6(2)(f) can apply. Both are specific, written, and checkable - the opposite of a vague fear that an FIR alone has grounded you.
What this guide is
This is a description of the public process, not legal advice. For advice about your own case, speak to a lawyer or the police station handling it.