Overseas Citizen of India

In view the Government's deep commitment towards fulfilling the aspirations and expectations of Overseas Indians, the Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) Scheme was introduced by amending the Citizenship Act, 1955 in August 2005.

Eligibility: -

The Scheme provides for registration as Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) of all Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs) who were citizens of India on 26th January, 1950 or thereafter or were eligible to become citizens of India on 26th January, 1950 except who is or had been a citizen of Pakistan, Bangladesh or such other country as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, specify.

OCI is not to be misconstrued as 'dual citizenship'. OCI does not confer political rights. The registered Overseas Citizens of India shall not be entitled to the rights conferred on a citizen of India under Article 16 of the Constitution, with regard to equality of opportunity in matters of public employment. Detailed instructions and procedures on the OCI Scheme are available on the website:(www.mha.nic.in ) of the Ministry of Home Affairs(MHA).

Procedure for submission of application: -

Any eligible person can submit an application forregistration as OCI Cardholder on the online system. For thispurpose, they may log on to https://passport.gov.in/oci. Applicants are required to upload all the requisite documents(self attested), photograph and signature (in the case of minors whocannot sign, left hand thumb impression) along with the application.

Documents to be submitted with the application

Proof of present citizenship:-

• Copy of present valid passport (applicable in all cases), with validity of minimum 6 months at the time of submission of application.

 

• Copy of valid Qatar ID.

 

• Copy of the certificate of registration of citizenship/Naturalization (as the case may be), for the present nationality of the applicant (applicable in all cases), along with details of previous nationalities held.

 

• Cancelled/Surrendered Indian Passport with Surrender Certificate (for those who have surrendered Indian Passport in or after 2010).

 

• Evidence of address of the place of application

 

• Copy of the Electricity Bill/Telephone Bill in own/parents/grandparents/spouse name.

 

• If the above is in any other relative’s name, undertaking from the relative stating that the foreigner is residing with him/her.

 

• Lease License in case of tenants.

 

• Evidence of Indian Origin of self or parents or grandparents or great grandparents

 

• Being a citizen of India at the time of, or at any time after the commencement of the Constitution i.e. 26.01.1950; or

 

• Being eligible to become a citizen of India at the time of commencement of the Constitution i.e. 26.01.1950; or

 

• Belonging to a territory that became part of India after 15^th August, 1947. These could be:

 

• Copy of the Indian Passport; or

 

• Copy of the Domicile Certificate issued by the Competent Authority; or

 

• Copy of the Nativity Certificate from the Competent Authority; or

 

• PIO/OCI Card of Parents/spouse along with documents to prove Indian Origin; or

 

• Any other proof substantiating the request. Usually applicants are able to submit a certificate of residence or place of birth of self/parents/grandparents from First Class Magistrate/District Magistrate (DM) of the concerned place.

 

• Evidence of relationship as parent/ grandparent/ great grandparent, if their Indian Origin is claimed as basis for registration as OCI Cardholder:

 

• The document of relationship could be “Birth Certificate” issued from competent authority mentioning both parents’ names. In case the birth certificate is issued by a foreign authority, it is to be Apostilled or endorsed by the concerned Indian Mission Abroad/concerned foreign Mission in India.

Note: If the parents are divorced, court order of dissolution of marriage, which specifically mentions that the legal custody of the child is with the parent, who is applying for OCI Card. If the court order is in any foreign language, translation in English or Hindi by an authorized translator is to be enclosed.

• Birth certificate from Birth Registrar to be supported by

 

• Education documents if any and

 

• Documents of inherited landed property, if any.

 

• Marriage Certificate of parents (If not available, reasons for same).

 

• In case of minor child whose both parents are citizens of India or one of the parents is a citizen of India

 

• Copy of child’s birth Certificate.

 

• Marriage Certificate of Parents (if no marriage certificate is available, reasons for same to be indicated).

 

• Copy of Indian Passport of the parents/one of the parents or copy of the Domicile Certificate or Nativity Certificate issued by the Competent Authority in respect of the parents/one of the parents or any other proof substantiating the status of the parents/one of the parents as being Indian citizen(s).

 

• If the parents are divorced, court order of dissolution of marriage, which specifically mentions that the legal custody of the child is with the parent who is applying for the OCI Card. If the court order is in any foreign language, translation in English or Hindi by an authorized translator is to be enclosed.

 

• Evidence as spouse of foreign origin of a citizen of India or spouse of foreign origin of an OCI Cardholder (Marriage should have lasted more than two years):

 

• Registered Marriage Certificate; and

 

• In the case of spouse of an Indian citizen – copy of the Indian Passport of the spouse or copy of the Domicile Certificate or Nativity Certificate issued by the Competent Authority in respect of the Indian spouse or any other proof substantiating the status of the spouse as being an Indian Citizen.

 

• In the case of spouse of an OCI Cardholder – Copy of the present valid Passport of the spouse and copy of the OCI Card of the spouse and copies of the documents upon which the OCI Card was issued to the spouse.

 

• Declaration from the Indian/OCI Cardholder spouse stating that in case of divorce/separation/death of foreign spouse, it is his/her responsibility to surrender the OCI Card to the Government of India.

Note: In all cases where the marriage certificate is to be submitted, the following guidelines will be applicable: -

• If the marriage was solemnized in India, Marriage certificate issued by Marriage Registrar is required.

 

• If the marriage was solemnized in a foreign country, it should be apostilled/ certified by the concerned Indian Mission/Post.

 

• If the marriage certificate is in any foreign language other than English, it should be translated in English by an authorized translator.

Merger of PIO Scheme with (OCI) Scheme – 2015

Salient Features

• All the existing Persons of Indian Origin cardholders registered as such shall be deemed to be   Overseas Citizens of India cardholders with effect from 09.01.2015.

 

• A person, who is a minor child and whose either or both parents are Citizens/Overseas Citizens of India shall be eligible for registration as OCI under the new scheme. *

 

• Spouse of foreign origin of a citizen of India/ OCI card holder, whose marriage has been registered and   subsisted for a continuous period of not less than two years immediately preceding the presentation of the application, is now eligible to apply for OCI card. Such spouse can be granted an OCI Card subject to prior security clearance from a competent authority in India. *

 

• A PIO Card which has been issued prior to the announcement of this new OCI Scheme shall be deemed to be valid for life time of its holder but needs to be converted to an OCI Card to avoid inconvenience at various immigration check points.

 

• An OCI Card holder is exempted from the requirement of registration, irrespective of the duration of stay in India.

OCI Miscellaneous Services

  Re-issueance of the OCI cardholder registration is not mandatory each time a new passport is issued between 21 and 50 years of age.

Conversion of PIO cards to OCI cards

Last date of conversion of PIO cards to OCI cards without any fees was 31^st December 2017. Such conversion can now be done with a fee of QR 365. For applying for conversion, please visit website: https://passport.gov.in/oci/welcome

Charges for OCI Services

The rates for the following services with effect from 27th September 2009 are as under: -

* Out of the fee charged, a sum of QR 95 equivalent to US$ 25 is the processing fee and shall be non-refundable. The balance amount shall be refunded in case the application is not accepted.

* A surcharge of QR 11/- is to be paid towards the Indian Community Welfare Fund for each OCI service per person w.e.f 01 September, 2017.

*With effect from 27/02/2018 for registration of a person as an Overseas Citizen of India who holds Person of Indian Origin Card, revised fees of QR 365 will be charged.

NOTE:- (i) Please refer to FAQs on OCI Services in http://mha1.nic.in/pdfs/FAQ-%20OCI_25042017.pdf or https://passport.gov.in/oci/welcome .

(ii) Please refer to FAQs on OCI Miscellaneous Services in http://mha1.nic.in/pdfs/FAQOCIMiscservices_25042017.pdf

Extension of time-line for acceptance of handwritten travel document/PIO Cards till 30^th September 2020

Bureau of Immigration (BOI), Government of India, will accept handwritten travel document/PIO cards as a valid document till 30 September, 2020 along with a valid foreign passport. The Indian Immigration Check Post(s) will continue to consider all PIO cards valid for exit from/entry into India till 30^th September 2020. This extension of timeline is subject to condition that if any deadline is notified by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), thereby making hand written PIO cards invalid, then PIO cardholders may have to obtain an appropriate visa from our Missions/Posts.

Machine-readable electronic travel documents are mandated by ICAO guidelines. It is not a precondition prescribed by MHA/BOI for entry into India. For smooth travel, it is important to ensure that your travel documents are converted to a machine-readable format.

 All PIO cardholders with valid PIO cards as on 09.01.2015 are advised to apply for conversion of PIO card to OCI card at the earliest opportunity, to minimize difficulties during travel.

Relaxation in OCI Guidelines till 30th June 2021

The following OCI guidelines have been in force since 2005:

1. OCI card needs to be re-issued each time a new passport is acquired by the cardholder up to the age of 20 years.

2. OCI card is required to be re-issued once on acquiring a new passport after completing 50 years of age.

3. Re-issuance of OCI card is not required each time a passport is issued to a cardholder between 21 and 50 years of age.

This is to inform that Government of India has decided to grant temporary relaxation till 30th June 2021 in the following cases:

1. In case an OCI cardholder below the age of 20 years has not got OCI card re-issued on change of passport, he/she may travel on the strength of his/her existing OCI card bearing old passport number subject to the condition that along with the new passport, the OCI cardholder carries old passport mentioned in the OCI card.

2. In case an OCI cardholder who has attained the age of 50 years and got his/her passport renewed subsequently but has not got his/her OCI card re-issued on renewal of passport, he/she may travel till June 30, 2020, on the strength of existing OCI card along with the new and old passports.

It is, however, advised that OCI cardholders may take steps to comply with the existing OCI guidelines in Para 1 above and renew their OCI cards as required by the rules.

****