Am I eligible for OCI?

[satishk]

Dear All,
I am a British Citizen.Having acquired my British Citizenship a year back,based on the fact that I was born in the UK. I did my schooling,graduation etc all in India.My Father is an Indian Citizen,My Mother is a British Citizen.Now I am in the UK .I never applied for an Indian Passport when I was in India,though I have a letter from the Home Ministry stating that I am deemed to be an Indian Citizen,since my Father is an Indian Citizen.My name is on the family ration card(Indian) etc.A week back,I applied for PIO.My brother living in UK got his PIO very fast.My parents live and work in India .I would like to know if I am eligible for OCI?
Satish K

[tamtom]

Dear All,
I am a British Citizen.Having acquired my British Citizenship a year back,based on the fact that I was born in the UK. I did my schooling,graduation etc all in India.My Father is an Indian Citizen,My Mother is a British Citizen.Now I am in the UK .I never applied for an Indian Passport when I was in India,though I have a letter from the Home Ministry stating that I am deemed to be an Indian Citizen,since my Father is an Indian Citizen.My name is on the family ration card(Indian) etc.A week back,I applied for PIO.My brother living in UK got his PIO very fast.My parents live and work in India .I would like to know if I am eligible for OCI?
Satish K
If you are over 18, you are eligible for OCI. If you are under 18, you are eligible for OCI only if your British citizen mother is of Indian origin.

I am very interested to know the details of how you got a letter from the Home Ministry stating that you are deemed to be an Indian citizen. You say you did not apply for an Indian passport in India. Did you have an Indian passport which you got while in the UK?

--Tamtom

[satishk]

1.Yes I am over 18.I am 31 years old.
2.I was born in the UK,came to India Immediately after my Birth.
3.Father is an Indian Citizen ,Mother is a British Citizen.
4.When I came to India as a Baby no visa was required.It was the rule than.
Indian being part of the commonwealth countries .
5.When we reached age 16 that is me and my elder brother ,my father wrote to
the Home Ministry asking clarification of our citizenship.We got a letter stating
that since my Father is an Indian Citizen we(me and my brother) are deemed
to be Indian Citizens.
6.I did my schooling ,graduation etc in India.And was working in my Private concern.
7.My Elder brother about 10 years back applied for and got British Citizenship
based on the fast that he was born here. Many years later I did the same .
Now I am in the UK,arrived quite recently.
8.My brother applied for and got his PIO very fast.
I applied for my PIO about 10 days back.I am very keen to get the OCI .
9.The fact that My British passport took ages to come through ,caused quite
a change in my plans.
10.I do hope I get the OCI .

;Can I apply for the OCI from the UK, that is after my PIO comes through and when it comes through have it mailed to me in India,since the process maybe a bit lengthy in India ?And where do I get the OCI Label on my passport?

Also I would like to know staying in India using an PIO ,after the duration exceeds 6 months ,do I have to apply for a Visa? Or can I get an extension?

[tamtom]

1.Yes I am over 18.I am 31 years old.
2.I was born in the UK,came to India Immediately after my Birth.
3.Father is an Indian Citizen ,Mother is a British Citizen.
4.When I came to India as a Baby no visa was required.It was the rule than.
Indian being part of the commonwealth countries .
5.When we reached age 16 that is me and my elder brother ,my father wrote to
the Home Ministry asking clarification of our citizenship.We got a letter stating
that since my Father is an Indian Citizen we(me and my brother) are deemed
to be Indian Citizens.
6.I did my schooling ,graduation etc in India.And was working in my Private concern.
7.My Elder brother about 10 years back applied for and got British Citizenship
based on the fast that he was born here. Many years later I did the same .
Now I am in the UK,arrived quite recently.
8.My brother applied for and got his PIO very fast.
I applied for my PIO about 10 days back.I am very keen to get the OCI .
9.The fact that My British passport took ages to come through ,caused quite
a change in my plans.
10.I do hope I get the OCI .


Based on your points 1 (you're over 18), 3 (you're of Indian origin) and 9 (you're a British passport holder), you are eligible for OCI.



Can I apply for the OCI from the UK, that is after my PIO comes through and when it comes through have it mailed to me in India,since the process maybe a bit lengthy in India ?And where do I get the OCI Label on my passport?


Yes, you can apply for OCI from the UK. If you apply from the UK, you get the visa sticker in the UK in the mission you applied from. You can check on the forum to see whether an OCI application is faster from the UK than in India. I don't know whether it is okay to mail your British passport from India to the UK while in India. You can ask your FRRO and British consulate this question. But if you already have a PIO card, it really isn't necessary to hurry to get OCI because the main difference beween the two is PIO expires in 15 years while OCI has no expiry. And while residing outside of your country of citizenship, your passport is too important to risk losing it in the mail.



Also I would like to know staying in India using an PIO ,after the duration exceeds 6 months ,do I have to apply for a Visa? Or can I get an extension?

The PIO grants open-ended stay for the duration of the card (15 years). But you have to register with FRRO if staying for over 180 days.

Hope this helps,

Tamtom

[satishk]

Open ended stay meaning ?
When I acquire my PIO Card after the duration of 180 days(That is Before the start of the 6th Month) I need to register with the FRRO( the Police) and my stay can be extended ?

Can I like can get the OCI sticker in India ,though I applied for OCI in UK?

You are being immensely helpful.Thanking You.

[tamtom]

Open ended stay meaning ?
When I acquire my PIO Card after the duration of 180 days(That is Before the start of the 6th Month) I need to register with the FRRO( the Police) and my stay can be extended ?

Can I like can get the OCI sticker in India ,though I applied for OCI in UK?

You are being immensely helpful.Thanking You.

Open ended stay meaning you don't need to extend it every 6 months. For example, if you get a PIO card valid from 2007 to 2022, then there are no other time limits on your stays in India during that period. You will have to register with FRRO once, and you will have to renew your British passport from time to time.

I don't have any information about transfering a file from the UK to India so you can apply in UK but pick up the sticker in India. Maybe someone else on the forum can answer that part?

Hope this helps,

Tamtom

[satishk]

Renew my British passport from time to time ,meaning how many times?Could you please elaborate?

[tamtom]

Renew my British passport from time to time ,meaning how many times?Could you please elaborate?

Just look in your passport to check its expiry date. If you're in India, you have to renew it before it expires, which you can do at one of the British High Commisions. If you just got your passport recently, you probably won't need to do that for several years.

Hope this helps,

Tamtom

[satishk]

> My passport is valid till 2015
>So I need to register only once with the FRRO after 5 Months and there after
I dont need to register every 6 months?

[tamtom]

> My passport is valid till 2015
>So I need to register only once with the FRRO after 5 Months and there after
I dont need to register every 6 months?

This site gives the details at http://www.immihelp.com/nri/piocard/ "In the event of continuous stay in India of the PIO Card holder exceeding 180 days, he/she shall have to get himself/herself registered within 30 days of the expiry of 180 days with the concerned Foreigners Registration Officer at District Headquarter."

That says you need to register once with FRRO, and nothing further.

Hope this helps,

Tamtom

[ramani]

Hi,
I am a Singaporean of Indian origin
I hold a PIO.
I intend applying for OCI
The notification declares that only Indians from 16 countries are eligible for OCI
The recent notification says" those from countries which in some way ot other allow dual citizenship" are eligible to apply for OCI
To my knowledge Singapore does not accept Dual citizenship
As a Singapore passport holder Am i eligible for OCI
Very much Appreciate a reply
Thanks
Ramani

[tamtom]

Hi,
I am a Singaporean of Indian origin
I hold a PIO.
I intend applying for OCI
The notification declares that only Indians from 16 countries are eligible for OCI
The recent notification says" those from countries which in some way ot other allow dual citizenship" are eligible to apply for OCI
To my knowledge Singapore does not accept Dual citizenship
As a Singapore passport holder Am i eligible for OCI
Very much Appreciate a reply
Thanks
Ramani

Good question. I think the purpose of the requirement was that you should not be granted OCI if it would make you lose your other country's citizenship.
Maybe you can find out by asking this question to the Singapore immigration authority.

Hope this helps,

Tamtom

[BASSRA]

Hi, I Am Looking For Some Help. I Was Originally An Indian Citizean Became A British Citizean A Few Years Ago. I Was Looking Into Oci But Am Very Confused As To What The Benefits Are In Relation To Land.

I Am Looking Into Purchasing Land And Was Not Sure If Applying For Oci Would Allow Me To Do This ?

[prakash1halemani]

Hello Sir/Madam.

My name is Prakash I stay here in Mumbai/India, & my daughter is born in United States of America, she is 7 year old. When she came to India that time she was only 15 days old after that I got her registration done for 5 years in FRO office in Churchgate, last year again I got her registration done for 1 year.
Hence she is very small & dependent so I want to know at a time how many years registration could be done & what are the charges for the same. Further can I apply for Dual citizenship for her, as we are ( parents) Indian’s.

5 years registration how much is the fee :-

10 years registration how much is the fee:-

Procedure for the Dual Citizen

Awaiting your reply as soon as possible.

[iceontap]

Hello Sir/Madam.

My name is Prakash I stay here in Mumbai/India, & my daughter is born in United States of America, she is 7 year old. When she came to India that time she was only 15 days old after that I got her registration done for 5 years in FRO office in Churchgate, last year again I got her registration done for 1 year.
Hence she is very small & dependent so I want to know at a time how many years registration could be done & what are the charges for the same. Further can I apply for Dual citizenship for her, as we are ( parents) Indian’s.

5 years registration how much is the fee :-

10 years registration how much is the fee:-

Procedure for the Dual Citizen

Awaiting your reply as soon as possible.

She came to India on a US passport ? I think (dont quote me) she is not eligible to hold an OCI as a minor within India; She can apply for a PIO till she becomes an adult.

[iceontap]

Hi, I Am Looking For Some Help. I Was Originally An Indian Citizean Became A British Citizean A Few Years Ago. I Was Looking Into Oci But Am Very Confused As To What The Benefits Are In Relation To Land.

I Am Looking Into Purchasing Land And Was Not Sure If Applying For Oci Would Allow Me To Do This ?

OCI cannot buy agricultural land.