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US Citizenship Vs Indian Citizenship for a newborn

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  • US Citizenship Vs Indian Citizenship for a newborn

    Hi,
    I got an opportunity to go to US on work visa for few months. My wife is currently pregnant. We are wondering if there would be significant benefits in having the delivery in the US itself. My wife can travel with me to the US on dependent visa. However, my work is estimated to end about 2-3 months after the expected delivery date. So, we will have to return to India with the newborn 2-3 months after the delivery.
    I did some analysis and came up with pros and cons of my decisions.
    Pros:
    A. Great hospitals and better care
    B. US citizenship

    Cons:
    A. Lot of uncertainties in getting the US birth certificate/passport/OCI within the short time frame of 2-3 months
    B. Travel concerns for the newborn and the mother
    C. Problems that come with maintaining US citizenship in India: periodic renewals, higher fees in schools and colleges (inputs from online forums only, no direct inputs from R2I people)

    I will very likely return to work in the US in year or two for another term. So, it is not a big deal to drop this opportunity and have the delivery in India itself. I'm mainly considering this if getting US citizenship for the baby will be worthwhile all the efforts.

    Please share your inputs on pros/cons of raising kids in India with foreign-passport/OCI.

  • #2
    It's not an either-or. The baby will have BOTH US citizenship and Indian citizenship if born in the US and registered at an Indian consulate within one year of birth, and the child does not get a US passport. However, as a US citizen, the child may find it a hassle to return to the US after leaving if they don't have a US passport.

    This is my personal opinion and is not to be construed as legal advice.

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    • #3
      Give birth in the United States, then get the child an Indian passport after birth. When the child some day wishes to live in the United States (typically when its time to go college), they can apply for a US passport at any consulate abroad

      Comment


      • #4
        doubts on dual citizenship

        Thanks for the responses. I suppose India doesn't allow dual citizenship. If I apply Indian passport for the baby after birth, will the US citizenship continues to hold good while carrying the Indian passport? Is it possible to travel out of US after delivery without US or India passport? In other words, can an infant travel through any endorsements on parents' passports?

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        • #5
          A child born in the United States, except for the children of certain diplomats, acquires Unites States citizenship at birth, and can not lose their United States citizenship unless and until they formally renounce it at a United States consulate abroad

          So your child can acquire an Indian or other foreign passport without affecting their United States citizenship in any way

          Indian nationality law is not so charitable. An Indian citizen who either voluntarily acquires another citizenship or exercises the privileges of the involuntarily acquired citizenship of another nation (eg by acquiring a foreign passport) loses their Indian citizenship

          So to have your cake and eat it too, treat the child like an Indian national. Follow the procedures to register their birth at an Indian consulate in the United States, and apply for their Indian passport. The child can then travel to India or anywhere else on their Indian passport. If some day they wish to exercise their United States citizenship, they can easily apply for a United States passport at any Unites States consulate abroad by furnishing their Unites States birth certificate

          Comment


          • #6
            USA Newborn to Indian Parent getting Indian Passport

            Hello,

            I am also in the same boat and my wife is expected to deliver in next few weeks. I was checking for passport/visa requirement for newborn in US. I am here on H1 visa and my wife is on H4 visa. I will be applying for Indian Passport for my newborn at Indian embassy. Below are the points I could gather so far for US and Indian Passport.

            US Passport:
            1. US citizenship
            2. Cannot own agricultural land in India.
            3. Cannot get any government Job in India.
            4. Will need OCI card to travel to India.
            5. Will get US birth Certificate and Unrestricted Social security number in US.
            6. High education cost if study in Indian school/collage under foreign quota.
            7. US Passport renewal in India every 5 years visit to US consulate.
            8. Filing tax returns with IRS. US citizen has to file the tax returns with IRS no matter where they live in the world and no matter how long they live outside USA. In same cases even after renouncing the US citizenship in some cases those people needs to file taxes for 10 years after renouncing the US citizenship.
            9. I think and this is my opinion if both of the parents are Indian than getting US passport will not be true Identity for your newborn.
            10 Once you get US Passport it will not be easy to get Indian Passport. One has to live in India for 5 continuous years to apply for Indian citizenship and renounce US citizenship with heavy renouncing fees.

            Indian Passport:
            1. Indian Citizenship
            2. Can get government jobs.
            3. Can own agricultural land.
            4. No need to file annual tax return with US.
            5. Not eligible for SSN. Will need to request for ITIN number if claiming newborn on your US tax return. ITIN can only be applied in person at IRS office otherwise you will have to send original passport via mail to IRS to request ITIN.
            6. will need to apply for visa (H4, L2, etc.) to travel to US.
            7. The option to get US passport is always open the only thing is the kid has to renounce Indian citizenship and surrender Indian Passport.
            8. Re-entry may be tough. If you are travelling back from India to US, sometime the visa officer may ignore the case since it is for child and sometime if they notice the birthplace as US than they may deny Visa and ask to get the US Passport for the kid.
            9. I am yet to find out the visa requirement when we are still in US on Indian passport and when the newborn will travel from US to India. Do we need to apply for H4 petition for newborn or the plain Indian passport is enough to travel to India?

            Feel free to add/update more points here.

            Thanks.

            Comment


            • #7
              Originally posted by josh36 View Post
              Indian Passport:
              1. Indian Citizenship
              2. Can get government jobs.
              3. Can own agricultural land.
              4. No need to file annual tax return with US.
              5. Not eligible for SSN. Will need to request for ITIN number if claiming newborn on your US tax return. ITIN can only be applied in person at IRS office otherwise you will have to send original passport via mail to IRS to request ITIN.
              6. will need to apply for visa (H4, L2, etc.) to travel to US.
              7. The option to get US passport is always open the only thing is the kid has to renounce Indian citizenship and surrender Indian Passport.
              8. Re-entry may be tough. If you are travelling back from India to US, sometime the visa officer may ignore the case since it is for child and sometime if they notice the birthplace as US than they may deny Visa and ask to get the US Passport for the kid.
              9. I am yet to find out the visa requirement when we are still in US on Indian passport and when the newborn will travel from US to India. Do we need to apply for H4 petition for newborn or the plain Indian passport is enough to travel to India?
              The thing you are missing is that the child will have US citizenship in both cases no matter what. It's automatic and involuntary. Just in the second case the child has both US and Indian citizenship. So several of the things in the second case are wrong, including:
              #4. As a US citizen, the child is subject to US taxes on worldwide income. Like any other US citizen, the child doesn't have to file if their income that year is below a certain threshold.
              #5. As a US citizen, the child is eligible for an SSN and is not eligible for an ITIN. The child must use an SSN to file taxes if needed.
              #6. As a US citizen, the child is not eligible for any US visas.
              #7. As a US citizen, the child can get a US passport at any time, and the US doesn't care about other nationalities or passports. However, Indian law regards getting a foreign passport as triggering automatic loss of Indian citizenship, so you will have to deal with Indian authorities regarding that.
              #8. A US citizen can never be denied entry to the US. The problem is that the child cannot get a US visa because they are a US citizen. And if they also don't want to get a US passport, there is no document that will convince an airline to fly them to the US. In that case it's probably only possible to enter by land from Canada or Mexico.
              #9. A US citizen cannot have any kind of US nonimmigrant status. An Indian passport is sufficient to travel to India.

              This is my personal opinion and is not to be construed as legal advice.

              Comment


              • #8
                USA Newborn to Indian Parent getting Indian Passport

                Originally posted by newacct View Post
                The thing you are missing is that the child will have US citizenship in both cases no matter what. It's automatic and involuntary. Just in the second case the child has both US and Indian citizenship. So several of the things in the second case are wrong, including:
                #4. As a US citizen, the child is subject to US taxes on worldwide income. Like any other US citizen, the child doesn't have to file if their income that year is below a certain threshold.
                #5. As a US citizen, the child is eligible for an SSN and is not eligible for an ITIN. The child must use an SSN to file taxes if needed.
                #6. As a US citizen, the child is not eligible for any US visas.
                #7. As a US citizen, the child can get a US passport at any time, and the US doesn't care about other nationalities or passports. However, Indian law regards getting a foreign passport as triggering automatic loss of Indian citizenship, so you will have to deal with Indian authorities regarding that.
                #8. A US citizen can never be denied entry to the US. The problem is that the child cannot get a US visa because they are a US citizen. And if they also don't want to get a US passport, there is no document that will convince an airline to fly them to the US. In that case it's probably only possible to enter by land from Canada or Mexico.
                #9. A US citizen cannot have any kind of US nonimmigrant status. An Indian passport is sufficient to travel to India.
                Thanks for correcting me on that part. I almost forgot that even if we get Indian passport for the newborn, he/she will have automatic and involuntary US Citizenship. I am re-posting my points altogether:

                A) US Passport:

                1. US citizenship
                2. Cannot own agricultural land in India.
                3. Cannot get any government Job in India.
                4. Will need OCI card to travel to India.
                5. Will get US birth Certificate and Unrestricted Social security number in US.
                6. High education cost if study in Indian school/collage under foreign quota.
                7. US Passport renewal in India every 5 years visit to US consulate.
                8. Filing tax returns with IRS. US citizen has to file the tax returns with IRS no matter where they live in the world and no matter how long they live outside USA. In same cases even after renouncing the US citizenship in some cases those people needs to file taxes for 10 years after renouncing the US citizenship.
                9. I think and this is my opinion if both of the parents are Indian than getting US passport will not be true Identity for your newborn.
                10 Once you get US Passport it will not be easy to get Indian Passport. One has to live in India for 5 continuous years to apply for Indian citizenship and renounce US citizenship with heavy renouncing fees.

                B) Indian Passport:

                1. Indian Citizenship by applying Indian Passport and registering the birth at Indian Embassy within one year
                2. US Citizenship which is automatic and involuntary, Once the newborns turns 18 than he/she has option to renounce US citizenship in front of US consulate general at US Consulate in India.
                3. Can get government jobs in India.
                4. Can own agricultural land in India.
                5. (File Income tax returns with India) + (File US tax returns on worldwide income (same as point A8 above), the child doesn't have to file if their income that year is below a certain threshold).
                6. US Birth Certificate and SSN can be obtained by applying these at the US hospital right after delivery and Indian Passport thereafter.
                7. The option to get US passport is always open by applying for it at US consulate in India, the only thing is the kid has to renounce Indian citizenship and surrender Indian Passport.
                8. If you are travelling back from India to US, sometime the visa officer may ignore the case since it is for child and sometime if they notice the birthplace as US than they may deny Visa and ask to get the US Passport for the kid.
                9. A US citizen can never be denied entry at the US Port of Entry. At US land/sea PortofEntry if you don't have US Passport than you need to keep US Birth certificate and a Photo ID to prove it to Immigration officer. Possibly you don't need US Passport to cross US border at land/see and can enter/exit to/from Canada or Mexico.
                10) Don't forget about Expatriation Tax when you renounce US citizenship.

                Indian laws does not support dual citizenship hence they do not allow holding passport from two countries. On the other hand US does not encourage dual citizenship but US recognizes dual citizenship so it means that you can hold US Passport and also hold any foreign passport.

                I have one question, at Dept of State website it is mentioned at several places that "Most U.S. nationals, including dual nationals, must use a U.S. passport to enter and leave the United States.". The question is why it says "Most" and not all US nationals. Can anyone explain what does this "Most" mean here? Below is the URL which I am referencing.

                URL:
                1) https://travel.state.gov/content/tri...tionality.html
                2) https://travel.state.gov/content/tri...tionality.html

                Feel free to add/update any points.

                Thanks!

                Comment

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