Indian Parents and US born babies

[krishkasi77]

I am blessed with a baby boy during the end of 2007. He was born in Houston, TX. Now the concern is our return journey back to the base, India.
I am working on H1. My wife is on H4. We do not have any intention to settle / stay back here permanently.

I have got my son's birth certificate. I haven;t applied his passport.

1. Can we get an Indian passport for the baby while he is in the US or only US Passport?
2. If Indian passport, does he need to obtain a visa for our rest our stay, hopefully till June sometime.
3. If only US Passport, shall I provide the Indian address as permanent address in the US passport application?

Once we obtain the US passport and PIO card, we would go back to India.
1. Will he ever become Indian citizen or what would be the procedure to obtain citizenship?
2. Once we obtain Indian citizenship, would he be able to join government jobs, like defense services or administartive services?
3. Will he be given a visa by US authorities to come to US after he obtains Indian citizenship?

If he continues on US Citizenship
1. How long he can stay using the PIO card?
2. Can he be added to any of our bank accounts or can he have an account on his own?
3. Can we buy a land or house on his name?

Am totally confused and worried about the next steps as people are simply asking,'why did you let him born here?'.

Your experience, suggestions / advise would be of great help.

Thank youin advance.

[tamtom]

Haven't applied for passport:
1. He can get an Indian passport or a US passport, but not both.
2. No. His US birth certificate is proof of his legal right to be in the US.
3. Unlike the Indian passport, the US passport does not print the holder's permanent address. When applying, you need to give an address they can use to mail you the passport. That would be a US address.

After getting passport:
1. If you get him a US passport, he can become an Indian citizen later by renouncing US citizenship at age 18 and applying for Indian citizenship.
2. If he becomes an Indian citizen, he will have the full rights including all forms of employment, etc.
3. If you get him an Indian passport, the US still considers him a citizen until he reaches a mature age and renounces US citizenship. So he would not need a visa for travel to the US. He would need a US passport. If he gets it, he's expected to cancel the Indian passport at that time.

After getting PIO card:
1. The validity of a PIO card is 15 years. After that, he can renew it (assuming the PIO status still exists at that time). He can remain in India for that period.
2. PIO card holder can have NRI-type bank accounts.
3. PIO card holder can own non-agricultural property.

We got the Indian passport for our US-born daughter. I'll take questions by private message or email via the forum.

[pusarindia]

tamtom,
That was news to me that you could get an indian pp for a usborn child. Thank you. But I dont understand why you would do that. You mentioned that if the child has to travel to usa, there is no need for a visa, but still he/she would need a US pp, which makes India pp invalid....I am not able to understand the benefits of getting an indian pp for a usborn child. I have 2 children and they both have usa pp, but then I never knew this was an option to begin with... Thank you.

[miteshkumar]

I want to make sure that if i got Indian pp for US born baby than baby will lose citizenship of US, and mean while she will get All indian rights?

Also Can you guide me how to get indian PP For US born baby? Since i am trying to catch indian embessy people no body recieves call,

Please guide me since I want to send baby and mom to india ASAP,

Thanks in advacne,

tamtom,
That was news to me that you could get an indian pp for a usborn child. Thank you. But I dont understand why you would do that. You mentioned that if the child has to travel to usa, there is no need for a visa, but still he/she would need a US pp, which makes India pp invalid....I am not able to understand the benefits of getting an indian pp for a usborn child. I have 2 children and they both have usa pp, but then I never knew this was an option to begin with... Thank you.

[sridiculous]

Hello Mitesh,

I hope you still are looking for an answer.

It is very straight forward to get an Indian passport for a kid born to at least one Indian parent.

1. Get the US birth certificate.
2. DO NOT APPLY FOR US passport.
3. Register the birth with the Indian embassy (consulate)
4. Apply for Indian passport.
3 & 4 can be done together. The forms can be found on the consulate's website. The documents required are:

1. Properly filled in application.
2. Photographs of the infant.
3. Thumb impression of the infant.
4. Declaration signed by both parents.
5. Birth certificate (Original & Photocopy)
6. Photocopy of both parents' passport.
7. Appropriate fee.

Thats it. Send everything to the consulate & you should get the passport in 3 to 5 weeks time. I hope this helps.

Thanks.

[nr1811]

Hi Sri,

Is there a separate form for registering the birth of the child at Indian consulate.I found a form on the consulate website for obtaining birth certificate which needed me to fill in the First and Last names in PP.Is this the correct form i am looking at?Cos i would already have a US birth certificate for the child

Thanks

[sridiculous]

Yes, the form is different. Please search on google for "Indian citizen birth registration form" followed by your Consulate e.g cgihouston. You should be able to find the appropriate form. This is not a birth certificate but it is a certificate for registration of birth of an Indian citizen. You will still have only the birth certificate from US and the registration of the birth of an Indian citizen from the consulate. I hope this helps.

[nr1811]

Thanks Sri..I checked the Houston CGI website and there seems to be a form for miscellaneous services (http://www.cgihouston.org/misc1.pdf) and my guess is that we'll have to use this form and fill up section 2 for registration of birth.Can you tell me if registration of birth and application for indian passport can be done at the same time by mail?

[sridiculous]

Yes, you can apply for both registration & passport at the same time. Send in both the forms together with the appropriate fee.

[paran96281]

Congrats on the new arrival. To answer your questions:

FIRST SET OF QUESTIONS
1) You cannot get an Indian passport for your son as he is an Indian citizen. Get the US passport. It can be received in as less as 14 days with expedited processing.
2) N/A, as he can't get an Indian passport
3) "Permanent Address" is not a big issue. Write the same address as in on his birth certificate (or your current address if you have moved since he arrived)

2ND SET OF QUESTIONS
Note - Before going to India, it would be best if you get US passport and OCI (as against PIO card) for your son. PIO expires in 10 years, while OCI is lifelong. OCI takes 6-7 weeks, which is not much longer a wait than that for a PIO
1) If he becomes an OCI, he may be ultimately able to get Indian citizenship after explicitly renouncing his US citizenship. This needn't be done in a hurry though. The procedure can be found on immihelp if you look closely - otherwise simply call the Indian Consulate and pose them this question.
2) Yes, he will be able to serve in the Indian armed forces
3) For US visa, no special consideration should be expected as he will have given up US citizenship - he will have to endure the same process as others to get a US visa.

3RD SET OF QUESTIONS:
1) If he is a US Citizen with a PIO card, the latter will expire in 10 years. (As against this, if on OCI, he won't have to lift a finger)
2) OCIs can have any number of bank or investment accounts in India.
3) Yes, you can buy land/property in his name, as long as the land is non-agricultural.

In summary, no need to be confused. In my opinion, US Passport + OCI would be the best option. That way he can derive all benefits of being a US citizen, and for practical purposes will be able to live in India like an Indian because of the OCI status. [ As long one is OK to (a) not own a India passport (b) not own agricultural land in India (c) not run for govt jobs/positions in India and (d) not vote in elections. ]

Good luck.