PIO Card

Hi

I got the PIO of my some from New York. And now we have moved to Arkansas state. PIO application instructions says "Place of submission for OCI- (In Lieu of PIO-Card) should be the same as the Place of Issuance of PIO-Card".
But I just talked to CKGS customer care and they said that this was an old update and I should send the application to Houston ( the current jurisdiction of Arkansas).
But these instructions are still on the front page of instructions, now I don't know whom to trust.
I don't want to take chance because they have update required documents list and they want original US passport as well along with the application.
Has anyone experienced this situation? Any answers?

Hi,
I am desperately looking for some valid answers wrto PIO cards.
 My both sons are born here and they both have valid US passports and valid PIO cards to travel to India.
So question is are the PIO cards still valid to travel to India? I am planning to travel in december for a month.
I will highly appreciate if someone with recent similar experinece share their experience.

Thanks,
Padma

I am planning to travel with my family to India in early December for 3 weeks. My daughter has a PIO card that was issued in 2007 and is valid until 2022. We recently got her passport renewed, so the PIO card does not have her new passport number endorsed in it (and since the PIO scheme has been discontinued they very likely won't endorse it).
I am wondering whether we need to get the 'OCI card in lieu of PIO' before we travel . The processing time posted for this is 60 days plus any additional unanticipated time delays. As someone posted earlier, I too prefer NOT to do the PIO to OCI conversion until we finish this trip (as per the latest regulation, we have until March 31, 2016 to apply for the 'OCI card in lieu of PIO' anyway). While seemingly, we may have enough time to get this done, I would rather not mess with the process before our trip.

I have a couple of questions:

1) While it appears that the PIO cardholder can travel to India on the basis of their PIO card and valid foreign passport as of now, will this hold true for December as well? I will be carrying my daughter's old and new passport.

2) What are people's experiences with the 'OCI card in lieu of PIO' process? Has it been smooth? What are the processing times in the Washington, DC consulate?

3) Can someone post their recent experiences with Indian immigration for traveling on a PIO card?

4) As a safety measure, does it make sense to get an entry visa as a safety net?

I am looking for opinions on what would be the "best" course of action given our travel plans in early December.

For those, who are looking for OCI card in lieu of PIO card, below is a link which provides all the details

http://www.in.ckgs.us/oci/oci-categories/oci-in-lieu-of-pio-us-minor.shtml

Takeaways:

1. PIO cardholder can travel to India on the basis of their valid PIO card and valid foreign passport.
2. It is hereby informed that the last day for applying for an OCI card in lieu of PIO card is 31st March, 2016.
3. As announced earlier, PIO card have life-long validity

So if you are planning to leave for India soon, do not apply for an OCI now. Come back and apply.

Hi Friends,

My son has a POI card and we are planning to travel Indian in November .
I am so confused after reading various posts on whether POI card is valid or not

So can any one share their recent experiences traveling to India on a POI card

Thanks
Kumar

We landed in Chennai airport last night with our 2 kids and their US PPs and valid PIO cards. I saw the new information on Houstion CGI website about the PIO expiration on June 17 and we have to submit applications to convert OCI before we leave and travel with the CKGS receipt with the valid PIO cards. I did file the applications for my two kids and received the receipts just a day before our travel date.

At Chennai my wife and I were sent to an immigration officer deals with Indian passports and my kids were sent to the officer deals with foreign passports. No questions were asked about the OCI conversion. I asked the officer who processed my kids about the June 17th expiry date, she said the PIO cards are valid for the lifetime and we have to send the cards to our mission post (Houston for me) to get the lifetime validly stamp. So it is not very clear what the actual directive between consulates, CKGS, and mission posts. The amount of inconsistency in this issue is simply frustrating. So, as of yesterday, no issues at Chennai port of entry with valid US passport (plus old passport if applicable) and valid PIO cards. I hope this is useful for those who have immediate travel plans.

Folks,
   Over the last days, I was emailing, calling Consulates regarding PIO card validity after June 17th, 2015 since I've a
journey after June 17th 2015. I emailed MHA(http://mha1.nic.in/foreigDiv/contactus.html) regarding having OCI in place of
PIO scenario and I got the the generic reply

========================================
  PIO scheme has been merged with OCI scheme w.e.f. 9th January 2015 and new PIO cards are not being issued w.e.f. this date. The validity of existing PIO cards is automatically extended till LIFELONG and it will remain valid.

1. It is not mandatory to convert PIO to OCI. It is optional.
2. No time frame has been prescribed for conversion. It can be done at any time if the holder desires to convert it.
3. Conversion is GRATIS and no application fee is charged. Therefore, the question of penalty does not arise as it is not
time bound.
4. Existing cards are valid Lifelong and the validity stamp on it may be affixed by any FRRO, Indian Missions or even
Immigration Check Posts, if desired by anyone. Validity stamp is NOT MANDATORY.
5. Conversion applications from PIO to OCI need to be submitted to the same office, which originally issued the PIO cards,
since these cards were issued by the Indian Mission under their delegated powers and entire records/data of the
applications are available with them only.

                       So long as you are carrying genuine PIO card, you should have no problem in entering/exiting the
country. For query related to OCI card, please write to [email protected]
==========================================

Regarding my situation, I've valid PIOs and valid PPs for my 3 children. 2 of the PIOs were obtained in 2009 from
Indian Embassy, DC. Third one was issued on Jan 14th 2015(Yes, 5 days after the 9th Jan 2015 date) from Atlanta Consulate.
In an email, Atlanta Consulate said PIO card is not valid for travel after June 17th 2015. But yesterday when I
called their office, a lady picked and said PIO cards are valid lifelong and one need to apply for OCI soon but the
existing PIO card is valid irrespective of June 17th 2015 date, completely contradicitng information within the same
Consulate.

I checked Houston Consulate website for more clarity and it says, those doing interim travel to India need to have valid
PP, valid PIO AND Ckgs receipt showing that the applicant applied for OCI in lieu of PIO.

But the problem is Atlanta and SF ckgs centers take original PIO cards when applying for OCI in lieu of PIO and return PIO
(cancelled) along with OCI and PP after completion of OCI process(atleast 2 months). Other Consulates/Embassy applicants can send PIO card during step 2 of OCI card process. As one of my child's PIO card is from Atlanta, I cannot apply for OCI in lieu of PIO because I've to submit original PIO and I'll get it after 2 months

   I just wanted to see what information is being asked in OCI in lieu of PIO online form. So, When I tried to fill the OCI
in lieu of PIO online form for the PIO card with issue date of 14th Jan, the form was not going to next page as it is
thinking that the PIO card with issued date of 14th Jan is invalid and also the form is not recognizing the validity date
of LIFELONG and saying Invalid date format.

Ok, I said enough, confused myself and confused everyone. My question/concern is simple. Is valid PIO card with
valid PP enough for India travel after June 17th. Probably, few people in the forum are there in this situation. Please let
me know your opinions. I've already prepared application forms for 3 Tourist Visas but just thought I would check in the
forum.

Thanks

I got to know about this today only that PIO will be invalid after 17 Jun 2015, If I understood correctly that one can travel with PIO before 17th Jun 2015 to India and stay after 17th June 2015 and come back without any problem, I have a planned travel on 30th May 2015 and I don't want risking by sending the PIO to get OCI before this date. what do you guys think? would I have any problem while coming back ?

Dear friends,
     The Ministry of Home Affairs again surprised us by saying that PIO cards are no longer valid after June 17th 2015 when traveling to India. Here is the link http://www.indianconsulateatlanta.org/page/display/13. For those of us who got PIOs until January 9th 2015, we still have to to take OCI. If we have journey to India before June 17th, we can still use PIO. But if anyone wants to go to India after June 17th, they have to have either a visa or OCI and PIO card is not valid. The only good thing is - for those who already have PIO, they can convert to OCI with a lesser fee($20) and it still takes 8 to 10 weeks of time, but I'm not fully sure about the reduced fee.

My baby has PIO card which was issued in 2014 October and she left to India in Nov 2014 and she will be comming back to US in may 2015, if the stay outside US for more than 6 months do we need to submit any forms. She has valid PIO and US passport
If any one have details please let me know.

Regards,
Ashok