Dual Citizenship for India is now operational, is it better to take the dual citizenship or just get the POI card.
What are your views, experiences ?
Dual citizenship offers life long visa whereas the visa in POI card is for 15 years only.
So I think dual citizenship is the way to go.
Here are the excerpts from the Dual citizenship FAQs
http://www.returningtoindia.com/NRIInformation/60.aspx
33. What are the benefits of OCI?
Following benefits will be allowed to OCI:
(a) Multi-purpose, multiple entry, lifelong visa for visiting India.
(b) Exemption from registration with local police authority for any length of stay in India.
(c) Parity with NRIs in respect of economic, financial and education fields, exceptin matters relating to the acquisition of agricultural/plantation properties.
So the difference is that with OCI you get a life long visa to India.
Exemption from registration with local police authority
With OCI you can buy any sort of propeties except Agricultural /plantation properties. ( However if you have ancestral property which is already under you name or you are going to inherit it then that is ok)
Please check with your local authorities as well before you decide to take the OCI, here is an intersting article which explains some issues.
http://www.returningtoindia.com/Articles/73.aspx
Half the charm of getting the OCI is already lost when I rang up the High Commission.
First of all there is no central number on which you can ring, as usual there is a big list of names and each one has a different number.
When you ring the phone no one picks up ( as usual)
Some of the phones give engage tone ( as usual)
The website says that the OCI forms can only be submitted ONLINE.
One page has to submitted online, the other to be printed and taken to the highcommission personally.
So the information is not clear ( as usual ) , so I must ring them to find out what is the actual situation ( as usual as the website is always outdated).
The new forms for OCI are very very simple.
Make sure that you have access to internet and a printer( as you would need to print the form once you put in the information)
Here is what needs to be done.
1. Goto the Ministry of Home Affairs site
All you have to do is go the above mentioned page, click on the Online Registration. Fill up the information required like
Your name, date of birth, place of birth
Your foreign passport number
Your foreign citizenship date
Details of the relatives living in India, Their names, addresses and age.
Once you submit this information online you would get a confirmation page which needs to be printed ( this form will have a reference number).
Print 2 copies of this form and then fill up the information required in PART B of the form.
Stick 2 photographs ( Now this is very very important otherwise you would be making two trips to your High Commission office) .
The photos must be square in size ( atlease 3.5 cm X 3.5 cm with a light background and no border). The high commission will refuse to take your form if the photos are not of the right specification.
( PLEASE CHECK YOUR LOCAL HIGH COMMISSION WEBSITES FOR MORE DETAILS).
Make sure that you carry 2 sets of documents ( you can attest these documents yourself).
Submit the forms to your local high commission office, once the application is submitted you can check its progress online. ( Check your local high commission website for links)
Normally it should take 4 weeks to get the OCI . You do not get a new passport , you simply get a sticker on your foreign passport and a small booklet which you need to carry each time you travel.
Regards
Here is the link for online enquiry about the status of your OCI application.
Please make sure that you read all the instructions and FAQs .
After you make an application ( it can be done in person or you could courier/post your documents to the local office of the consulate in your area, check with them first where to mail it).
After a month or so , make an online enquiry about the status, if it says that the documents have been dispatched, received and printed in your local consulate office, allow 2 weeks or so.
Then go to the consulate to get your OCI ( uou have to go only on Tuesdays and Thursdays between 2:30 and 4:30).
Allow for about an hour or so of waiting.
What to take ?
Allow for about 1 to 2 hours of waiting as there are plenty of other people as well in queue.
What you get?
You would get a sticker with your picture on your current overseas passport.
You would also get a OCI RegistrationBooklet which has your name and your photograph and other details on it. ( Basically it resembles like an Indian Passport, which only has one page in it.).
You must carry your OCI Registration booklet while travelling to India, you can stay as long you want in India, no Police registration needed, you can also work in India and can buy and sell property.
The downside of OCI
For POI card holders there is a seperated QUEUE at the airports in India, where as the OCI holders just get lumped with the normal queues for Indian Visitors/Overseas Visitors.
For frequent travellers it may be bit of a nuisance as they would waste more time in the queues on each visit.
For family travellers where as one member has OCI and the others have POI may also be bit frustrating to stand in the seperate queues. Hopefully they process everyone together if you stand in one queue.