India
Foreign nationals who hold a Person of India Origin (PIO) card may apply for an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card in lieu of PIO card at an Indian Mission abroad or local registration office in India based on the jurisdiction of residence. They will no longer need to travel back to the place of issuance of the PIO card, as was announced in April.
Those who have held a valid PIO card as of January 9, 2015 can apply for the OCI in lieu of PIO card by September 30, 2015. This is currently a voluntary process. Immigration Check Posts have been instructed to allow foreign nationals to travel to India based on the PIO card.
Application Requirements and Fees
A separate online application form for the OCI in lieu of PIO card category is available on the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) website.
The application process, documentation requirements and processing time for PIO card holders to apply for OCI cards under the OCI in lieu of PIO card process is equivalent to that of a new OCI card application.
There are no fees associated with OCI card applications in such cases, except application center service charges and postage costs involved, if any.
What This Means for Employers and Foreign Nationals
Foreign nationals residing in India or abroad can file OCI in lieu of PIO card applications by September 30, 2015 at the registration office in their jurisdiction of current residence and do not need to travel to the place of issuance of the PIO card.
Fragomen India is working with the MHA to determine whether applications for the OCI in lieu of PIO card can be submitted after September 30, 2015 and if PIO cardholders will be able to enter India after that date. Affected foreign nationals should contact their immigration professional for more information.
We worked closely with Fragomen Immigration Services India (Pvt.) Limited ("Fragomen-India") to prepare this alert. It is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the global immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen or send an email to [email protected].
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