Is there a new rule?: adult US citizen (citizen by birth) not eligible for OCI card

grad94

New Member
HI all,

I was told by travisa SFO last week that an adult US citizen (citizen by birth) is not eligible for a OCI card if both parents of the adult citizen are Indian citizens.

AFAIK, this rule only applies to minors: minors who are US citizens are not eligible for a OCI card, if both parents are Indian citizens, until they turn 18. Does this rule also apply to adult citizens?

Please help me out here as I am not able to find such a rule documented anywhere but travisa insists that this is the case.

thanks
Raja
 
I have been told the same and have confirmed this with Travisa and CGINY. My wife is a UK born US citizen (holds dual nationality - UK + US) whose parents are still Indian. She is not eligible for OCI and can only get a PIO. I know its confusing as hell since the requirements do not clearly state this and reading the requirements on the Travisa or CGINY website led me to believe that she was eligible. So I fought and fought for a long time after which I gave up and decided to just file for myself and my son. It does not make sense, but whatever! :-(
 
@complexity. did you try filing for OCI for your wife from the UK consulate.

I read somewhere about this other Indian guy who held dual nationality, US and Canada, he had OCI on his expired Canadian passport, but flew to India on his US passport. They turned him and his family around saying he didn't have OCI as he flew from US. If he has an OCI in the canadian passport, then he needs to travel on the canadian passport. but since he held american citizenship as well, he thought it'd be convenient to travel on the US passport that didn't have a OCI stamp. Even though he had his Canadian passport, he was denied entry.
 
from ministry of home affairs web site, FAQs on OCI.

http://www.mha.nic.in/pdfs/oci-faq.pdf

Q 4. Can the spouse of the eligible person apply for OCI?
A. Yes, if he/she is eligible in his/her own capacity.

Q 5. Can Minor children apply for OCI?
A. Yes, if either of the parents is eligible for OCI.

Also check required documents at Q 8. What documents have to be submitted with the application?

GOI needs proof that an applicant otherwise eligible for Indian citizenship; OCI is path to eventual Indian citizenship if one wishes to be.
 
@olddude - from the same document you published:

32. Will foreign-born children of PIOs be eligible to become an OCI?
Yes, provided one of the parents is eligible to become an OCI.

My wife is a foreign-born child, whose parents are not eligible for OCI since they live in India. So she is not eligible! :-(
 
@speakamericano - my wife was never an Indian citizen. I did read the post you mentioned earlier, but I believe that person was an Indian national who acquired Canadian citizenship and eventually US citizenship. I also did reach out to the Indian Consulate in UK, but they asked her to file from the US since she resides over here. Unless she had a residence in UK, they were not willing to entertain the request.
 
When OCI was first introduced, minors used to be eligible; though parents are either on visa, in progression to LPR, or have been LPRs but US not citizens. The requirement is that adults need to establish through proof that they have Indian lineage either through parents or through grand parents (parents or grand parents birth certificate or Indian passport); if parents and/or grand parents are not foreign passport holders. I would say get either birth certificate or passport copies from parents or grand-parents of your wife and apply OCI for your wife. This is assuming that her parents/grand parents are eligible to be Indian citizens satisfying GOI requirements for one to be Indian citizen.
 
HI everyone,

Thanks for your replies. I was looking at the actual eligibility criteria which is shown below:

A foreign national, who

- was eligible to become a citizen of India on 26.01.1950, or

- was a citizen of India on or at any time after 26.01.1950, or

- belonged to a territory that became part of India after 15.08.1947,

and his/her children and grandchildren, are eligible for registration as Overseas Citizens of India (OCI), provided his/her country of citizenship allows dual citizenship in some form or other under the local laws.

The minor children of such persons are also eligible for OCI.

However, if the applicant had ever been a citizen of Pakistan or Bangladesh, he/she will not be eligible for OCI.

as well Minor Children (below the age of 18) whose both parents are Indian Citizen are NOT eligible for OCI. (this is as per point # 6 of Ministry of Home Affairs)



From this it seems that "a foreign national and his children and grand children" are eligible for OCI cards. In my case, since my wife's parents are not foreign nationals (they hold indian citizenships), it seems she is not eligible on the basis of her parents.

Is my interpretation right? If so, it seems to be convoluted: children of indian citizens who are foreign nationals are not eligible but children of former indian citizens are eligible. Why are children of indian nationals being penalized?
 
Take them to court.

My biological dad was born in Dresden but my mom left him when I was a kid but meine Oma came from Bavaria and I was her first grandchild and knew German and English before Kindergarten, so I argued them in their own tongue, which is the big hang-up in Germany is the language. I have to appeal for 10 years but they gave it to me.

I have close content with relatives there in Unterschleißheim and München, have documentation of abuse from the man my mom re-married that adopted me so I have no reason to want that last name and I am estranged from all of those people. I am gay and I had sent numerous police reports from people where I lived about being told to kill myself and being called a Nazi queer, and this happened daily.

Eventually, given the circumstances, I was granted an EU passport and need to at least have a bachelor's level education to move there to live, I would still have to naturalize but my pace may go faster and I may not have to wait so long because I was exposed to a Native until I was 15 or so daily and had no issues socializing while in Germany.

Apparently, if ones descendants went to the USA, in Germany, dual citizen or not, one must naturalize but I have an EU passport and really don't understand the point since I still have to go through processes to move there permanently. I don't need Visas however but I have to be 'cleared' to not be a dual citizen there anymore and get rid of the US one, or something. I am sure I will have it down pat after a year or two of living there.

My desire to leave is based on history, Columbus Day and Thanksgiving being holidays, I have profound guilt and sadness about the atrocities that occurred with the people in camps and I have the same sadness and shame that my family moved somewhere that history doesn't show to North Americans or Latinos what their ancestors did. I don't dislike the USA at all, and I love being American because I am an outspoken, free thinking and free speaking American and I show it when speaking English. I think our history has a lot of great people who did great things and that we have one of the more flexible freedoms in the world but I think North and South America owe a true memorial to the Natives that were almost extinct. Many white Americans I know have a Native grandparent and some look blue eyed and blonde, like most "Latinos" look like people from Southern Spain. I feel like it is unfair for me to stomp on their graves and think it is unfair to be gay bashed when in classes up to now, my senior year in college, addresses all of these different types of hatred and bias but ignore the Natives in any lesson and also made racism against Caucasians acceptable. My ancestors were rotten but so weren't almost everyone else's and the victims of my ancestors as well as neighboring Arab nations house the displaced people that lived there to unlivable camps.

Also, prior to 9/11 people were nicer, not so serious about everything, not so paranoid or hateful and after college I am probably going there. My relatives own a company and they need someone who can manage the English language crew they have with slang, idioms and explaining to them what something means and how to change their tone of voice to express things because Germans use grammar and their voice tone isn't so variable to get the same effect. I speak Spanish too and it is simple but it is very melodic and flamboyant and Farsi has a different tonal pattern but it requires that one listens to everything to know what is going on because verbs are all at the end and conjugated. All pretty in their own way and if you are multilingual and can see the differences in how one acts and feels in different language, the same things can make one melt. I like my American culture too, even when I am in public on the phone speaking German and some redneck screams, "GO BACK TO RUSSIA", there is something about this place that is filled with ironies to laugh at as there are things that are not so "free".

sorry for that superfluous nonsense but take it to court
 
is this question still valid

Hello everyone,

My wife is born in the US (of course an adult :p) and I'm an Indian citizen. Her parents live in the US and are Indian citizens and gc holders. Is she still eligible for OCI?

I found the eligibility criteria to be very vague on the Indian embassy website and don't know for sure if she is eligible for OCI.

many thanks!!
 
Your wife is eligible to apply for OCI as an adult on the basis that her parents are Indian citizens. The minor children of parents (who are still Indian citizens) cannot apply for OCI. Was your wife always a USC (I assume so because she was born in the US) or did she have Indian citizenship at birth? If she was an Indian citizen at birth and naturalized later, she would not apply for OCI on the basis of being a child of Indian citizens and can apply on the basis as a former Indian citizen.
 
Your wife is eligible to apply for OCI as an adult on the basis that her parents are Indian citizens. The minor children of parents (who are still Indian citizens) cannot apply for OCI. Was your wife always a USC (I assume so because she was born in the US) or did she have Indian citizenship at birth? If she was an Indian citizen at birth and naturalized later, she would not apply for OCI on the basis of being a child of Indian citizens and can apply on the basis as a former Indian citizen.

That is incorrect. Assuming your wife is a US born citizen, she will not be eligible to apply because her parents are not eligible for an OCI.

The major gist of the discussion in this thread is exactly about this !
 
They say the minor children of Indian citizen parents are not eligible for OCI. They are specific about children under the age of 18 not being eligible. If it were applicable for children of any age, minor or adult, they would say so. A USC whose parents are Indian citizens is still eligible for Indian citizenship if they choose to opt for it (they would have to give up their US citizenship of course). On the basis of this, they are eligible to apply for OCI because that is one of the qualifying criteria:

A New OCI card for an applicant who DOES NOT hold a PIO card is given to a non-Indian national who:

Was eligible to become a citizen of India on January 26, 1950 or later, or
Was a citizen of India on, or at any time after, January 26, 1950, or
Belonged to a territory that became part of India after August 15, 1947, or
Is a child or grandchild of a person who meets any of the criteria listed above.
Non US passport holders who hold a temporary visa such as B1/B2 are not eligible.
Any one who is or has ever been a citizen of Pakistan or Bangladesh is not eligible for OCI status.
 
Your interpretation does make sense, although it looks like some babu in MEA has a different take on it and hence Travisa and other contractors are refusing such applicants.
 
Thanks a lot for the responses!

My wife was always a USC. My initial reaction was also similar to JPBoston. But, OP mentioned that he was rejected; I guess the only way I would know is when I submit the application.

The document checklist is also a major worry for me. Here is what I plan to send them:

  1. Oci Application
  2. Photo
  3. Copy of US passport
  4. Copy of birth certificate
  5. Proof of Indian Origin: Both parent's copy of Indian passport
  6. Proof of address: Driver's license

I will let you know the status of my application after it has been sent.
 
[*]Proof of Indian Origin: Both parent's copy of Indian passport

I would write on each parent's Indian passport copy pages a notation like "Proof of eligibility for Indian citizenship on basis on being adult child of Indian parent". Just to highlight the point that that is the criteria your wife is applying under.

You probably are best also including a cover letter explaining the criteria your wife is applying under.
 
Thanks a lot for the responses!

My wife was always a USC. My initial reaction was also similar to JPBoston. But, OP mentioned that he was rejected; I guess the only way I would know is when I submit the application.

The document checklist is also a major worry for me. Here is what I plan to send them:

  1. Oci Application
  2. Photo
  3. Copy of US passport
  4. Copy of birth certificate
  5. Proof of Indian Origin: Both parent's copy of Indian passport
  6. Proof of address: Driver's license

I will let you know the status of my application after it has been sent.

Alright guys! I'm delighted to let you all know that OCI has been granted to my wife. So, looks like if you are a American adult citizen with Indian parents, you are eligible! Good luck everyone.
 
Alright guys! I'm delighted to let you all know that OCI has been granted to my wife. So, looks like if you are a American adult citizen with Indian parents, you are eligible! Good luck everyone.

It validates the interpretation we had for your wife's OCI eligibility. That's great and congrats to your wife.
 
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