OCI - Houston Tracker

Everybody waiting on acknowledgment,

I kept emailing the consulate general and just now they responded. I am copying it below to let all of you know there is still little hope. I just noticed the Registration No USAHI1936807 just got acked. My Reg # is USAHI189XXXX and no sign of ack, so still worried. Goodluck everybody.

*********************************************************

Dear Sir/Madam,
We have your E-Mail.

Due to large number of e-mails, there may be delay in sending an individual reply. However the responsible officials will attend to your message.

Meanwhile, here are some guidelines :-

1. For General Information on consular services, please visit our website at www.cgihouston.org. You will find answers to most of your queries there.

2. Indian Visa application is handled by M/s Travisa Outsourcing. For Indian Visa please contact them directly at http://indiavisa.travisaoutsourcing.com

3. For genuine Emergency Service such as death in the family please contact Vice Consul(Consular) at Tel. No. 713-626-3252 and or Emergency No. 713-478-6218.

4. Time taken to process :

(i) Indian passports, except reference cases i.e. Passport not issued by CGI Houston, are processed in 7 working days. Passports issued by other Passport Offices/Consulates/Embassies take upto 30 days.

(ii) PIO cards are processed in 30 days.

(iii) OCI cases are processed in 12 weeks.



If your application had been delayed beyond the normal processing time, please write to Vice Consul(Consular) directly.



For serious complaints or suggestion write to Consul & HOC at cgi-hou@swbell.net



Note :



1. The normal validity of a passport is 10 years for adult and 5 years for minors below 15 years. Please apply for reissue of Passport if the validity of your passport is less than one year.

2. Visa on expired US Passport can be used with current US passport and transfer of visa to the new passport is not compulsory. However, the visa can be transferred to new passport after paying the requisite fees for visa transfer.



All concerned are requested to apply for consular services well in advance to avoid inconvenience. Please ensure that the application is complete in all respects to avoid delay.



We appreciate your cooperation.

Consulate General of India,

1990 Post Oak Boulevard,

Suite # 600,

Houston, TX - 77056
 
It is just a standard canned reply email. Nothing new to read in it. CGI Houston office is just a typical Indian Govt office atmosphere and has whole bunch of clowns.

I would suggest you guys to drive upto Houston and inquire. Thats the only way of finding the status of your app.

Dump and cifar241, your apps are long overdue for Ack. So you can take chances by driving up there and inquire.

Sailakfan, I think you may want to wait for couple more weeks. While it is sure delayed a bit but not to panic unless it is still not acknowledged for another 2 weeks. Just my 2Cents

Those clowns give a damn about faxes/emails/telephone calls.

Remember, you have to fight for the status even when you go there personally.

I went to CGI Houston today from Dallas to get my OCI U visa sticker. I have seen first hand how people were shouting at the Consular staff for delaying their stuff for months.


sailakfan said:
Everybody waiting on acknowledgment,

I kept emailing the consulate general and just now they responded. I am copying it below to let all of you know there is still little hope. I just noticed the Registration No USAHI1936807 just got acked. My Reg # is USAHI189XXXX and no sign of ack, so still worried. Goodluck everybody.

*********************************************************
Click to expand...
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Hi,
I sent my US Passport for U Visa along with the canceled Indian passport. CGI Houston has received it as per USPS tracking. I believe it takes 10-15 days to get the stamped passports back. I am keeping my fingers crossed. I hope that they send it back soon. I almost planned on driving down to Houston for U Visa and OCI boolet. Since I already had paid for return postage ($15), I decided to send it to them through mail. The return postage fee seems to have gone up ($20) since we applied. I hope that does not cause any issues.
 
Hello everybody,

I called the (713)871-1727 number and finally some lady picked up the phone. She said our Indian passports were not included and they had sent us a mail on Oct 26th which I have not received yet. I did attach two copies of both our Indian passports. I tried explaining it to her but she would not listen and said just wait until I receive the letter and send it back. I asked her once they receive the Indian passport copies how long would it take and she said it can take another 12 weeks or so and did not give me a solid reply. What a pathetic system? Anyway I encourage those waiting to call the above number and get it straightened.

Good luck
 
Last edited by a moderator:
HI THIS IS BENZ2001 I want to share some things i researched the ack nos are in sequence but registration are at random THE Ack no 1311907 is done on 17 nov and ref reg no is 1846107 is the lasst one if any body wants to know more play with ack and enter in sequene you will know the update
my on line is 1949407 and filed on nov5th cgi received it . if any one similer up date
thanks
bez2001
 
benz2001 said:
HI THIS IS BENZ2001 I want to share some things i researched the ack nos are in sequence but registration are at random THE Ack no 1311907 is done on 17 nov and ref reg no is 1846107 is the lasst one if any body wants to know more play with ack and enter in sequene you will know the update
my on line is 1949407 and filed on nov5th cgi received it . if any one similer up date
thanks
bez2001
Click to expand...

Hi Benz,
When did you fill the OCI application online? I understand you are still waiting for acknowledement. Is that right?
 
Phew... Acknowleged

At last My application status shows as Acknowledged. Saved me a trip to Houston. Hope things move faster.
 
Congratulations Dump!

Dump said:
At last My application status shows as Acknowledged. Saved me a trip to Houston. Hope things move faster.
Click to expand...

Boy! That sure took a long time to acknowledge. Congratulations!
From now on, the process should be quick for you. Good luck with the remaining steps.
 
Received a letter from CGI, Houston to send a copy of the Birth Certificate of my daughter along with the application and the letter.

I had not included a copy of the birth certificate for my daughter because the birth certificate clearly states that "It is illegal to duplicate this document in any form".
So I was planning to send the original BC along with the passports once my application is acknowledged.

A copy of the US birth certificate is not legal anywhere in US. In fact you are required to send the original birth certificate to apply for the US passport.

Lesson learned. For minors, it is not enough to send a copy of the US passport. You have to send a copy of the birth certificate.
 
Problems with attached documents

HI All

I have applied for OCI cards on 23 Aug 07. I got a reply on 17th Nov, stating that birth certificate of my son is not attached. The letter was written on 19 Oct2007. I have to wait for more than 3 months to know this. More interestingly, they send back all the applications & enclosures, which means that I have to start from zero.

I didn't realize that I have to sent the "birth certificates"
 
my timeline

24-Sep-07 : Filed Online
24-Sep-07 : Mailed Part A & Part B
25-Sep-07 : Received at Houston
29-Oct-07 : Date of Acknowledgement
01-Nov-07 : Photo/Signature Scanned
11-Nov-07 : Registration status Granted
12-Nov-07 : Documents Printed
15-Nov-07 : Documents Dispatched From Delhi
xx-xxx-xx : Documents Received at Houston
xx-xxx-xx : Received email
xx-xxx-xx : Sent Passport for U Visa
xx-xxx-xx : Passport received at Houston
XX-XXX-XX : Received U Visa + OCI booklet


I noticed that some of you who applied before than me did not get acknowledged till recently. My observation has been that it normally takes about 40-45 days from the receipt of the application to the acknowledge date to get updated online. if it doesnt get updated within that timeframe, I would try to get in touch with the consulate.

Good luck !
 
Status change- Received Acknowledgement

04-Sep-07- Application sent to houston
17-Nov-07 : Date of Acknowledgement
20-Nov-07 : Photo/Signature Scanned
***: Registration status Granted
*** : Documents Printed
***: Documents Dispatched From Delhi
*** : Documents Received at Houston
*** : Received email
*** : Sent Passport for U Visa
***: Passport received at Houston
*** : Received U Visa + OCI booklet
 
OCI all done!!!

I received the fedex package containing OCI booklet, the US and Indian passports. It was sent by CGI Houston through overnight fedex. This completes my journey. I am so happy. Thanksgiving celebration will be lot more cheerful now.

Good luck to rest of you.
 
Hi:

Update to my timeline is as follows:

OCI - HOUSTON
05-AUG-07: Filled Online
11-AUG-07: Sent Part A & Part B
15-AUG-07: Received at Houston
04-OCT-07: Date Of Acknowledgment
05-OCT-07: Photo/Signature Scanned
11-OCT-07: Registration status Granted
14-OCT-07: Documents Printed
17-OCT-07: Documents Dispatched From Delhi
02-NOV-07: Documents Received at Houston
22-NOV-07: OCI Stamped (drove to Houston)
 
jeete1978 said:
any idea how I can retrieve my file #. I lost it by mistake. I had filed on Oct 12.
Click to expand...

You need the Online Registration Number to check the status initially and once it gets acknowledged they will assign the file number. Somebody correct me if I am wrong. If you have lost the online registration number you can call CGI and they can retrieve it for you with your personal info. Hope this helps
 
benz2001 said:
HI THIS IS BENZ2001 I want to share some things i researched the ack nos are in sequence but registration are at random THE Ack no 1311907 is done on 17 nov and ref reg no is 1846107 is the lasst one if any body wants to know more play with ack and enter in sequene you will know the update
my on line is 1949407 and filed on nov5th cgi received it . if any one similer up date
thanks
bez2001
Click to expand...

i have filed on oct12, unfortunately have lost my reg#. No one in CGI houston picks up. But thanks Benz, now I have a clue as to what # to look for.
 
Benz2001

3-oct-07 filled on;ine
4-oct-97 sent part A & pART B
5-oct=07 received at houston

waiting for acknoldgement
Iwant to know if i go to india now can I receive my oci there or should I come back here and If I need to move for good do i need this for customs
please respond if any one knows
thanks
 
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