OCI - New York Tracker

SiriBabu said:
Did you mail SC and OCI together or you did SC first and then OCI ? I saw forums that OCI is being rejected stating OCI application doesn't have SC even though the main OCI applicaton website says "those can be sent together". I saw this after I mailed my SC+OCI together.I got my SC in 4 weeks after mailing and "under process" for OCI after 5 weeks. I am just hoping they won't deny my application,but they would get the copy with-in the consulate since they were sent together.

Please let me know...
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I had applied for both SC and OCI together and after one month of no news, I had written a couple of complaint emails and finally got a call back from the OCI cell yesterday. The lady said that they do accept both together but doing this will greatly delay your processing. The logic of this makes absolutely no sense but that is what the lady told me. She said basically your SC will processed first and then the SC and cancelled passport will be sent back to you and a copy of SC sent to the OCI to resume your OCI processing. However for anyone reading this that has not yet applied for either, DO NOT apply for both SC and OCI together. Apply for SC/passport cancellation first and after you get those back, then only apply for OCI. Trust me on this one.

So that phone call was yesterday. Today I received a Priority Mail package with both my SC and OCI applications and everything (including all certified checks) returned. They deemed both deficient in some aspect. For SC, they said I did not apply in duplicate. I followed the instruction PDF exactly as they said. Only duplicate they ask for is the copy of the completed application form. I think they want a complete duplicate submission of everything. Bloody idiots expect us to read their minds because they lack the intelligence to provide clear instructions in English.

For my OCI, they wanted a copy of my wife's passport and status in the US. I think this is for my son's OCI application because my wife is not applying for OCI. I realized after I had sent this in, that I needed to add my wife's passport page copies for my son and so this is not a surprise. However, also for my son's OCI application, they asked that both parents sign on the application form but I do not understand where exactly my wife needs to sign. She is not applying for OCI so therefore she shouldn't be signing next to my name as a secondary. But maybe that is what they want but it makes no sense. For the minor applicant (ie, my son), they ask only for the primary applicant (ie, me) to sign the minor declaration so there is no place over there for my wife to sign. Can someone explain to me what they did if they were the only parent applying for OCI along with a child?

Anyway for me, I just lost one month of time and will start by re-applying only for my SC and passport cancellation first before applying for OCIs later.
 
JPBoston,

I think it is a requirement. If the child is US Citizen then both parents concent is required. It is one of those wierd Treity between US and many countries. You remember American born child case in Brazil?.
 
krajah said:
JPBoston,

I think it is a requirement. If the child is US Citizen then both parents concent is required. It is one of those wierd Treity between US and many countries. You remember American born child case in Brazil?.
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OCI is not giving a child a passport, all it does it is grant the child a special visa status. That's it. Why both parents need to sign for this makes no sense to me. Regardless, where is my wife supposed to sign on that application? She is not applying for OCI so where exactly is she supposed to be signing on the form? The minor consent area only has an area for the primary applicant (which is me) to sign.
 
JPBoston said:
OCI is not giving a child a passport, all it does it is grant the child a special visa status. That's it. Why both parents need to sign for this makes no sense to me. Regardless, where is my wife supposed to sign on that application? She is not applying for OCI so where exactly is she supposed to be signing on the form? The minor consent area only has an area for the primary applicant (which is me) to sign.
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From the way the application form is worded, it is pretty clear the intention was for only one parent to sign. It says "I am a parent/guardian of" not "We are the parents/guardians". Also, like JP pointed out, it ask for only the primary applicant to sign. Lack of clear and consistent instructions/policy is the most frustrating thing in dealing with these people.
 
koblu said:
Anyone here who applied in July end seeing any OCI status updates ?
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Koblu,

My application was received at CG-NY on 7/27. No updates yet. I applied for SC/OCI together though. Please post your status changes when you see them.

Thanks!
 
Applied SC + OCI together; No updates and/or status change yet for both.

Documents mailed 7/19/2010
CGI-NY Received 7/20/2010
 
koblu said:
Anyone here who applied in July end seeing any OCI status updates ?
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Mailed July 17, 2010
Acknowledged August 17, 2010
Scanned August 18, 2010
Granted August 20, 2010
Printed August 25, 2010
Despatched to Mission Office August 25, 2010.
They take a while to acknowlege, but once they acknowledge, it seems to move fast. The above was my experience after my daughter's passport renewal. Our experience was similar about 4 months back for our original OCI as well. Although, at that time, they used to acknowledge within a week.
 
My OCI status update

The URL's seem to be working now. My OCI application was acknowledged today.
It was received at NY on July 26th.
 
Updated Surrender Certificate application instructions PDF

The CGI-NY has just published an updated SC instructions PDF. Basic difference now is that they ask you to submit a prepaid USPS Express Overnight label or a prepaid USPS Priority Mail label along with your SC application. Saves you a few bucks rather than them asking you to submit an additional certified check for $20 or $10 respectively for the return mailing.

Read about it here: Updated SC instructions for CGI-NY
 
All -

My daughter has a PIO card and is valid for few more years. We haven't applied for PIO / OCI for for son. We are planning to visit India for a marriage on November 15th, 2010.

Do you all think it is advisable to apply for OCI for my son and daughter?

Option 1: Keep daughter's PIO card and get same day entry visa for son?

Option 2: Apply for OCI card for both and cancel PIO card.

The limiting factor is obviously the the Nov 15th date. Please let me know if it is too short of a duration to apply for OCI?

Thanks!
 
JPBoston said:
The CGI-NY has just published an updated SC instructions PDF. Basic difference now is that they ask you to submit a prepaid USPS Express Overnight label or a prepaid USPS Priority Mail label along with your SC application. Saves you a few bucks rather than them asking you to submit an additional certified check for $20 or $10 respectively for the return mailing.
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That is great news!

I wish these guys would put a date on these instructions they keep changing so that people can at least figure out which is the newer. This is important due to the many conflicting sets of instructions on their website.

Also, I notice that they have now increased the processing time to "about three weeks". It was just three days at first, then it became seven days, and now "about three weeks". Apparently they are getting lazier!
 
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dynobuoy said:
All -

My daughter has a PIO card and is valid for few more years. We haven't applied for PIO / OCI for for son. We are planning to visit India for a marriage on November 15th, 2010.

Do you all think it is advisable to apply for OCI for my son and daughter?

Option 1: Keep daughter's PIO card and get same day entry visa for son?

Option 2: Apply for OCI card for both and cancel PIO card.

The limiting factor is obviously the the Nov 15th date. Please let me know if it is too short of a duration to apply for OCI?

Thanks!
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Did your son or daughter ever held the Indian Passport? If yes, then getting the SC for them would take some time. CG-NY "officially" changed the service time for SC to three weeks now and I believe it is taking around that long too. If you don't have to apply for SC, then you may apply for the OCI and you might get it in time; if you don't get it in time for the trip, then just apply for the entry visa for your son.
 
usindus said:
Also, I notice that they have now increased the processing time to "about three weeks". It was just three days at first, then it became seven days, and now "about three weeks". Apparently they are getting lazier!
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Yes, that's true and hope it doesn't become an issue for me on a couple of counts:
1. Sept 10th marks my 3 month anniversary since becoming a USC and if they process my SC application (which is in their hands now as of this week) after that date, I hope they don't demand some penalty for not having had my old Indian passport cancelled within 90 days. With these guys, nothing is their fault and so I really wouldn't be surprised if they invoked that demand with me if the situation came about. Even though, they have had enough time to process my SC and passport cancellation.
2. I had submitted my SC application with the additional certified check for mailing fees and had mailed my application just a before they changed the requirements to needing a mailing label. I hope this doesn't cause any issues either. My paranoia is due to my torturous experience with these fools who are not logical and consistent with their own published instructions.
 
usindus said:
Did your son or daughter ever held the Indian Passport? If yes, then getting the SC for them would take some time. CG-NY "officially" changed the service time for SC to three weeks now and I believe it is taking around that long too. If you don't have to apply for SC, then you may apply for the OCI and you might get it in time; if you don't get it in time for the trip, then just apply for the entry visa for your son.
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Thanks usindus!

No they never had Indian passports. Sorry for being naive, what is SC? How long does it usually take to get the OCI complete?

Thanks,
d
 
dynobuoy said:
Thanks usindus!

No they never had Indian passports. Sorry for being naive, what is SC? How long does it usually take to get the OCI complete?

Thanks,
d
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SC is Surrender Certificate for Indian Passport.

If your application is in order, then just acknowledging the OCI application after it is received at CG-NY is taking 3 to 6 weeks (this is based on readings from this forum). I have seen higher delays also, but assume they were due to incomplete documentation or needing additional clarifications. Then it goes pretty fast from there. I have seen OCIs printed and dispatched from Delhi in as soon as 3 days after CG-NY acknowledging the application; generally it is around a week or two. Then it takes about a week to 10 days for it to be received at CG-NY. If you live near the consulate, then you may go there and get the OCI Card and the U-Visa on the passports. Not sure how long it takes to get these by mail; my guess is two weeks or longer.

Since you don't have to cancel the Indian PP and get SC, there is no risk of your Indian PP getting stuck there making it trouble to get even the walk-in entry visa.
 
Getting ready to apply for OCI (CGI -NY)
I remember reading in this thread few days ago.
Is it OK to send notarized copies of PIO cards of my kids rather than sending the original with applying for OCI?

Thanks
 
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