OCI / PIO ?? Please help!

M

mario123

Registered Users (C)
I have been trying to get answers on the following questions but have not been successful so far.

1) If I decide to apply for PIO instead of OCI do I still need a stamp on my US passport? Is the PIO an actual card (like a GC) or is it a booklet?

2) Do we have to send our original passports in at the end to get the stamp or can I appear in person to get the stamp? The reason being that I am paranoid about sending originals to the Houston Indian Consulate. I have first hand experience on how BAD the customer service is, and that is IF you actually get to talk to a live person. I remember a few months ago trying for days on end to get a hold of a live person. We finally drove down to Houston and even then, it looked like it was going to be a wasted trip! We stood at the window and the lady behind the glass just kept playing games with us - pretending that she didn't see us, etc. Finally, I raised my voice and told her that I would NOT LEAVE until I got my passport in hand. That did the trick. Unbelievable. Later on I found out that they actually lost my new passport and were getting ready to mail my wife's passport only!

3) If the OCI process takes too long, can I just get a visa by driving down to Houston and get it the same day, or do I have to mail my passport in ?

4) I have 2 kids born here - 6 and 3 yrs old. Can they get OCI or is it PIO? Explain please.

5) Finally, can I just travel on 2 passports - show my Indian passport on entry into India and then show my U.S. one on the way back here?

Thanks!
 
Last edited by a moderator:
1) I do not know the answer for this question
2) For OCI, you do need to send the orig passports in the mail to get the VISA sticker stuck on it.
3) No idea how Houston handles the visa process
4) kids cannot get OCI, only PIO.
5) Its illegal to do so. You are supposed to get your Indian passport cancelled when you take up citizenship of another country.
 
Mario123,

Suriyan has answered most of your questions. I don't have a lot to add, but definitely, you DONT want to travel with 2 passports - that is absolutely illegal - atleast as far as India is concerned. Because there is no such thing as a a "true" dual citizenship with India - even with OCI. You have to get your Indian passpoprt cancelled.

I have no idea about PIO card - whether its just a stamp or a plastic card, as I have applied for OCI only. Either way, PIO or OCI, if your application is still pending and you have to travel to India, you can get a tourist visa in a day's time at any of the embassies/consulates in the USA - that's your best bet.

If you dont live near Houston, and cannot drive - then your only option is to mail the US passport in to get your visa. If you can drive down, that would be ideal.

For your kids, if you are an Indian Citizen - then they cannot get OCI card - only PIO. If you (and your wife) acquire overseas citizenship and apply for OCI - then your kids are also eligible for OCI.

Kabes.
 
Thanks

Kabes said:
Mario123,

Suriyan has answered most of your questions. I don't have a lot to add, but definitely, you DONT want to travel with 2 passports - that is absolutely illegal - atleast as far as India is concerned. Because there is no such thing as a a "true" dual citizenship with India - even with OCI. You have to get your Indian passpoprt cancelled.

I have no idea about PIO card - whether its just a stamp or a plastic card, as I have applied for OCI only. Either way, PIO or OCI, if your application is still pending and you have to travel to India, you can get a tourist visa in a day's time at any of the embassies/consulates in the USA - that's your best bet.

If you dont live near Houston, and cannot drive - then your only option is to mail the US passport in to get your visa. If you can drive down, that would be ideal.

For your kids, if you are an Indian Citizen - then they cannot get OCI card - only PIO. If you (and your wife) acquire overseas citizenship and apply for OCI - then your kids are also eligible for OCI.

Kabes.
Click to expand...

Kabes,

Thanks a lot for answering my questions.
 
Thanks

suriyan said:
1) I do not know the answer for this question
2) For OCI, you do need to send the orig passports in the mail to get the VISA sticker stuck on it.
3) No idea how Houston handles the visa process
4) kids cannot get OCI, only PIO.
5) Its illegal to do so. You are supposed to get your Indian passport cancelled when you take up citizenship of another country.
Click to expand...

Thanks suriyan!

One clarification: "kids cannot get OCI, only PIO". Can you elaborate? We will be citizens in 3 weeks. My kids were born here. What does that leave us? I am going to apply for POI simply because it takes only a month. So, does that mean my kids get a PIO too?
 
mario123,
I am sorry, I think I created a slight confusion. Kids cannot get OCI if both parents are Indian passport holders. Otherwise, they can get OCI, as Kabes mentions it.
In your case, yes, you can apply for OCI for your kids along with your application.

More Info: http://www.mha.nic.in/oci/faqs.pdf

Suriyan
 
mario123, I should ask you to reconsider your decision to apply for a PIO only based on timeline.An OCI is cheaper,valid for life and will be more helpful if you have holdings in India like ancestral property or you wish to buy a house here etc.Please get all the facts in hand before applying either way
 
mangal969 - thanks for the advice. I am now seriousely reconsidering my decision based on the input from the good folks (like you) on this board.

The only issue that I can't seem to get a straight answer for is: can I drive to Houston and get my U sticker the same day? I really don't want to mail our passports in.
 
Yes, you can drive to Houston and get it same day.
The email I got from Houston consulate said
"In case you want to come and collect the OCI cards in person, pls give your passports at the counter between 9am and 12:30pm and collect then between 4pm and 5pm. "
and I had some one do it for me and got them ont he same day.
 
Thanks!

three year waiter said:
Yes, you can drive to Houston and get it same day.
The email I got from Houston consulate said
"In case you want to come and collect the OCI cards in person, pls give your passports at the counter between 9am and 12:30pm and collect then between 4pm and 5pm. "
and I had some one do it for me and got them ont he same day.
Click to expand...

Thanks "three year waiter" - that's exactly what I was looking for!

I have a couple of questions for you:

1) Can you give me a little more info on your timeline? How long it takes, etc.?

2) HOW does Houston get in touch with you to let you know that you have to send your passport - is it only through email or do they send you a letter? Email seems a little flaky for such an important process. I also saw somewhere where it says that CGI sends you the actual OCI registration certificate and that's how you know that you have to send your passport. Is that true?

3) You mention that "someone" took your passports to Houston and did the leg work. So, what you are saying is that a 3rd party can get your passport stamped and delivered?
 
Last edited by a moderator:
three year waiter said:
See this thread for details.
http://boards.immigrationportal.com/showthread.php?t=247391

They only send email but that does not matter. As soon as the online status says they are received at houston, you can mail your passports.
Click to expand...

As I mentioned earlier, I don't want to mail my passport to them (here's why). So based on what you are saying about the email, can I just drive down to Houston once the email comes in or the online status says "received in Houston"? I assume that calling them won't work since they never answer the phone. So, how do I make sure that they can process my passport the same day if I just drive down? .....Just imagine driving 3 hrs. one way to find out that they can't process my U sticker the same day :mad:

I also have another important question: I plan on applying for my and my wife's U.S. passport on 5/11 right after our oath using ARush Passport's 2-5 day expedited service. The problem is that due to the $95/pp cost, I am just going to use arush for my and wife's pp's and then expedite my kids passports using the normal expedited service through the post office. So, we'll get our pp's in 5 days whereas our kids' will take about 3-4 weeks! Does that mean I have to wait till we get the kids pp's in order to fill out the OCI app., or can I fill it out as soon as we receive our pp's and then fill out the kids part when their pp's come in?

Thanks
 
Last edited by a moderator:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top