How to Register for OCI Card?

Holding an OCI card provides numerous benefits to people of Indian origin who live abroad. The key benefits of an OCI card are as follows: 

• Multiple-entry lifelong visa for entering India. 

• Purchase residential and commercial properties. 

• Exemption from registering with the Foreigner’s Regional Registration Officer, irrespective of the length of the stay. 

• Equality with Indian nationals for entry fees to national parks and monuments. 

• Parity with NRIs in the economic, financial, and educational fields and intercountry adoption. 

• OCI cardholders can become architects, advocates, doctors, nurses, pharmacists, dentists, and chartered accountants after passing the required eligibility test. 

What is required to apply for an OCI card?

To apply for an OCI card, the applicant must be a citizen of another country and hold its passport. Before applying, the applicant must have a Certificate of Renunciation of Indian Citizenship. If you do not have it already, you must apply for it and have it with you before applying for the OCI card. The OCI document is not issued to citizens who reside in Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Eligibility Criteria to Register for an OCI Card

To apply for an OCI card, the applicant must fulfil the following criteria:

• The person was a citizen of India at the time of or any time after 26 January 1950.
• The person was eligible to become a citizen of India on 26 January 1950.
• The person belonged to a territory that became part of India after 15 August 1947.
• The person is a minor or a child or a grandchild or a great-grandchild of such a person mentioned in the first three points.
• The person is a minor child and whose parents are citizens of India or one of the parents is a citizen of India.
• The person is the spouse of foreign origin of a citizen of India or spouse of foreign origin of an overseas citizen of India cardholder and whose marriage has been registered and subsisted for a continuous period of not less than two years immediately preceding the presentation of the application.

Documents Required for OCI Card Application

To apply for an OCI card, various documents are required to be submitted. They are as follows: 

• Application form 

• Proof of present citizenship 

• Proof of self, parents, and grandparents being of Indian origin. 

• Copy of the current valid passport

• Relationship documents, such as birth certificate, if required 

• Passport-size photographs (plain light background, 2-inch x 2-inch size, JPEG/ JPG format, not exceeding 500 KB) 

• Thumb impression and signature (1:3 ratio for signature photo, JPEG/ JPG format, not exceeding 500 KB) 

Registration for OCI card

All eligible persons can file their application for registration as OCI online. Before the registration process could be started, there are certain things that eligible persons need to know. They are mentioned below:

• The person must first check the eligibility before starting the registration process.
• If the applicant is already an OCI card holder, he/she needs to use OCI miscellaneous services.
• The person needs to register through OCI registration even if he/she is a PIO card holder or the card is in the lost state.
• To reprint the already registered application, the 'Reprint Submitted Application' service must be used.
  

To register as OCI, eligible persons need to follow the steps mentioned below:

Step 1: The applicant must first visit the official portal for OCI services.  

Step 2: Next, he/she needs to click on 'OCI Registration'. In doing so, the applicant is redirected to a new page where he/she needs to click on the link that reads 'Click Here to Proceed'. 

Step 3: In the next page, the applicant is required to click on 'Proceed'. 

Step 4: In the corresponding page, the applicant needs to key in the captcha code and click on 'Enter'. 

Step 5: Next, the appropriate option from among 'Fresh Application' and 'Complete Partially-Filled Application' needs to be selected. 

Step 6: On selecting 'Fresh Application', a new page is opened where the applicant's information, passport details, and family details need to be provided. 

Step 7: In the next page, the applicant's photo and signature needs to be uploaded. 

Step 8: Once the photo and signature are successfully uploaded, the supporting documents need to be uploaded, and the application needs to be submitted. 

Step 9: After submission of the online application, a copy of the application form which contains the online registration number needs to be printed. 

Step 10: The printout along with all the relevant enclosures and requisite fees needs to be submitted to the Indian Mission/Post/Office under whose jurisdiction the applicant is ordinarily residing. 

OCI Card Renewal/Reissue

An OCI card is to be reissued when a new passport is issued to the applicant before the age of 20 or after the age of 50. The card must be reissued if there are changes in personal details, or if you have lost or damaged the OCI card.  

To reissue, the cardholders can visit the official portal of OCI services, fill out the application form, submit the required documents, and pay the fees. The originals of the supporting documents must be submitted for the verification process at the Indian Mission, Post, FRRO. The fee for reissuing an OCI card if it was lost or damaged is US$.100, and for the reissuance due to the issuance of a new passport after turning 20 years of age is US$25. 

The reissuance will take around one month from the date of acknowledgement of the online application. 

OCI Registration Fees

The fees required to be paid by applicants who register as OCI depends on the factor as to where the application is being submitted. If the application is submitted outside India, US$275 or its equivalent in local currency for each applicant needs to be paid through demand draft.

If the application is submitted in India itself, an amount of Rs.15,000 needs to be paid through Demand Draft. The Demand Draft needs to be in favor of 'Pay and Accounts Officer (Secretariat), Ministry of Home Affairs' payable at New Delhi.

OCI Card Processing Time

The processing time for an OCI card application is generally up to 6 to 7 weeks from the date of application. 

How to Check the Status of the OCI Application?

After the OCI application is filed, the status of the application can be checked by the applicants. This can be done by following the steps mentioned below:

Step 1: Visit the official portal of OCI services. 

Step 2: Next, click on 'OCI-Enquiry' 

Step 3: Thereafter, click on 'Click Here to Proceed'. 

Step 4: After that, click on 'Status Enquiry' from among the various options. 

Next, click on 'Proceed'. 

Step 5: In doing so, a new page opens where the applicant needs to enter the passport number and one of either online registration number or acknowledgement number. 

Step 6: Following that, the applicant needs to enter the captcha code and click on 'Get Status'. 

Step 7: The status of the application is displayed on the corresponding screen. 

Common Mistakes to Avoid  

While applying for an OCI card, it is important to be aware of various requirements in order to avoid making mistakes. Avoidable mistakes such as minor errors can lead to your application being rejected. Given below are the major mistakes applicants make, that you must pay attention to: 

• Poor Quality photographs: The photographs for an OCI application must fit the criteria. It must be recent, 2x2 inches, with the proper background, and the face must be occupying 80% of the photograph. When uploading the photo online, the file size must not exceed 500 KB, and it must be in either JPG or JPEG formats. The same goes for signatures as well. 

• Mismatched Information: Ensuring that all your information matches across all submitted documents is a crucial aspect of the application process. Spelling mistakes, or any mismatch can lead to your application being rejected. 

• Missing Supporting Documents: All supporting documents must be submitted while applying for the OCI card. Documents that prove your identity, current citizenship, and Indian origin must be submitted, and leaving out such important documents can result in application rejection.