PIO/OCI for British born child

[mkanagar]

If the baby is born here and registered as British citizen :

1.) How soon we can get OCI or PIO for the baby? which is advisable?

2,) if we decide to go to india permanently when the baby is 5 or 6 years old,
will it affect the studies of our kid in any way? just because our kid is a british citizen.

3.) I know our kid has to wait for 6 years in OCI to get Indian citizenship?
only then he can start studies in India?

can you please clarify.

I am sorry these are not dependant questions.
Can you please redirect me to the threads where these are discussed?

[geriatrix]

Hi,
Can you please help answering below questions.
I am very confused. I went through many posts/forums but still confused.

My wife is in ILR. And i am on independant Tier-1 and i can apply for ILR by Jan-2013. My wife is pregnant and baby is due Nov-2012.

Our Idea:
Right now, I and my wife are not keen on getting British Citizenship.
We are not sure if we are going to settle here permanently.
We might live here for another 5 years or so and go to India when our kid is ready for school may be. so we would like to stay in ILR until we decide we need british citizenship.

Even though if we take british citizenship, we can take OCI after that and go to india and settle there permanently.

Now the baby is due in Nov-2012. So it looks like we have to decide many things now.

1.) People say if the baby is born here in UK, it will automatically become British because my wife is in ILR now. We wanted our baby to be indian just like us. Later when we decide to go for british citizenship, we will get that for the baby too. what should we do for this?

2.) if the baby is born here and become british and after 5 years if we decide to settle in india, will it be a problem for the kid's studies?

3.) by the time baby is born in india, i will complete my 5 years in tier-1 and has to apply for ILR. I am not 100% sure of getting it as there are some issues with my job right now. so i may not be in a position to provide the docs. so we have to get the dependant visa for the baby only using my wife's documents.

4.) if the baby is born in uk, can we get indian citizenship for it even thought my wife is in ILR?

5.) if so, we will have indian passport. Should the baby need a visa like OCI or PIO to travel to india. The baby has indian passport so its an indian citizen and should not require a indian visa to visit india, i assume. correct ?

6.) Since the baby is registered as indian, should we get dependant UK visa for the baby. will that be a temporary visa? or will be a ILR?

End of story: we want our baby to hold indian passport and have a UK Tier-1 or ILR visa just like us. what should we do for this? Can you please help?

Thanks,
-mkanagar

[manoj123]

lots of input in this thread

[pinagogi]

My dear member,
First of all, if the baby is born in UK (and the mother is having ILR) then the baby can get a British passport straight away which costs less than £100.
If you chose to apply for Indian passport, you are welcome to do so which costs around £30-£40 and after that you would have to apply for a dependant visa (it may be a Tier-1 or ILR) which costs about £600-£800 (not sure).
My advice is to get a British passport and apply for OCI which is very much cost effective and better in future.

You will not need a visa or anything to go to India if you decide to take Indian passport. The only thing you will need is a UK visa (Tier-1 or ILR) to return to UK.

If you wish to take Indian citizenship for your child, you can do so, but, be aware of the costs of applying for British citizenship when you decide.
To get Indian passport, apply from the High Commission of India, London. You can get all the necessary information from their website.

Finally - If you can afford to splash away £600-£800 for an Indian passport and dependant visa, which once you decide to go for British citizenship, is a mere waste.


My advice - it's upto you to follow or not
It's better to have British citizenship and passport for your child considering her future (unless, you have any plans for her to enter any government related services in India in the future i.e. IAS, IPS etc, or even may be Politics). That is the only problem if you have a foreign citizenship because these roles require the person to be a natural citizen of India (by birth).

[mkanagar]

Hi pinagogi,
Thanks for your valuable advice. much appreciated.

I also think BC + OCI is the right option for us.

After taking BC for the child, how long will it take to get OCI for the child.
I also learnt from here that in order for the child to get OCI, either of the parents should hold a British Citizenship right?

This means we have to get BC for the child and my wife and then get OCI for both of them.

I am on a independant Tier-1 General and can apply for ILR in Jan-2013.
I think let my wife and child take BC and i will be in ILR and have indian citizenship.

Do you see any point in this? Pros and Cons?
Thanks for your help.

[geriatrix]

in order for the child to get OCI, either of the parents should hold a British Citizenship.

Yes.

[manoj123]

After taking BC for the child, how long will it take to get OCI for the child.

Do you see any point in this? Pros and Cons?

Assuming one of the parent has taken BC and surrendered Indian passport, both the parent the child can apply OCI and it could take upto a month. There is a thread for OCI timeline to give an approx. idea on how long it would take.

Did you read the thread I pointed earlier about pros and cons of giving up Indian passport? You can post your comments/views/inputs on that topic there to avoid a parallel discussion here.

[pinagogi]

Hi
I don't think either of the parents need to be British to get OCI for your child.
There's information clearly on the website about this.
Applying for OCI depends on where you live. If you live within the London embassy cachment area then it's much quicker(maximum 4weeks I beleive because I got it in 4 weeks) because you can go there and submit or just post the documents.
I've seen on the website that you will need to produce your child's birth certificate along with the parent's passports(probably mother and father) and then follow accordingly. There's is a column for 'For a person born outside India' in the website. So, it should be straight forward.

Also, if you decide to go back to India this should not affect your child studies in any way as of now. Moreover, your kid doesn't need Indian citizenship to study in India as he's already Overseas Citizen of India.
Oh BTW - Do you know if the schools ask for proof of Nationality?? Not as I'm aware of!!!

[geriatrix]

I don't think either of the parents need to be British to get OCI for your child!

Section 7A(1)(a) and 7A(1)(b) of the Indian Citizenship Act.

A child who has not held Indian citizenship ever can be eligible for OCI only if either parent holds a foreign nationality and (parent) is eligible for OCI under Section 7A(1)(a).

The workaround for this that may work (not sure) - apply for Indian citizenship (and passport) for a British born child first, then apply for British citizenship (and passport). Then it should be ossible for the child (now a British citizen) to apply for OCI in his own right (having been an Indian citizen before acquiring British citizenship) after surrendering Indian passport.

[mkanagar]

Hi,
We are planning to do the below steps. can you please let me know if i am wrong or having incorrect assumption.

1.) Our baby is due by Nov-2012. My wife will be in ILR by that time.

2.) By Dec-2012, get british citizenship for the baby.

3.) I am Tier-1 General and will apply for my ILR by Jan-2013.

4.) My wife completes 1 year in ILR on Mar-2013. So by May/June-2013, she can get the british citizenship.

5.) By July-2013, my wife can apply for OCI.
Questions:

1.) whether the baby can get OCI by that time?
Or the baby is allowed to apply only as POI..?

2.) Its said that POI holders have to register with police if they are staying more than 180 days. i did not like this. I think OCI is better. So i am wondering if there is a chance our baby can get OCI instead of POI.

3.) I am planning to be in ILR with Indian passport. I think its always a benefit for one of the partner to stay on indian citizenship. is it right?

Please advice.
Thanks.

[geriatrix]

I read the article OCI vs POI.

It says that foreign born children are not eligible for OCI.

If our baby is born in UK, then he/she will be british by birth.
So we cannot apply for OCI for the baby?
The baby will be only eligible for POI card.?

What if we want to go to India when our child is 5 years old.?
Can you please advise?

[geriatrix]

Interesting...

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

My wife is on ILR and we are expecting a baby soon.
If we get british citizenship for the baby and if we want to go to india,
should we apply POI or ILR for the baby.

According to the above link, it looks like we can apply OCI for the baby.?
I thought it was not possible. The baby can apply only for POI?
Can you please advice?

Thanks.

[geriatrix]

1.) whether the baby can get OCI by that time?

My response above already answers your question.

Or the baby is allowed to apply only as POI..?

Why do you assume so?

2.) Its said that POI holders have to register with police if they are staying more than 180 days. i did not like this. I think OCI is better. So i am wondering if there is a chance our baby can get OCI instead of POI.

I am unable to understand why you think your child cannot get OCI, but only PIO ... even after going through the comparison chart. It has already been explained how a British born child can become eligible for OCI.

[geriatrix]

OCI - This response explains how and when your British born child may be eligible for OCI.

PIO - A British citizen child can apply for PIO anytime irrespective of whether either parent currently holds Indian nationality or a foreign nationality.

A child eligible for OCI will always be eligible for PIO ... but not vice versa.

From what I have read on the forum, it appears that OCI is more convenient option when intending to live in India long-term. Reading the comparison chart makes it clear as to why people say so. Therefore, the choice is yours to make.

[mkanagar]

Sorry, I was confused a bit.
Thanks for clarifying. Clear now.

A child born in UK and acquired british citizenship can get OCI only when one of the parent holds gets british citizenship.
If the parents does not hold british citizenship, then the child is only eligible for PIO.

Thanks,
Mahesh

[geriatrix]

The workaround for this that may work (not sure) - apply for Indian citizenship (and passport) for a British born child first, then apply for British citizenship (and passport). Then it should be ossible for the child (now a British citizen) to apply for OCI in his own right (having been an Indian citizen before acquiring British citizenship) after surrendering Indian passport.

Not possible.