Can Indian Passport be surendered & OCI be applied in In

[Raj_J]

Hi,

I took oath of British Citizenship on 2nd-Oct-2012 and immediately applied for the British Passport and have attended the interview as well.

Keeping in mind that I have not crossed 90 days after my citizenship (from 2nd-Oct) , my Query are as follows:

1.) Can I travel to (New Delhi) India on my Indian Passport and surrender my Passport in India ?
2.) Hoping Passport Surrender process will take couple of days in India as well , Can I apply for OCI from India after surrendering passport ?

During this whole process , I will be having my British Passport as well with me .

Many Thanks,

Regards,

Rajeev.

[Raj_J]

Hi ,

Can anyone reply to my queries ?

Thanks.

Rajeev Joshi

[gidoc]

Good try in making the situation more complex.
Decide your priorities.
Keep it simple, do not try and save money and get 'more heartaches' and ' uncertainities'*
If you have had your interview, you should get your UK passport in 5 working days.
You should ideally then surrender your Indian PP( apply in person, collect by post)- 7 Days, apply for OCI- keep paperwork ready( 1-2 days) take a visa for India( apply in person and collect by post) 5 days, and you are done. Return within 3 months and find your OCI ready, collect by post. All done.

Or else you can try your way ! *

[Raj_J]

Hi ,


Thanks for the quick response.

How about Surrendering Indian Passport and Applying for Indian VISA (1 Year Visa) ?
As most probably I will be returning back after 5-6 months , Can I apply OCI from (Delhi) India and then return back ?

Thanks,

Rajeev Joshi.

[manyaonisland]

As most probably I will be returning back after 5-6 months

If you are going to India for 5-6 months then it makes more sense to complete the process there. I do not see a point in applying for the visa while travelling to India for the fact that your Indian passport is still valid for travel for 3 months. Had it been a 3-4 weeks trip the advice given would have been more appropriate.

[Raj_J]

Thanks for the reply
You mean to say :
1.) I should fly to Delhi with both of my passports (Indian and British) and surrender my Indian Passport at Delhi once I reach Delhi.
2.) Apply immediately for OCI once I reach Delhi

Query :
Firstly ,, Is it legal to travel using Indian Passport after acquiring British Citizenship and British Passport ? I have heard that after obtaining British Citizenship one can retain Indian Passport for 3 months but can not use it to travel to India.
Secondly , In that case I am travelling to India without any valid VISA (immigration Status) using Indian Passport, what if my OCI application takes more than 2 months time ?

Please suggest.

Thanks,

Rajeev Joshi

[manyaonisland]

Is it legal to travel using Indian Passport after acquiring British Citizenship and British Passport ? I have heard that after obtaining British Citizenship one can retain Indian Passport for 3 months but can not use it to travel to India.

In the grace period you can travel to India using Indian passport, you do not need the visa

4. There is a grace period of three months after acquisition of foreign nationality (to be counted from the date of registration / Naturalisation Certificate and not from the date of foreign passport) for using Indian passport for travel.

Secondly , In that case I am travelling to India without any valid VISA (immigration Status) using Indian Passport, what if my OCI application takes more than 2 months time ?

the Suggestion was based on what you said that you will be in India for 5-6 months. why you need to have OCI in 2 months ?

[gidoc]

>How about Surrendering Indian Passport and Applying for Indian VISA (1 Year Visa) ?
As most probably I will be returning back after 5-6 months , Can I apply OCI from (Delhi) India and then return back ?

Evrything is worth a try but as said before, youre trying hard to make the situation complex.
Choice 1
You can get OCI here in UK IN 6-8 Wks, thats the best case scenario.

So do you HAVE to travel before you can get OCI here in UK?
Choice 2
You may say yes, then enter India using using Indian PP, then surrender it, apply for OCI, then exit using British PP. May have to answer queries at immigration, delays are possible.

Take your choice, second option is legally sound but fraught with uncertainities.

[veenas127]

Hi

I obtained British nationality by naturalisation on 20th Nov 2013.
I immediately I had to travel to India on emergency without even applying for British Passport. I travelled on Indian passport.
I came back to UK in June 2014.
I now applied for British passport and waiting to receive next week.
Once I receive British PP I want to surrender my Indian passport and then want to apply for OCI and Indian visa as I have to travel again in August 2014.

Will there be any grave concerns for staying in India for 6 months after acquiring foreign nationality?
But I was not holding British passport during my stay in India, so I could not surrender my passport in India.

Can anyone please advise what will be the consequences or anyone had a similar experience like me?