1. In the year 2005, Government of India decided to grant Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) to Persons of Indian Origin (PIO). PIOs of certain categories who migrated from India and acquired citizenship of a foreign country other than Pakistan and Bangladesh, are eligible for grant of OCI as long as their home countries allow for dual citizenship in some form or the other under their local laws.
2. Persons registered as OCI have not been given any voting rights, they cannot contest election to Lok Sabha/Rajya Sabha/Legislative Assembly/Council, hold Constitutional posts such as that of President, Vice President, Judge of Supreme Court/High Court etc.
3. Registered OCI shall be entitled to following benefits:
   • Multiple entry, multi-purpose life long visa to visit India;
   • Exemption from reporting to Police authorities for any length of stay in India; and
   • Parity with NRIs in financial, economic and educational fields except in the acquisition of agricultural or plantation properties.

   Any further benefits to OCIs will be notified by the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs (MOIA) under section 7B (I) of the Citizenship Act 1955.

4. A person registered as OCI is eligible to apply for grant of Indian citizenship under section 5(1) (g) of the Citizenship Act, 1955 if he/she is registered as OCI for five years and has been residing in India for one year out of the five years before making the application.
5. Fee for Registration as OCI will be AED.1020/-. However, conversion of valid PIO card to OCI is gratis, there is no fees for this service. All fees are to be paid in cash at the Consulate.
6. The application form for OCI is available on the MHA website. The form has two parts, Part A has to be filled in for each applicant of the family and Part B is common for all applicants of the family. Part A needs to be submitted online whereupon a Reference Number will be generated and it can be printed along with Part B. Online registration may be done by logging on to https://passport.gov.in/oci/ and clicking on ‘Online Registration’.

After Registration:

• The applicant needs to take two printouts of Part A and Part B. The photographs should be of 51mm x 51mm size without border and with light colour background (not white). Applicants can come with all documents and forms (both in duplicate) between 9am to 11am to Ground floor, Visa Wing. Fees can also be deposited along with documents. A total of 3 (1+2) photographs need to be submitted with the application forms.
• In case where applicant is not a minor/infant, actual applicant is expected to submit the application himself/ herself. The applicants can come with all documents and forms (both in duplicate) between 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. to Ground Floor, Passport Wing in the Consulate to get the documents verified. Once this is done, the forms along with the fees can be deposited with us between 0830 to 1200 hrs on all working days. In case the applicant is minor, father and mother (Both Parents) should accompany the child. All relevant documents should be provided along with the application. Applicant should come individually and in the absence of the applicant, authorization letter should be provided. Original passport and receipt is mandatory to collect the card.

Documents required:

Applicant needs to submit a proof that he/she or any of his/her parents or grand parents were of Indian origin as per the definition given below :

1. He/she at any time held an Indian passport; or
2. He/she or either of his/her parents or grand parents were born in and permanently resident in India as defined in the Government of India Act, 1935 and other territories that became part of India. However, this will exclude any person, who himself/herself or either of his/her parents or grand parents were at any time a citizen of Pakistan and Bangladesh;
3. He/she or either of his/her parents or grand parents were born in and permanently resident in India as defined in the Government of India Act, 1935 and other territories that became part of India. However, this will exclude any person, who himself/herself or either of his/her parents or grand parents were at any time a citizen of Pakistan and Bangladesh;
   • Indian passport/ travel document of the applicant or either of his/her parents or grand parents. Please remember that in case applicant was holding an Indian passport prior to his/her foreign citizenship, the Indian passport is required to be cancelled before making an OCI application.
   • If the applicant is applying on the basis of his/her parents being Indian citizen, the ‘date of birth’ (DOB) certificate should invariably be one attested by the concerned authority. This concerned authority in India will include the home department of the concerned State as well as the Ministry of External Affairs of India at New Delhi. For DOB certificates issued from other countries, these should be attested by the Foreign Ministry of the concerned country and/or Consulate/ Embassy of the concerned country in UAE and should submit this document in original after its attestation. Please note that any document attested only by a Notary will not be accepted. Some other documents which can prove residence/ nationality as an Indian include revenue records/ domicile certificates/ school/college leaving certificates etc. However, these will be considered only as supplementary proof of Indian origin of an applicant. Also, these should be attested by competent authorities as mentioned above.
   • If the applicant was holding Indian passport he/she must bring the original passport after getting it cancelled. If the passport was surrendered, the original surrender certificate should be produced at the time of interview.
   • In case of minors (below six years) the thumb impression of the child should be placed in the given signature box. Parents should not sign in the box meant for their children/ applicant. However they have to sign in Part-II of OCI application in parent’s column.
   • Minor PIO children whose both parents are either Indian nationals or one parent is an Indian national and the other is ineligible for OCI, are not eligible for registration as OCI.
   • An applicant may claim to be a person of Indian origin on the basis of a domicile certificate issued from village officer /patwari of the place to which his parents belonged and should submit this document in original after its attestation by the First Class Magistrate of that place.
   • Resident Visa page of the applicant and spouse’s passport copy is also mandatory even if spouse is not applying, as it is required for records’ sake.
   • All documents should be self-attested by the applicant. In case of a minor applicant, the parents should attest the documents.