malayalam.co.uk

feedback

www.malayalam.co.uk

Call India cheap

British Passport

British Citizenship

Indian Passport

Dual Citizenship/OIC

Holding of an Indian passport

Holding of an Indian passport by a foreign national constitutes an offence under the Indian Laws.

Under the Indian laws, if the holder of an Indian passport acquires nationality of another country, he should surrender his/her Indian passport forthwith to the nearest Indian Mission/Post. Unauthorised possession of Indian passport constitutes an offence punishable under the Indian Passports Act, 1967.

2. The Consulate General has come across several cases where persons of Indian origin who have acquired British citizenship continue to hold their Indian passports. The Indian laws are very clear on this. Article 9 of the Constitution of India states that a person shall cease to be a citizen of India, if he voluntarily acquires the citizenship of any foreign State. A foreign national is thus not entitled to hold an Indian passport. In the light of this position, all persons of Indian origin, who have acquired foreign nationality, are advised to surrender their Indian passports forthwith to the nearest Indian Mission/Post for cancellation, in case they have not done so, so far.

3. There is also a misconception among the public that now that the Government of India have introduced the Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI), foreign nationals of Indian origin can continue to hold an Indian passport. The factual position is that holding of an Indian passport by a foreign national continues to be an offence punishable under the Indian Passports Act, 1967. OCI holders would be granted a “U” sticker visa which will be a multi-purpose, multi-entry, life-long visa pasted on their foreign passports. Indian passport would not be issued to an OCI holder


	Renunciation/Surrender of Indian Passports

	Under Indian law, Persons of Indian Origin, who have acquired foreign citizenship, are required to surrender their Indian passports to the nearest Indian Mission/Post immediately after acquisition of foreign citizenship. The Government of India has fixed fee for renouncing the Indian Citizenship/surrender of Indian passport at Rs.7,000/- (£90 at the current Official Rate of Exchange). The information regarding applicable fee could be viewed at www.mha.nic.in/uniquepage.asp?ID_PK=77. 2. The Indian Citizenship Act, 1955, does not allow dual citizenship. Holding Indian passport/acquiring Indian passport/travelling on Indian passport after acquisition of foreign citizenship constitutes an offence under the Indian Passport Act, 1967, and attracts penalties. The Government of India has prescribed imposition of penalty on a graded scale, depending on number of trips made on Indian passport after acquiring foreign nationality, for the violation of Passport Rules ranging from a minimum of Rs. 10,000/- (£125 at the current Official Rate of Exchange) to a maximum of Rs. 50,000/- (£625 at the current Official Rate of Exchange). 3. In view of these provisions, Persons of Indian Origin, intending to apply for OCI/PIO Cards, should surrender their Indian passports and then apply for these services. In case they do not have the Indian passports in their possession for any reason (loss/misplacement/submission to Home Office long time back, etc.), they are required to furnish duly notarised affidavit in this regard. If the Indian passport is still valid but has been misplaced/lost, then Police report should be submitted additionally (to rule out any misuse). 4. Persons of Indian Origin applying for Indian visa for the first time after acquiring foreign nationality are required to first renounce/surrender their Indian passports. 5. All applications for renunciation/surrender of Indian passports are to be made at the High Commission of India, London or respective Indian Consulates at Birmingham and Edinburgh. 6. For applications made at the High Commission of India in London, tokens will be issued to all applicants without limit from 0830 hrs to 1200 hrs at the token counter of the High Commission.

All rights reserved. © malayalam.co.uk

Powered by Joel Graphics