got canadian passport, now what to do with the indian one?

[Yourname]

so, i looked it up and there's a whole official process for "surrendering" the indian passport. apparently its a crime to hold on to it once i get a new citizenship. i'll be going through the surrender soon.

while looking into it though, i realized there's things like OCI, POI etc.
i wanted to know from the experts here, is it really important for me to get one of these once i surrender my passport? i mean i know it's not important, but im unable to find any views of people who recommend it vs not..

i dont go to india often, maybe once every 3 years if at all

 

[ashin86]

so, i looked it up and there's a whole official process for "surrendering" the indian passport. apparently its a crime to hold on to it once i get a new citizenship. i'll be going through the surrender soon.

while looking into it though, i realized there's things like OCI, POI etc.
i wanted to know from the experts here, is it really important for me to get one of these once i surrender my passport? i mean i know it's not important, but im unable to find any views of people who recommend it vs not..

i dont go to india often, maybe once every 3 years if at all

Its upto u
Either u get visitor visa when ur going
Or get these oci and others for lifetime

 

[Yourname]

Its upto u
Either u get visitor visa when ur going
Or get these oci and others for lifetime

but from a canadian passport, you dont need a visa to go, other than the eVisa, right?

 

[DimT44]

but from a canadian passport, you dont need a visa to go, other than the eVisa, right?

Canadians can't apply for eVisa anymore.

 

[Yourname]

Canadians can't apply for eVisa anymore.

so that means i will have to explicitly apply for a visa, go to the embassy and all that stuff?

 

[chanakyashah]

Depends on where your base is, if you are in Canada then surrender it and apply for OCI (which should take around 3-4 months). Or else go to India on the Indian passport and apply from there if you want to be in India for long. This approach might attract penalties but there are few folks who have managed to do that.

 

[delray55]

so that means i will have to explicitly apply for a visa, go to the embassy and all that stuff?

All these things (passport surrender,visa,oci )are done by a company called BLS). you can go to BLS canada website and get details on how to go about it

 

[Yourname]

Depends on where your base is, if you are in Canada then surrender it and apply for OCI (which should take around 3-4 months). Or else go to India on the Indian passport and apply from there if you want to be in India for long. This approach might attract penalties but there are few folks who have managed to do that.

thanks, that seems like a logical idea! thanks again!

 

[delray55]

thanks, that seems like a logical idea! thanks again!

i dont think OCI can be applied from India.

 

[chanakyashah]

i dont think OCI can be applied from India.

You cannot apply if you are on tourist visa. But since the person would be an ordinary citizen (considering they have an Indian passport) you can apply.

 

[CANADA-1]

so, i looked it up and there's a whole official process for "surrendering" the indian passport. apparently its a crime to hold on to it once i get a new citizenship. i'll be going through the surrender soon.

while looking into it though, i realized there's things like OCI, POI etc.
i wanted to know from the experts here, is it really important for me to get one of these once i surrender my passport? i mean i know it's not important, but im unable to find any views of people who recommend it vs not..

i dont go to india often, maybe once every 3 years if at all

Those who fail to surrender their Indian passport after acquiring foreign citizenship may face the following penalties. $250 penalty if passport expired after January 1, 2005 and 3 or more years have passed between naturalization date and present date.

 

[Yourname]

All these things (passport surrender,visa,oci )are done by a company called BLS). you can go to BLS canada website and get details on how to go about it

im going to use your recommended company... only issue is i see so many different websites with BLS in their name, offering the same services... which one is the one you recommended?

 

[delray55]

im going to use your recommended company... only issue is i see so many different websites with BLS in their name, offering the same services... which one is the one you recommended?

its not my recommendation. BLS is the company appointed by Consul General of India to provide these services within canada.

https://www.cgitoronto.gov.in/news_detail/?newsid=11
Please see the above link

 

[Yourname]

its not my recommendation. BLS is the company appointed by Consul General of India to provide these services within canada.

https://www.cgitoronto.gov.in/news_detail/?newsid=11
Please see the above link

gotcha... thanks for the link!
it seems i can do pretty much everything by mail-in, surrendering and then OCI!

 

[Yourname]

i dont think OCI can be applied from India.

hi @delray55 and @chanakyashah - i still haven't gotten my passport surrender confirmation back from BLS. but now i have a trip planned to india in the next few weeks.

can i apply for oci once i get back?