OCI process

[eas2lv]

Interested to know when you pick up and what's process do you have to call / email BLS , I vaguely remember the BLS person telling me to pick it up you have to call the call centre and ask them to hold at BLS even if u had paid from 3 to 4 pm it's would be available for pick up

There is no real process though their FAQ has a description about sending an email requesting this. I haven't seen anyone reporting they got any response to such mails. You will have to time it properly to decide when BLS receives the document (say OCI) and visit their office before they mail it out. It also depends on their good graces, and your luck. Based on limited experience shared here, it seems BLS Vancouver and Brampton are more reliable with this than BLS Toronto.
There is a lot of related discussion here last few days -- scan this thread.
Let the process play out if you can wait.

 

[puneet5]

Great! my application date: Oct 10 (Toronto)
Status on BLS: Processing at Consulate General
on OCI: no records found

Don't know how much time it will take for acknowledgement

Update: Ack received on OCI site, with Nov 2 as date

 

[peep]

Where did u applied?

bls Brampton

 

[sukhmanbrar]

Update: Ack received on OCI site, with Nov 2 as date

Oci applied- Sept 26
Ack- Oct 11
Docs printing- Nov 1
Dispatched- Nov 1
Received toronto- Nov 1

 

[eas2lv]

Oci applied- Sept 26
Ack- Oct 11
Docs printing- Nov 1
Dispatched- Nov 1
Received toronto- Nov 1

Please post here when you get it in hand. Thanks.
---
OCI status site | BLS status site
OCI Tracker - Toronto

 

[roujog]

Hi there,
I'm planning to follow the same process. I got my canada passport today and planning to travel December 1st week. I dont think oci or entry visa will come in time for it. I understand the process of travelling with both passports and applying for exit visa. My question is on which passport shall i use to book flight tickets? Anyone who did this can shed light on this please

Here is the reply I got from frro. I did not ask for Canadians specifically and the visa part is still not crystal clear.

Sir/Madam,



01. As per Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) guidelines a grace period of three months (90 days) is allowed from the date of acquisition of foreign citizenship, for the purpose of travel on Indian passport. For further clarification and fresh guidelines if any, in this regard you are advised to approach Indian Embassy abroad/concerned Regional Passport Office (RPO) in India.



Regarding surrendering of passport, foreign national is advised to approach Indian Embassy abroad/concerned Regional Passport Office (RPO) in India.



02. Further, as far as departure from India is concerned, any Indian acquires nationality/passport of another country then he/she has to obtain "Exit Permit / Visa" from the FRRO/FRO through online application at https://indianfrro.gov.in. Further, if "Exit Permit" is issued, the foreign national must depart within the validity of the Exit Permit.



Note: Grant/denial of Exit Permit/ Visa related services is subject to submission of surrender certificate of Indian Passport, Indian voter identity card (if issued by the ECI), etc. as well as usual checks and verification.



03. A foreign national is not allowed to stay without a valid visa in the country and indulge in activity other than for which visa has been issued. Violators of visa rules will be prosecuted according to the Law of land. Hence, every foreign national is advised abide by the Law of the land and instructions / guidelines endorsed on the Indian Visa and adhere the same.



Regards,

Team Support

for FRRO, Delhi

 

[eas2lv]

Hi there,
I'm planning to follow the same process. I got my canada passport today and planning to travel December 1st week. I dont think oci or entry visa will come in time for it. I understand the process of travelling with both passports and applying for exit visa. My question is on which passport shall i use to book flight tickets? Anyone who did this can shed light on this please

I do not know about the nuances of using this 90 day grace period, but you can avoid it by applying for an entry visa. It appears to be processing very fast (few days of processing time + dispatch time). Toughest part may be to get an appointment. Postal applications could add a delay of as much as 10 days (my guess) considering how slow BLS has been handling various postal applications in recent months.
More here: https://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-discussion-board/threads/entry-visa-india.825706/

As for booking tickets, only name goes into the ticket. If the name is same in both passports, there is no issue. Passport details are for check-in which is independent for each direction, though many airlines ask for it in advance. For your return trip you can update that by calling the airline (or online for some).

 

[kdmvarun]

Toronto Postal application:

Purolator pick up - Sep 27th
Purolator Delivery to Brampton BLS - Sep 28th
BLS acknowledgement - Oct 2nd
BLS tracker application date - Oct 5th
OCI services tracker acknowledgement - Oct 10th
Application Status - Processed - Oct 31st

Purolator pick up - Sep 27th
Purolator Delivery to Brampton BLS - Sep 28th
BLS acknowledgement - Oct 2nd
BLS tracker application date - Oct 5th
OCI services tracker acknowledgement - Oct 10th
OCI services tracker Application Status - Processed - Oct 31st
BLS tracker- Counter Delivery to BLS Center after OCI stamping - Nov 1st

 

[abbas.pasha]

Final update!
BLS Brampton - Postal
Application Sent: 18 Sep, 2023
Delivered by Purolator: 19 Sep, 2023
BLS - Confirmed Receipt: 20 Sep, 2023
BLS - Under Process: 22 Sep, 2023
BLS - Processing at Consulate General: 27 Sep, 2023
OCI - Acknowledgement: 06 Oct, 2023
OCI - Processed: 27 Oct, 2023
OCI - Dispatched from MEA: 28 Oct, 2023
OCI - Document Received at Toronto: 28 Oct, 2023
BLS - Counter Delivery to BLS Centre after OCI stamping: 31 Oct, 2023
BLS - Passport ready For Collection after OCI stamping (with Purolator tracking number in comments ): 31 Oct, 2023
Delivered by Purolator: 01 Nov, 2023

Fortunately, everything from citizenship to CA passport to SC and OCI went smoothly and in 8 months total (6.5 weeks for OCI).

The postal process for both SC and OCI was hassle-free (unlike my IN passport renewal during COVID where BLS allowed it to expire). I recommend the postal route instead of walk-in if you have ample time before your next travel.

Finally, my immigration journey comes to an end! Thank you all for your help in this thread (especially @forw.jane @abbas.pasha and @eas2lv) and I wish you all a quick turnaround.

You should apply for Nexus ... Life main kuch continuity rehne chahiye

 

[GagzV]

5-7 days you will get in hand.

@GagzV - Similar timeline like yours, do you see processed too?

Thanks @forw.jane Yes I just checked Mine is showing processed as well now. Applied Sept 9, Ack Date 11 Sept, OCI tracker :

Documents Printing Status	PROCESSED	On	01-NOV-2023
Dispatched From MEA (OCI )	NEW DELHI	On
Document received At	OTTAWA	On

BLS Tracker :

Application Status

Processing at High Commission

 

[RedWhiteRed]

You should apply for Nexus ... Life main kuch continuity rehne chahiye

 

[Simmy08]

Hey guys!
I’m new here and have been scrolling for a while looking for approximate oci dates.
I applied at BLS walk-in (Vancouver) on Oct 18
Acknowledged on BLS on Oct 18 and currently says processing at consulate general. The OCI website acknowledgement was on Oct 20 and is currently under-process. Will have my oci end of Nov / beginning of dec?

 

[Sandy.gal]

Hey guys!
I’m new here and have been scrolling for a while looking for approximate oci dates.
I applied at BLS walk-in (Vancouver) on Oct 18
Acknowledged on BLS on Oct 18 and currently says processing at consulate general. The OCI website acknowledgement was on Oct 20 and is currently under-process. Will have my oci end of Nov / beginning of dec?

You should have it in 3 weeks starting from Oct 20

 

[anksyahoo]

Thanks @forw.jane Yes I just checked Mine is showing processed as well now. Applied Sept 9, Ack Date 11 Sept, OCI tracker :

Documents Printing Status	PROCESSED	On	01-NOV-2023
Dispatched From MEA (OCI )	NEW DELHI	On
Document received At	OTTAWA	On

BLS Tracker :

Application Status

Processing at High Commission

any update for you @forw.jane ?

 

[forw.jane]

any update for you @forw.jane ?

Waiting for it to change to Ready for Collection.