323. Indian citizenship - OCI for

child born in Canada

Q: Dear Sir, I have read through the Q&A in your site and felt they are very helpful and useful for many NRI people who need assistance in various matters. I hope I could find help for my situation as well. Please read below my problem and kindly advice me. Thanks a lot for your service. My husband and myself both are Indians by birth, My second son was born in canada in May 2006. We returned to India on August 2006 for good and we obtained a Canadian passport for my son while we were in Canada. After returning we didn't took any permission from any authorities for my son's stay in India as we are not aware of any such thing . Later I tired to obtain Indian passport for him but at the time of submission of his application, the authorities rejected saying they can not process his application because he already had Canadian passport, they could not give me any information on how I can proceed further. His Canadian passport was valid for only one year and now it already expired. Now I understood, though he was born to Indian citizens, he is not an indian because he already had canadian passport. so kindly advice me what steps I have to follow to get him indian citizenship? OR I came to know about OCI card from your site. If I would like to apply for OCI card for my son, I do not have the permission letter from 'Foreigners Regional Registration Officer', and my son's passport also was expired. So kindly let me know, can I seek permission from FRRO now after 5 years of landing, and also the procedure to renewal his canadian passport from India. Thanks and Regards, Anitha A. Based on your email information, you cannot apply for OCI status for your son. As per current rules, a child can get OCI only if at least one parent is eligible to become OCI. In your case, as both you and your husband are Indian citizens, the question of your child getting OCI is not possible at this time. Had you not taken a Canadian passport for your son, you could have applied for and received a Indian passport from the Indian consulate in Toronto, Ottawa or Vancouver depending on where you resided. As your son now has a foreign passport, the question of getting Indian citizenship for him does not arise. To get Indian citizenship, your son will first have to renounce Canadian citizenship and until he reaches the age of majority he cannot do so, because law does not allow minors to renounce their citizenship. In a situation such as yours the alternative would have been to register your child's birth in Canada as per law, apply for Indian passport and then travel to India. This way when your son reached the age of majority he could always reclaim his Canadian citizenship if he wanted to. Here is what I can suggest: 1. Get your son's passport in order. Canadian passports are not normally renewable, after five years when they expire a new one is issued. Contact the nearest Canadian Consulate office to get a new passport for your child. You need not worry about approaching the Canadian Consulate as they will help you sort this out. 2. I'm not sure when your son's visa for India expired, living in India without a valid visa is illegal. Take steps to get a new visa so as to make your son's status in India legal. To get a visa you will have to contact FRRO or contact a professional such as a lawyer and get their help in sorting your situation out. 3. As far as the question of getting Indian citizenship for your son is concerned, it is currently not possible as Indian does not allow dual citizenship.