OCI card
Find out who can get an OCI (Overseas Citizen of India) card, apply on ociservices.gov.in, show your documents at FRRO Hyderabad if you live in Telangana, and get the card; update it when you get a new passport or your details change.
About this guidePending verification
Published on 12-11-2026. Not every fact has been checked against its official source yet: confirm at the office.
For whom: Foreign citizens of Indian origin, the foreign spouse of an Indian citizen or OCI cardholder, and children of Indian citizens who hold another citizenship; and people who already hold an OCI card. For those living in Telangana and those applying from abroad. Not for Indian citizens, in India or abroad (NRIs): OCI is only for foreign nationals. An Indian citizen's child or spouse who holds another country's citizenship can apply.
Answer the questions below first. Then the documents and steps open.
1Your situation
We show only what your answers need.
- What do you need?
- What do you need to do with your OCI card?
- On what basis can you get OCI?
- Where are you applying from?
Your answers stay on this phone.
Each step below says who it is for. Confirm yours at the office, then change your answer here.
This route does not apply to your situation
People on a Tourist, Missionary or Mountaineering visa cannot apply for OCI in India.
→ Apply from the country where you live, through the Indian Embassy or Consulate there: answer "From abroad" to the question about where you apply.
Sources: 1, 2
2Documents you need
Tick the ones you have. They are kept in this browser.
Details
Valid for at least 6 more months on the day you apply. Upload a copy; take the original for verification.
Sources: 2
Details
Sources: 2
Details
Only for those who surrendered an Indian passport in or after 2010.
If you don't have it: The Surrender Certificate comes through Passport Seva; see the passport guide.
Sources: 2
Details
An electricity or telephone bill in your own name or a parent's, grandparent's or spouse's. If it is in another relative's name, an undertaking from them that you live with them. If you rent, the lease.
Sources: 2
Details
Any long-duration visa with at least 3 months' validity on the day you apply. People on a Tourist, Missionary (E-3) or Mountaineering visa cannot apply in India.
Sources: 2, 1
Details
Any of: a copy of an Indian passport; a domicile or nativity certificate from the competent authority; a parent's or spouse's PIO or OCI card with proof of Indian origin; or other proof, such as a certificate of residence or place of birth from the First Class Magistrate or District Magistrate of the place.
Sources: 2
Details
A birth certificate naming both parents (if issued abroad, apostilled or endorsed by the Indian Mission). With a Birth Registrar's certificate, education and inherited land documents if any. The parents' marriage certificate (or the reason it is missing). If the parents are divorced, the court order giving custody to the applying parent.
Sources: 2
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The child's birth certificate; the parents' marriage certificate (or the reason it is missing); the Indian passport, domicile or nativity certificate, or other proof of Indian citizenship of the Indian parent or parents; if divorced, the custody order (with an English or Hindi translation if it is in another language).
Sources: 2
Details
A registered marriage certificate (from the Marriage Registrar if married in India; apostilled or certified by the Indian Mission if married abroad; translated if not in English). For the spouse of an Indian citizen: a copy of the spouse's Indian passport, or a domicile or nativity certificate from the competent authority, or other proof that the spouse is an Indian citizen; for the spouse of an OCI cardholder, the spouse's passport, OCI card and the documents it was issued on. A declaration by the Indian or OCI spouse that they will surrender the OCI card in case of divorce, separation, death or a live-in relationship. Your own apostilled birth certificate, and a government-issued identity document (apostilled or not) of your parents, grandparents and great-grandparents.
Sources: 2, 1
Details
What the photo must look like- Size: 51 × 51 mm (width × height)
- Background: Plain light colour (not white)
- A front view of the head and shoulders, the full face in the middle, the face filling 80% of the photo.
- The photo is square (height equal to width), at least 51 × 51 mm.
- No border.
- The file is JPEG/JPG, up to 200 KB; at least 200 × 200 pixels and at most 900 × 900 pixels.
- Photos that do not meet these rules are rejected, which can delay the application.
- File for an online form: up to 200 KB, JPG/JPEG
Not confirmed: These sizes are the FAQ's for the OCI registration application. The page does not say separately that they apply to the new photo for Miscellaneous Services; follow the instructions the portal shows when you upload. The FAQ does not say whether the photo must be in colour.
Sources: 2, 4
Details
A JPEG/JPG file, up to 200 KB.
Sources: 2
Details
Sources: 4
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A copy of the page with your photo.
Sources: 4
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A declaration by you and your Indian or OCI spouse; a copy of the Indian spouse's Indian passport, or of the OCI spouse's passport and OCI card. If your spouse has an e-OCI and no booklet, give the details of the e-OCI registration.
Sources: 4
Details
Enough proof for each change you ask for (name, address, occupation and so on). For an address: an electricity bill, a landline phone bill, an undertaking letter from the person concerned, or a rent or lease agreement.
Sources: 4
Nothing to get ready before these steps.
3Your steps
· Do them in order. Tick each one when it is done.
- Do this nowIf: A new OCI card (for a foreign national: you, your child or your spouse)If: From Telangana: I live here on a long-term visa / From abroad
First check that you are eligible.
You cannot get OCI if you, a parent, grandparent or great-grandparent is or was a citizen of Pakistan or Bangladesh. Serving or retired foreign military or police personnel, holders of a diplomatic passport, refugees and stateless persons are not eligible either. There are separate rules for those who did only compulsory military service: see question 12 under "FAQs regarding Eligibility" in the FAQ. If you were an Indian citizen and took another country's citizenship, first surrender your Indian passport for a Surrender Certificate (see the passport guide).
Open the official pageSources: 1, 2
- Do this nowIf: A new OCI card (for a foreign national: you, your child or your spouse)If: The foreign spouse of an Indian citizen or OCI cardholderIf: From Telangana: I live here on a long-term visa / From abroad
A foreign spouse can apply only if the marriage is registered and has lasted at least two years without a break just before the application.
Sources: 2, 1
- Do this nowIf: A new OCI card (for a foreign national: you, your child or your spouse)If: From Telangana: I live here on a long-term visa / From abroad
On ociservices.gov.in open "User Register".
Enter your name and date of birth exactly as in your passport, your e-mail, nationality and mobile number, confirm with the OTP sent to your e-mail, and set a password. Do not share that OTP with anyone.
Open the official pageSources: 3, 2
- Do this nowIf: A new OCI card (for a foreign national: you, your child or your spouse)If: From Telangana: I live here on a long-term visa / From abroad
Log in and fill in the OCI registration application (Form XXVIII).
Upload your photo, signature and copies of all documents, and submit. Applications are taken only online; no printed copy is needed.
Open the official pageSources: 7, 2
- Do this nowIf: From Telangana: I live here on a long-term visa
Take the originals of the uploaded documents to FRRO Hyderabad for verification (Telangana is in its area).
Fingerprints and a face photo (biometrics) are taken there; if your fingerprints cannot be taken or are poor, only the face or iris is taken. A spouse-based applicant is interviewed. If anything is missing, the FRRO tells you by e-mail. When all is in order, you get an e-mail that the application is received, and the originals are given back.
Not confirmed
The OCI FAQ does not say whether you need an appointment first. Ask FRRO Hyderabad (040-29881088).
Sources: 2, 9
- Do this nowIf: From Telangana: I live here on a long-term visa
After checking your documents, the FRRO sends a payment request on the portal.
Then pay the fee on the portal itself (SBIePay: net banking, debit or credit card, UPI).
Open the official pageSources: 2, 5
- Do this nowIf: From abroad
Take the original documents to the Indian Embassy or Consulate for the country of your citizenship, or, if you do not live there, for the country where you ordinarily live (living there for at least 6 months).
It is best to give biometrics there. If you cannot, tell that office in writing; they are then taken at the immigration check post when you arrive in India. For the amount in local currency and how that office takes applications, see its website.
Sources: 2, 1
- Do this nowIf: A new OCI card (for a foreign national: you, your child or your spouse)If: From Telangana: I live here on a long-term visa / From abroad
Check the status with "Track your Application" on the OCI portal.
OCI is normally granted in about 30 days from the day the application is acknowledged. The card now comes as an e-OCI: you are told by e-mail or SMS when it is ready, and you download it from the OCI portal; there is no booklet to collect. A first spouse-based card is valid for 5 years.
Open the official pageSources: 2, 7
- Do this nowIf: I got a new passport: update it in my OCI
Your OCI card has to be updated each time you get a new passport, whatever your age.
Within 3 months of getting the new passport, log in to the OCI portal and, under "OCI Miscellaneous Services", upload a copy of the new passport (the page with your photo) and a recent photo. Normally you need not go to the FRRO; only in case of doubt are you called with the originals. If you are over 20, you must also give biometrics to the FRRO when you update, or at your first arrival in or departure from India after the update. There is no restriction on travel to and from India while the update is processed.
Open the official pageSources: 4
- Do this nowIf: My address, occupation, name, nationality or other details changed or were entered wrongly
Log in to the OCI portal, choose the change you need under "OCI Miscellaneous Services", upload the proof and submit.
Normally you need not go to the FRRO; only in case of doubt are you called to FRRO Hyderabad with the originals.
Open the official pageSources: 4
- Do this nowIf: My address, occupation, name, nationality or other details changed or were entered wrongly
If you normally live in India, tell FRRO Hyderabad by e-mail (frrohyd@nic.in) every time your permanent address or occupation changes.
Sources: 8, 9
- Do this nowIf: My OCI card is lost or damaged
A duplicate card is no longer issued.
OCI cards are now e-OCI cards: log in to the OCI portal and download your e-OCI again, free of charge.
Open the official pageSources: 2, 6
- Do this nowIf: My OCI card is lost or damaged / Download my e-OCI (digital card)
Log in to the OCI portal with the e-mail linked to your OCI record, click "Generate e-OCI Card" in the "e-OCI" tab, then download and keep the card.
It is free; you can download it up to 5 times a day. If that e-mail no longer works, or none was ever recorded, first open a new account and change the e-mail with "Email ID Updation" (you need the OCI number, date of birth and the passport number linked to the OCI).
Open the official pageSources: 6, 10
- Do this nowIf: Give up (renounce) my OCI
Submit Form XXXI (declaration renouncing the OCI) online on the OCI portal.
If you have a physical OCI card, surrender the original card to the office that granted your OCI (FRRO Hyderabad if it was granted there). If an office abroad granted it, ask FRRO Hyderabad (040-29881088) where to surrender it. The acknowledgement is given online in Form XXXII. When your OCI ends, so does the OCI of a spouse who got it through you and of your minor children who hold OCI.
Open the official pageSources: 7, 2, 9
If something goes wrong
If it is rejectedIf an application for OCI registration or re-issue is refused, the fee paid is not refunded.
If an application for OCI registration or re-issue is refused, the fee paid is not refunded. You can seek a revision of the order under section 15 of the Citizenship Act, or a review under section 15A; you are heard before the decision.
FRRO Hyderabad · Open the official page
Sources: 2, 7, 9
If it is rejectedIf an application for OCI registration or re-issue is refused, the fee paid is not refunded.
If an application for OCI registration or re-issue is refused, the fee paid is not refunded. You can seek a revision of the order under section 15 of the Citizenship Act, or a review under section 15A; you are heard before the decision.
The Indian Embassy, High Commission or Consulate where you applied · Open the official page
Sources: 2, 7
If it is rejectedIf a Miscellaneous Service is not granted, its fee is not refunded.
If a Miscellaneous Service is not granted, its fee is not refunded. To learn the reason, ask FRRO Hyderabad (040-29881088).
FRRO Hyderabad · Open the official page
Sources: 4, 9
If it is lateRegistration normally takes about 30 days.
Registration normally takes about 30 days. If that has passed, check the status under "Track your Application" and your e-mails (including the spam folder). Then call FRRO Hyderabad's OCI number 040-29881088, or write to frrohyd@nic.in.
FRRO Hyderabad (OCI) · Open the official page
Sources: 2, 9
If it is lateRegistration normally takes about 30 days.
Registration normally takes about 30 days. If that has passed, check the status under "Track your Application" and your e-mails (including the spam folder). Then ask the Indian Embassy or Consulate where you applied.
The Indian Embassy, High Commission or Consulate where you applied · Open the official page
Sources: 2
If it is lateThe portal gives no time for Miscellaneous Services.
The portal gives no time for Miscellaneous Services. Check the status under "Track your Application" and your e-mails (including the spam folder). Then call FRRO Hyderabad's OCI number 040-29881088, or write to frrohyd@nic.in.
FRRO Hyderabad (OCI) · Open the official page
Sources: 4, 9
If you are asked for more moneyIn India the fee is paid only on the OCI portal, after the FRRO sends the payment request; you do not hand cash to anyone.
In India the fee is paid only on the OCI portal, after the FRRO sends the payment request; you do not hand cash to anyone. If you are charged twice for one application, or charged for a failed payment, it is refunded within 7 days; if not, call SBIePay's help number 1800221401.
SBIePay help · Open the official page
Sources: 5
If you are asked for more moneyIn India the fee is paid only on the OCI portal, after the FRRO sends the payment request; you do not hand cash to anyone.
In India the fee is paid only on the OCI portal, after the FRRO sends the payment request; you do not hand cash to anyone. If you are charged twice for one application, or charged for a failed payment, it is refunded within 7 days; if not, call SBIePay's help number 1800221401.
SBIePay help · Open the official page
Sources: 5
AlsoIf an application gives false information or hides a material fact, the OCI is cancelled and the person is blacklisted from entering India in future.
If an application gives false information or hides a material fact, the OCI is cancelled and the person is blacklisted from entering India in future. Fill in your application yourself.
FRRO Hyderabad · Open the official page
Sources: 2, 1
AlsoIf an application gives false information or hides a material fact, the OCI is cancelled and the person is blacklisted from entering India in future.
If an application gives false information or hides a material fact, the OCI is cancelled and the person is blacklisted from entering India in future. Fill in your application yourself.
The Indian Embassy, High Commission or Consulate where you applied · Open the official page
Sources: 2, 1
AlsoIf an application gives false information or hides a material fact, the OCI is cancelled and the person is blacklisted from entering India in future.
If an application gives false information or hides a material fact, the OCI is cancelled and the person is blacklisted from entering India in future. Fill in your application yourself.
FRRO Hyderabad · Open the official page
Sources: 2, 1
Official websites for this work
- OCI services OCI card applications and changes
Related guides
The 10 official pages and papers this guide is written from
- Online OCI Services: home page (Introduction, Eligibility, Advisory for applicants visiting FRROs, Contact us)Ministry of Home Affairs (Foreigners Division), Government of India: Online OCI Services portal, Introduction (OCI is for foreign nationals of Indian origin, section 7A; benefits; an OCI cardholder is a foreign national and not a citizen of India; must hold a valid passport while in India); Eligibility (categories (a) to (d); Pakistan/Bangladesh bar; apostilled birth certificates for spouse-based applicants); Advisory (no application in India on a Tourist, Missionary or Mountaineering visa; no six-month stay needed to apply with the FRRO); Contact us (an e-mail address no longer shown on the page; Foreigners Division, MHA) · read on 30-10-2026
- Online OCI Services: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)Ministry of Home Affairs (Foreigners Division), Government of India: Online OCI Services portal, As saved on 11 November 2026, numbered by section. Eligibility: Q1 (who is eligible; a foreign spouse only when the marriage is registered and has subsisted two years), Q4 (spouse basis; first card valid 5 years), Q9 (diplomatic passport), Q10 (refugees and stateless persons), Q12 (foreign military or police; compulsory conscription). Procedure and Supporting Documents: Q1 (online only), Q2 (documents; for applications in India a long-duration visa, other than the E-3 missionary visa, with 3 months' validity; the spouse's proof of Indian citizenship; the foreign spouse's apostilled birth certificate and identity documents of parents, grandparents and great-grandparents), Q3 (photo and signature), Q4 and Q6 (originals to the Mission, Post or FRRO; FRRO Hyderabad covers Telangana; ordinarily resident means 6 months; deficiencies by e-mail), Q7 (interview for spouse basis), Q8 (biometrics; no or poor fingerprints: face or iris only), Q9 (e-OCI downloaded from the portal; no booklet to collect). Application Fee and Processing: Q1 (US$275, in India its equivalent in INR online; not refunded on rejection), Q2 (about 30 days), Q3 (no duplicate: the e-OCI is downloaded again). Legal Status, Citizenship and Renunciation: Q1 (fraud: cancellation, blacklisting), Q7 (renunciation) · read on 11-11-2026
- Online OCI Services: User RegisterMinistry of Home Affairs (Foreigners Division), Government of India: Online OCI Services portal, Fields (surname and given name as in the passport, date of birth, e-mail, nationality, mobile number, captcha) and Important Instructions (OTP to the e-mail, not to be shared; password policy) · read on 30-10-2026
- Online OCI Services: Miscellaneous FAQsMinistry of Home Affairs (Foreigners Division), Government of India: Online OCI Services portal, As saved on 11 November 2026: Q1 (what the Miscellaneous Services cover), Q2 (apply online; FRRO for those resident in India), Q3 (no visit normally; called only in cases of doubt, with the originals), Q4 (documents: new passport's photo page and a latest photo; proof for each change), Q5 (free; US$25 when a new passport is reported after three months), Q6 (update each time a new passport is issued, whatever the age; spouse-based holders' declaration and spouse's passport or e-OCI details; biometrics after the age of 20), Q7 (no travel restriction meanwhile), Q9 (no refund), Q10 (an e-OCI is generated for every service) · read on 11-11-2026
- Online OCI Services: Payment FAQs (SBIePay)Ministry of Home Affairs (Foreigners Division), Government of India: Online OCI Services portal, Q2 (net banking, debit and credit cards, UPI), Q3 (the Mission or FRRO starts the payment request after scrutiny; payment online only for FRRO applications), Q7–8 and Q11 (failed or double payments refunded within 7 days), Q9 (SBIePay help 1800221401) · read on 30-10-2026
- Online OCI Services: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) - eOCI CardMinistry of Home Affairs (Foreigners Division), Government of India: Online OCI Services portal, Q2 (does not replace the physical card), Q3 (free), Q5 (five downloads a day), Q13 and Q17 (Email ID Updation: OCI card number, date of birth, passport number), Q15 (steps: log in, e-OCI tab, Generate e-OCI Card) · read on 30-10-2026
- Notification G.S.R. 323(E), 30 April 2026: the Citizenship (Amendment) Rules, 2026Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India (Gazette of India, Extraordinary, Part II, Section 3(i)), Rule 3 (rule 29(1): Form XXVIII online on ociservices.gov.in), rule 5 (rule 33: card in physical form or e-OCI registration), rule 6 (rule 34: renunciation in Form XXXI online, physical card surrendered, acknowledgement in Form XXXII), rules 8–9 (rules 42 and 42A: revision under section 15 and review under section 15A, with a hearing) (30-04-2026) · read on 30-10-2026
- Notification S.O. 1050(E), 4 March 2021: rights of Overseas Citizen of India cardholders (Citizenship Act, 1955, section 7B(1))Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India (Gazette of India, Extraordinary, Part II, Section 3(ii)), Right (2): no FRRO registration, but those normally resident in India e-mail the FRRO when their permanent address or occupation changes; Explanation (1): an OCI cardholder is a foreign national and not a citizen of India (04-03-2021) · read on 30-10-2026
- e-FRRO Online Portal: Contact Us (FRROs)Bureau of Immigration, Ministry of Home Affairs (e-FRRO portal, developed by NIC), Contact Us, FRROs: FRRO Hyderabad, Sardar Vallabhai Patel BoI OCR Complex, Shamshabad-Pahadishareef Road, near GMR Township, Mamidipally, Shamshabad, Telangana 501218; 040-29880374, 040-29880375, 040-29881088 (OCI/PIO); e-mail frrohyd@nic.in (shown as an image) · read on 02-11-2026
- Key updates on OCI rulesEmbassy of India, Minsk (Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India), Re-issue of the OCI card on a new passport after the age of 20 dispensed with; passport details to be updated online under OCI Miscellaneous Services and biometrics given; e-OCI card launched on 30.06.2026; physical booklets stay valid (23-07-2026) · read on 30-10-2026