Key Legislations and Policies Affecting Overseas Indians

The legal framework for overseas Indians covers citizenship status, travel and immigration rules, voting rights, and marriage-related compliance. The two main categories are Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) and Overseas Citizens of India (OCIs), but their legal treatment differs sharply in matters such as entry, documentation, and political participation.

OCI Framework and Citizenship Rules

The OCI framework has been updated through the Citizenship (Amendment) Rules, 2026, notified by the Ministry of Home Affairs on April 30, 2026. The changes focus on digitisation, passport-linked verification, and tighter safeguards against misuse of identity documents.

• Electronic OCI (e-OCI): OCI registration, renunciation, and cancellation are now to be handled fully online.
• Passport updates: OCI cardholders must upload new passport details online within 90 days of issue to avoid a late fee of USD 25 or GBP 23.
• Free update window: Updates remain free if completed within the 90-day period.
• Age-based upload requirement: Passport details and a photo must be uploaded online up to the age of 20 and once after completing 50 years of age.
• Physical re-issue: The physical OCI card needs re-issuance only once after obtaining a new passport after the age of 20.
• Submission process: Postal submission for OCI applications has been discontinued; applicants must submit in person at consulates, embassies, or VFS Global centres.
• Minor passport restriction: A minor holding an Indian passport cannot simultaneously hold another country’s passport.
• CAA affidavit: Applicants seeking citizenship under the CAA, 2019, must submit an affidavit stating whether they hold or have ever held a passport from Pakistan, Afghanistan, or Bangladesh.

Travel, Immigration, and Entry Regulations

India’s immigration and entry rules have been consolidated to simplify border control and strengthen digital record management. These changes affect foreign nationals, OCIs, and travel documentation requirements at points of entry and exit.

• Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025: Enacted in April 2025, it consolidates India’s immigration laws and repeals four pre-independence statutes, including the Foreigners Act, 1946.
• Bureau of Immigration: Under the 2025 Act, it functions as the primary agency for foreigner records, visa issuance, and data verification.
• PIO cards: Person of Indian Origin (PIO) cards are no longer valid travel documents for entry into or exit from India.
• Conversion deadline: The final deadline for converting PIO cards expired on December 31, 2025.
• e-Arrival Card: From April 1, 2026, foreign nationals and OCI cardholders must submit a digital e-Arrival Card online within 72 hours before arrival.
• Paper disembarkation form: The paper form has been discontinued.
• OCI application rule change: On April 8, 2026, the Bureau of Immigration removed the six-month mandatory stay requirement for foreign nationals applying for OCI status from within India.

Bills and Legal Reforms for Overseas Welfare

Several pending or proposed reforms aim to modernise older statutes and improve legal protection for overseas Indians, especially in welfare and marriage registration matters.

• Draft Overseas Mobility (Facilitation and Welfare) Bill, 2025: Proposed by the Ministry of External Affairs to replace the Emigration Act of 1983.
• Overseas Mobility and Welfare Council: The draft bill proposes this body to streamline policy and welfare coordination.
• Registration of Marriage of Non-Resident Indian Bill, 2019: The Bill remains pending in Parliament.
• Law Commission Report No. 287: Submitted by the 22nd Law Commission on February 15, 2024.
• Marriage registration: The report recommended a central law for NRIs and OCIs, including mandatory marriage registration in India.
• Passport linkage: It also proposed linking spouses’ passports as part of the compliance framework.

Political Rights and Electoral Procedures

Overseas Indians enjoy limited electoral participation, and the rules remain centred on physical verification and in-person voting. Current procedures continue to distinguish between NRIs on general electoral rolls and those registered as overseas electors.

• In-person voting: Registered NRIs must be physically present at their polling booth to vote.
• Postal ballot proposals: Extending the Electronically Transmitted Postal Ballot System (ETPBS) to NRIs remains under consideration.
• Special Intensive Revision (SIR) 2026: NRIs registered in general local electoral rolls must verify their entries to avoid deletion due to physical absence.
• Overseas Elector category: NRIs registered separately using Form 6A are not affected by the local door-to-door SIR 2026 process.
• Electoral distinction: The legal treatment differs between general local rolls and the separate overseas elector register.

Key Prelims Takeaways

• OCI digitisation: Citizenship (Amendment) Rules, 2026 introduced electronic OCI processes for registration, renunciation, and cancellation.
• Passport compliance: OCI cardholders must update new passport details online within 90 days to avoid a fee of USD 25 or GBP 23.
• Age-linked OCI rules: Passport and photo uploads are required up to age 20 and once after age 50.
• Immigration law overhaul: The Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025 consolidated immigration laws and repealed the Foreigners Act, 1946.
• Entry documentation: PIO cards are no longer valid, and the e-Arrival Card replaced the paper disembarkation form from April 1, 2026.
• OCI application from India: The six-month mandatory stay condition was removed on April 8, 2026.
• Voting rule: NRIs can vote only by physical presence at polling booths; ETPBS is still only under consideration.