12-08-2025
OCI card can be cancelled for serious criminal charges or convictions, Home Ministry warns
The Ministry of Home Affairs has announced new rules regarding the Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card. The OCI card can now be cancelled if the holder is convicted of serious crimes. Cancellation can also occur if the cardholder faces charges for offences punishable by seven years or more. This provision has been introduced under the Citizenship Act of 1955.
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The Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card, which allows Indian-origin foreign nationals to visit India without a visa, can now be cancelled if the holder is convicted or charged with serious offences, the Ministry of Home Affairs has said in a gazette to the notification, an OCI registration will be liable for cancellation if the cardholder is sentenced to imprisonment for a term of not less than two years, or if they are named in a charge sheet for an offence carrying a punishment of seven years or more. The provision has been introduced under clause (da) of Section 7D of the Citizenship Act, 1955.'In exercise of the powers conferred by the clause (da) of section 7D of the Citizenship Act, 1955 (57 of 1955), the central government hereby states that an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) registration shall be liable to get cancelled when a person has been sentenced to imprisonment for term of not less than two years or has been charge-sheeted for an offence entailing punishment of imprisonment for seven years or more,' the notification OCI scheme, introduced in August 2005, allows registration for persons of Indian origin who were citizens of India on or after January 26, 1950, or were eligible for citizenship on that date. The scheme excludes those who are or have been citizens of Pakistan, Bangladesh, or any other country notified by the central government.
