OCI card cancellation: Government specifies new grounds your OCI Card can be cancelled: Check Now

Recently, the government has tightened the grounds for OCI (Overseas Citizen of India) card cancellation. Going ahead, serious criminal convictions could lead to cancellation of OCI status, according to a recent gazette notification. At present, as per Section 7(D) of India’s Citizenship Act, 1955, if any OCI cardholder gets their registration in the following ways ​​Fraud
False representation
Concealment of any material fact, their OCI card could be cancelled.

According to revised rules, OCI cardholders who are convicted and sentenced to a minimum of two years in prison are subject to cancellation of their OCI card. Previously, if an OCI cardholder had:
Within 5 years of their registration as an overseas citizen of India, been sentenced to imprisonment for a term of atleast 2 years, their OCI card could be revoked. This 5-year registration limit has now been done away with.

In addition to the existing rules, an individual’s OCI status can also be revoked if they are simply named in the charge sheet of any crime or offense that comes with an imprisonment penalty of 7 years or more. This expands the scope of grounds for OCI cancellation.

According to government data, there are over 5 lakh existing OCI cardholders, who could be impacted by this rule. While this might not directly affect them, OCI cardholders should keenly watch out for any major legal developments related to OCI, and all relevant documents handy.

OCI grants Indian-origin foreign nationals a lifelong multi-entry visa, multiple rights, excluding political rights like voting or holding public office.
An OCI card is granted to citizens who are of Indian origin, but are foreign nationals, i.e. hold a passport of a different country. OCI cardholders can practise their profession here and gain employment, but not buy agricultural land.