People of Indian origin and Indian diaspora having Overseas Citizens of India cards are no longer required to carry their old, expired passports for travel to India, according to a government notification.
“The requirement of carrying old and new passports, along with the OCI card, has been done away with,” the Indian embassy in the US stated on its website.
“Henceforth, an OCI cardholder travelling on the strength of existing OCI card bearing old passport number is not required to carry the old passport. However, carrying the new (current) passport is mandatory,” the embassy further added.
According to the OCI guidelines that have been in force since 2005:
- OCI card is required to be re-issued each time a new passport is acquired by the cardholder up to the age of 20 years.
- OCI card is required to be re-issued once on acquiring a new passport after completing 50 years of age.
Although, as per the recent embassy notification, the Indian government has decided to grant further extension of time until December 31, 2021, to get the OCI cards re-issued for those below the age of 20 years and above 50 years.
