Can I Hold Dual Citizenship With an OCI Card?

YK Posted by: Yash Khater
• 30 May, 2025
16 Reply

Yes, you can hold dual citizenship with an OCI card. As we all know, India does not allow dual citizenship, and the OCI card is an alternative to it. However, you cannot enjoy the dual citizenship perk if you are an Indian national. First, you need to renounce your citizenship and then acquire the nationality of another country.

Tags : hold dual citizenship with an OCI card, dual citizenship, OCI card

  • Ravi Kumar 12 June, 2025

    Well, the concept of dual nationality is not only allowed in India. So, while having an OCI card, it does not matter whether you have single or dual citizenship on your side.

    • JH
      Jessica Holsman 09 July, 2025

      Indian does not allow dual citizenship with an OCI card, as the OCI card holder is a foreign citizen, so it cannot hold citizenship of two countries, because in Indian it is prohibited to hold multiple citizenships in India.

  • Meena Krishnan 12 June, 2025

    India does not consider an Overseas Citizen of India as an Indian citizen. You still need a foreign passport to enter the country. Irrespective of what other countries think, it is the decision of the issuing authority to specify if the cardholder is a citizen of India or not.

  • Suresh Bhatia 12 June, 2025

    Having an OCI card does not impact your dual nationality. The card allows the cardholder to maintain their ties to India. Also, with the card, enjoy the benefits of a lifetime visa. In short, the concept of dual citizenship has no direct relation to the card.

  • Ankit mangal 11 June, 2025

    An OCI cardholder is treated as having the citizenship of another country for statelessness legislation or nationality. In addition, it provides the cardholder the right to stay in India without any restrictions. But for other purposes, the OCI card is not treated as a second citizenship. It is just a status for overseas Indian citizens that allows them to enter the country multiple times and for various purposes without a visa.

    • A
      Ajay 08 July, 2025

      No, as they are foreign nationals, the Indian constitution does not allow them to hold any foreign citizenship; if they want to do so, they need to surrender their Indian passport in order to get a foreign citizenship. For the OCI cardholder, they cannot hold dual citizenship as India does not allow dual citizenship. However, they can apply for an OCI card under section 5(1) (g) of the Indian Citizenship Act, 1955.

  • Anil Mehta 11 June, 2025

    An OCI card is not "dual citizenship" in the true sense, so having it has no effect on your citizenship status. However, it does give you all the benefits of citizenship except the right to vote in India.

    • SP
      Snehal Patil 29 July, 2025

      An OCI card does not allow you dual citizenship, but it has certain benefits like visa fee access to India to study, work, or live for an indefinite period of time without reporting to any higher authorities or local police. Through an OCI card, you cannot get a dual citizenship, which means you cannot hold citizenship of two countries at the same time.

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