Recently, the Indian Prime Minister has made the announcement of combining the OCI (Overseas Citizen of India) and the PIO (Persons of Indian Origin) cards together. The Indian government is taking the step to merge the two cards to make the visa-free entry for Indians spread overseas simple. Besides, making visits easier, the single facility will also ensure those certain groups of people find their participation in various activities in India, including investment in business more accessible.
Besides the merger, the government is also looking forward to extend the services provided to Indian immigrated communities spread overseas through the Indian Community Welfare Fund. Currently, welfare services are offered at 42 Indian Missions across the world. The Indian government has already decided to extend the Indian Community Welfare Fund services to all the nations boasting Indian Missions.
OCI and PIO cards are the schemes introduced by India which facilitate visa-free travel for Non-resident Indians and Indian Origin individuals. Besides many educational and economic benefits (activities) enjoyed by OCI and POI holders, these sets of people have the rights of Indian residency. For your information, a PIO card is valid for fifteen years, while an OCI does not have any such validity provision and an Indian origin person can hold it if the country where he/she is currently residing allows dual citizenship.
The Indian government is concerned about the people who are immigrating to various corners of the world- the decision to extend the Indian Community Welfare Fund facilities at India Missions proves that only. Moreover, the government is all set to establish additional Indian cultural centers in countries like the United States, Canada, Australia, Saudi Arabia and France to help the Indian communities out there. It is also worth-mentioning that India has signed Social Security Agreements with twelve countries to ensure improvement to the migration conditions.
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