Visa overstay

As far as my knowledge says..she is an indian citizen now.
There must have been a visa on her 1st passport..30yrs back...as we renew passport after every 1m yrs..so she must have gt indian passport..bcoz there are various sets of eligibilities in which 1 can be a citizen..and she is eligible in many..like a person must be a resident of india for 12 years..and others..so its ok.
But all you need to tell is..what her passport say..is it republic of india or britain??
If its britain thn shez british..provided she must had visa stamp on her previous pasport..this is the case m a bit unsure bcoz i dont know if we get visa stick again when we renew our old pasport..u gota check this point..most importantly..tell me if its an indian or british pasport.
Thanks

Hi,

Thanks for the response.

I see that it is a British Passport and the National Status reads "British Subject: Citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies".

I also checked the older passports and see that she has travelled in and out of India a few times - but there is no Visa stamp I can find in any of the passports (all of these travels were 1970 or before). I wonder if the rules were different back then...

Thanks in advance.

Yes sir..i got it.
Sorry for the late reply..i was not able to find this post.next time kindly private message me the reply.
The thing is..back then there was a commonwealth citizenship..so all members of commonwealth nations were citizens of india..the law was changed back in 2002 i guesss..and after that thes provision was deleted.
So earlier she was an indian citizien through this commonwealth thing..but now she isnt..so u should tell your lawyer to read on this..and check if there is a need to apply for citizenship because she is eligible..so she can...but i am afraid that if she has to come back she gotta need a visa..so u check on this point.
Thanks

That provision was repealed by citizenship ammendment act 2003..you can read it.
Now what are the effects of this act on her status..is only a good lawyer can tell.
If you need more you can ask anytime.
Thanks

The situation of Commonwealth Citizens who were not Indians, living in India changed about the year 1967. Before that there were no restrictions, after that they were required to be registered with the District Police Head Quarters, and to obtain a yearly Residential Permit, and an Exit Visa to leave India, if they wished to do so, and an Entry Visa to return.
The Lady in question has an old UK and colonies Citizenship Passport, and these ceased in 1981. They were replaced by European British Citizen Passports for those persons belong to the United Kingdom. There are many varieties of Relationship with the British Crown, so the exact nature of a person's "Citizenship" will depend upon a number of at present unknown factors.
I think that this Lady is unknown to the Indian Authorities and needs to decide what she wants to do. Revealing her situation to the Indian Authorities if she wishes to continue to live in India, would be most un wise. Although she may qualify for Indian Citizenship by registration, it can be very difficult to obtain and such an application would reveal her illegal status, illegal because she is required to register at the District Police Head Quarters and to renew that registration every year.  It would also be unwise to attempt to leave India as she would have no right to return. Leave well alone!

Wow! Your question is beyond my knowledge and experience. I believe that you can "regularize" overstaying a visa at an FRO/FRRO (Foreigners Regional Registration Office) but that may not be applicable or appropriate in this case.
I can, however, guide you in your second question. There are two very good websites Sulekha.com (you did not indicate the city; I have Cheenai for the link, but you can have that changed) and LegalServicesIndia.com which provides a lot of information and a listin of advocates.

Delta1212 wrote:

Hi,

One of my relatives is a British citizen married to an Indian. She has stayed in India for the past 30 years and I don't see any Visa stamped in her passport. I talked to a local lawyer in India and they don't seem to have a clue on how it worked in the good old days.

We wanted to bring her overseas for a visit. Before we stir the hornets nest I would like your help in understanding a few things:

1. What kind of Visa is she on? I don't see a Visa stamp on the passport - however there is an entry stamp for her entry.

2. Do you know any good lawyer (in India) who I can talk to, to understand this?

Thanks!

Hi. Make it more easier. Go directly to Ministry of Home affair in Delhi and there you can get all your questions answered.