(Guest)

Indian citizenship of minor child - if father acquires british citizenship

Need to understand what happens to the status of the minor child's Indian citizenship if the father acquires British citizenship. The Child (Indian citizen) lives in India with his Indian citizen mother. The father in question is also a citizen of India by birth and plans to take the OCI card with British citizenship and work in India.

The act states that a minor ceases to be an Indian citizen, what does it make the child? Can he not travel on an Indian passport abroad for vacations etc. and live in India like a citizen? What is the spirit behind this law, is this to discourage Indian citizens from acquiring other citizenship?

Reply Follow

Quick Summary

This discussion explores the impact on a minor child's Indian citizenship when their father acquires British citizenship. The child resides in India with their Indian mother. While the father plans to obtain OCI and British citizenship, the core question is whether the child automatically loses Indian citizenship. The consensus suggests that if one parent remains an Indian citizen and has legal custody, the child's Indian citizenship and eligibility for an Indian passport should generally remain unaffected.

2 Replies

Dr. J C Vashista (Advocate ) 29 January 2024

The child is Indian citizen by birth, which do not change with OCI father.

T. Kalaiselvan, Advocate (Advocate) 29 January 2024

as per the Passport Manual, when one parent has renounced the Indian citizenship and the other parent is still an Indian citizen, the citizenship of the minor shall be of that person who has legal custody of that minor child and the eligibility of an Indian passport will be determined on the basis of the guardian’s citizenship. It was further mentioned that, if both parents have renounced their Indian citizenship and acquired foreign citizenship, the minor child will cease to be an Indian citizen and hence will not be eligible for an Indian passport.