Pros and cons of British citizenship for Indians

[scorpionlion]

Hi,
I am scheduled for the BC in this year. I am going through a dilemma of taking it or not!
As an Indian I was exploring the pros and cons of taking BC but couldn't find any good resource.
If people in the forum are aware of various aspects which can affect a person (especially for Indian, but consider anyone with other nationality as well) taking BC, then please share with other members like me.

Thanks in advance

[EZHIL_ANAND]

Pros-
1 Easier travel to other countries especially Europe(I believe this is the commonest reason for an Indian to get the UK passport)
2 Not much disadvantage compared to an Indian Citizen especially when you have the OCI card.You have all the rights except cannot vote,hold govt posts and have agricultural land.
3 The UK govt is encouraging people either to be committed and get the passport or go back home.Hence in future,one might not have the option of staying permanently on PR
4 Since the economy of India is booming and India predicted to be a superpower, one can always go back and get the Indian passport back in five years.
5 At present, if you get stranded in a foreign country,UK govt is more likely to bail you out rather than the Indian govt

Cons-
1 If you go back to live in India, you have to pay NRI fee for airtravel, childrens education etc
2 You cannot vote,hold govt posts and have agricultural land.
3 Some consider loosing identity by changing passport

[TC]

I already own agricultural land and I have no intention of selling it. Does anyone know what happens? I thought you cannot buy but you can keep the lands you already own??

[cbal]

can we retain the indian passport?
after getting the british passport?

[Wanderer]

can we retain the indian passport?
after getting the british passport?

No.

[need_a_tier1]

Also, if you have children and they also hold british citizenship - in most case they will not be eligible to write competitive examinations (engineering, medical entrance exams), NTSE etc. and will have to follow the admission rules for NRIs.

[gainvidya]

Also, if you have children and they also hold british citizenship - in most case they will not be eligible to write competitive examinations (engineering, medical entrance exams), NTSE etc. and will have to follow the admission rules for NRIs.

Whats the point of having OCI if we are being treated as NRIs. Also the only rule explicitly mentioned for OCI is cannot vote and canoot buy agricultural land. Other institution cannot come up with their own rule.

[mrlookforward]

Without OCI status, you will have to apply for Visa every time you want to visit India.

[need_a_tier1]

Whats the point of having OCI if we are being treated as NRIs.

From my experience, that isn't looked down upon or frowned upon in India. These rules were mostly intended for PIOs who in some cases have never been to India in all their life, but does cover NRIs (read former Indian citizens with overseas citizenship).

A dual citizenship policy will be the best move if applied only to people who are about to gain overseas citizenship or have done that in past 10 years.

[VijP]

TC, Does anybody respond to your question(below)? I have the same question.

I already own agricultural land and I have no intention of selling it. Does anyone know what happens? I thought you cannot buy but you can keep the lands you already own??

[chakku71]

TC, Does anybody respond to your question(below)? I have the same question.

I already own agricultural land and I have no intention of selling it. Does anyone know what happens? I thought you cannot buy but you can keep the lands you already own??

If you already own a land, it is okay- nobody can force you to sell.
There are restrictions in admission to educational institutions for children. They may be able to compete in a common entrance/exam but can only gain access through the NRI quota which attracts more fees.
The most important catch is that children cannot gain Indian citizenship until they are 18!!

[tigerinhunt]

TC, Does anybody respond to your question(below)? I have the same question.

I already own agricultural land and I have no intention of selling it. Does anyone know what happens? I thought you cannot buy but you can keep the lands you already own??

If you already own a land, it is okay- nobody can force you to sell.
There are restrictions in admission to educational institutions for children. They may be able to compete in a common entrance/exam but can only gain access through the NRI quota which attracts more fees.
The most important catch is that children cannot gain Indian citizenship until they are 18!!

Can you please also suggest if you acquire british citizenship and subsequently also get OCI but you inherit the agriculture land after getting OCI. Does it affect any aspect of your ownership or you cannot inherit it?

I guess other kinds of properties eg flats or residential plots should be ok. but please suggest if you dont think so.

[krazydude]

NRIs will be able to vote by 2014 : PM

Prime Minister Manmohah Singh has announced that the Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) may soon vote in the elections, and it may happen as early as the next general elections.

He made the announcement while speaking at a Pravasi Bhartiya Diwas function on Friday. "I recognise the legitimate desire of Indians living abroad to exercise their franchise and to have a say in who governs India," the Prime Minister told the annual conclave for the Indian diaspora.

There has been a long-pending demand by NRIs to take part in the electoral process back home. Promises were made by many leaders, but nothing substantive has been done so far.

We realize that it would be a tedious process for Indian missions abroad to register and process the ballots of the 30 million Indians residing abroad. But then many other countries are doing so through different methods. Citizens of US, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Canada take part in their countries’ democratic process through postal ballots. Those from Poland, Lithuania, Ukraine, Colombia, Venezuela, Peru, France, Russia, Sweden, Philippines, Japan, and Dominican Republic do so at their missions abroad. France has adopted the latest Internet technology to allow e-voting.
In fact the Philippines has already announced the dates for the registration of new overseas Filipino workers so as to enable them to vote in the May 10, 2010, presidential and senatorial elections.
Indians residing abroad outnumber any other nationalities. There are an estimated eight million Filipinos overseas. In comparison, approximately 4.5 million Indians reside in the Gulf region alone.
This huge number also means a huge benefit to the exchequer. According to Reserve Bank of India figures, Private money transfers account for around three percent of India’s GDP.
Given these figures, Indians residing abroad must have a say in electing governments back home. But how?

The amendment in the Representation of People’s Act cleared by the last UPA govt. led by Dr. Manmohan Singh government does not serve the purpose. It only expands the definition of “ordinarily residentâ€

[guntur1]

I am Indian and currently holding ILR in UK. Financially I was successful and invested most of the money in agriculture and part in real estate. After taking citizenship, I am planning to go to India and settle there. Truly, I am not happy losing Indian citizenship and becoming NRI, I wish India had dual citizenship policy.

NRI can inherit agriculture land from parents in Andhra Pradesh. But other states may have their own rules. If we already have land on our name we can continue to keep it. There are no restrictions to buy flats, residential or commercial plots and land registered for non-agriculture purpose.