I moved to United States a year ago on H1-B visa. I and my Wife both are Indians and are expecting a baby in March 2007 and we need to make a decision about where to have the baby born (In the USA or in India). We do not plan to stay back or settle down in USA for more than a year or 2 years from now.
After having gone through some of the threads in this forum, I understand that if the baby is born here in the US, automatically baby becomes US citizen and we need to get a birth certificate, SSN and passport from US administration and a PIO or OCI status from Indian Embassy.
Following are some of my questions:
1) What is the difference between PIO and OCI?
2) Is it possible to apply for PIO or OCI from here in USA? We live in Dallas, Texas. So, where to apply for PIO or OCI?
3) I remember reading somewhere that if we have a PIO for the baby, we need to visit the comissioner of police (In India) every year to renew the PIO status. Is it true? And, is this not required in case of OCI?
4) Some of my concerns of having the baby here are:
- Since we are planning to move back, what will be the cost of education for the child in India? Will it be same as any other child _OR_ will it be more than the normal fees since the child is a citizen of other country and holding a PIO/OCI status.
- Is it required to renew the US passport or is it valid for life? If we need to renew it, are we required to travel to the USA just for renewing it? _OR_ can we get it done in India itself?
- Are there any advantages in terms of higher studies for US citizens? _OR_ do they have to go through the regular admission procedure like all the Indian students go through since the student never studied in the USA for 18 years? I heard that the education in the US till high school is free(?), but if the child wants to do higher studies in US, are there any advantages over the Indian students applying for higher studies (like the fees, getting a seat in the university etc)
There are lot of other concerns, but this is what I could wrap up for now. Please reply. I really appreciate your replies and eagerly waiting for replies.
2006-09-14
04:12:36
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2 answers
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asked by
Ashna
2
in
Immigration