Amit Shah Launches FCRA 2.0 Portal and Digital e-OCI Card

The Ministry also introduced the fully digital e-OCI Card, allowing Overseas Citizen of India cardholders to complete the entire application process online, from document submission to downloading the approved digital card.

Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah launched the FCRA 2.0 Portal and the electronic Overseas Citizen of India (e-OCI) Card in New Delhi, introducing two major digital initiatives designed to simplify government services, improve transparency, and strengthen security.

The launch event was attended by the Union Home Secretary, Foreign Secretary, Director of the Intelligence Bureau, and other senior officials. Addressing the gathering, Shah said both platforms will make government services more convenient while reducing paperwork and improving efficiency. He added that the initiatives reflect the government's commitment to the principle of "Minimum Government, Maximum Governance" through greater use of technology.

FCRA 2.0 to simplify compliance and strengthen monitoring

The new FCRA 2.0 Portal has been developed to digitise all major services under the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, including registrations, renewals, annual returns, and other applications. Around 14,500 organisations currently operate under the FCRA framework, while authorities process nearly 15,000 to 20,000 applications and about 17,000 annual returns each year.

Shah said the upgraded system replaces manual paperwork with a fully digital process supported by Aadhaar-based authentication, e-Sign facilities, Optical Character Recognition (OCR), and integration with key databases such as PAN, Aadhaar, NGO Darpan, OCI, and the ICAI's UDIN system. Hosted on the Government Cloud, MeghRaj, the platform is designed to improve data security while enabling faster verification and better monitoring of foreign contributions. The minister said future upgrades will include an AI-powered chatbot, a dedicated mobile application, and an online dashboard for banks, further improving user experience and regulatory oversight.

Digital OCI card offers greater convenience for overseas Indians

The Ministry also introduced the fully digital e-OCI Card, allowing Overseas Citizen of India cardholders to complete the entire application process online, from document submission to downloading the approved digital card. The biggest change is the removal of the requirement to obtain a new OCI booklet whenever a new passport is issued after the age of 20. Instead, cardholders will only need to update their passport details online. The new system also provides a unique registration number for every OCI holder and eliminates the risk of losing or damaging physical documents.

According to the government, the digital platform will make travel easier through faster immigration verification while improving identity management and reducing administrative costs. Existing OCI cardholders will also be able to obtain their digital cards in most cases without submitting a fresh application or undergoing physical verification. The government said both initiatives are part of its broader effort to build a more transparent, secure, and technology-driven governance system while making public services faster and more accessible for citizens and the global Indian diaspora.