PIO card holders are advised to convert their cards into OCI cards immediately. A fee of € 95 and consular surcharge of € 3 is being charged by the Embassy/Consulates for this service.

As per latest information, PIO cards will be accepted as valid document by the immigration authorities in India until 31.03.2019. However, as machine-readable electronic travel document is mandated by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO),  all PIO cardholders  are advised to apply for conversion of their PIO card to OCI card to avoid any inconvenience. Further, if any deadline is notified   by the ICAO, thereby making hand written PIO cards invalid, then PIO cardholders may have to obtain appropriate visa, if they have not converted their PIO card to OCI card.