India residence and citizenship
The lowest comparable cited investment amount on file for a residence route in India is $1,150,000, for the Permanent Residency Status (PRS) for foreign investors. Ordinary naturalisation in India needs 12 years of legal residence.
Partly checked — So far the automated review covers regular employment visa only (sources read 10 November 2026). Everything else on this page is provisional.
Residence routes in India
Investment, own-income, remote-work and permanent routes. Scroll across the table to see every column.
| Route | Kind | Minimum | Processing | To citizenship |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Permanent Residency Status (PRS) for foreign investors* | Residence by investment | $1,150,000 | — | — |
"Minimum" is a cited investment threshold in its stated currency. A USD figure appears only when a supported conversion is on file; "—" means no supported amount is on file, not that it is free. "To citizenship" counts the years of residence before a naturalisation application. A zero-year entry states no residence wait; citizenship still needs a separate decision.
Work, family, study and other routes (1)
| Route | Kind | Minimum | Processing | To citizenship |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Regular employment visa | Work | — | — | — |
* Provisional — not yet verified by the automated source check. Permanent Residency Status (PRS) for foreign investors: from India Juris (via Legal 500), read 10 November 2026 (a summary, not the official text). INR 10 crore within 18 months (or INR 25 crore in 36 months) per the source; must employ 20 resident Indians a year. 10 years, renewable 10. 2016 scheme. Years to naturalisation: from Ministry of Home Affairs (India), read 10 November 2026. Form VIII: 12 months of continuous residence before applying, plus 11 years in total in the 14 years before that. Dual citizenship: from Ministry of Home Affairs (India), read 10 November 2026. Applicants undertake to renounce their other citizenship once naturalisation is approved. OCI is a visa status, not citizenship. Citizenship by investment: from Ministry of Home Affairs (India), read 10 November 2026. No citizenship-by-investment programme; citizenship comes by residence-based naturalisation.
Each route's conditions and sources
Regular employment visa
Employment is not eligible for India's e-Visa service. The regular employment visa is generally issued for one year or the contract period and can be extended in India subject to conditions.
Sources: Regular employment visa requirements (Indian Ministry of Home Affairs, Visa Online), Employment is not an e-Visa category (Indian Ministry of Home Affairs, Visa Online), Consular visa fee varies by route and duration (Indian Ministry of Home Affairs, Visa Online)
Citizenship in India
- Years of residence before naturalisation: 12 years*
- Years before permanent residence: not stated
- Dual citizenship allowed: No*
- Citizenship by investment: No programme*
What is the cheapest residence visa in India?
The lowest comparable cited investment amount on file for a residence route in India is $1,150,000, for the Permanent Residency Status (PRS) for foreign investors. Provisional — from India Juris (via Legal 500), read 10 November 2026; not yet verified. INR 10 crore within 18 months (or INR 25 crore in 36 months) per the source; must employ 20 resident Indians a year. 10 years, renewable 10. 2016 scheme.
How many years to citizenship in India?
Ordinary naturalisation in India needs 12 years of legal residence. Provisional — from Ministry of Home Affairs (India), read 10 November 2026; not yet verified. Form VIII: 12 months of continuous residence before applying, plus 11 years in total in the 14 years before that.
Does India allow dual citizenship?
No. India generally asks a new citizen to give up another nationality. Provisional — from Ministry of Home Affairs (India), read 10 November 2026; not yet verified. Applicants undertake to renounce their other citizenship once naturalisation is approved. OCI is a visa status, not citizenship.
Can you get citizenship by investment in India?
No. India has no citizenship-by-investment programme on file; residence by investment, where it exists, leads to citizenship only through the ordinary residence years. Provisional — from Ministry of Home Affairs (India), read 10 November 2026; not yet verified. No citizenship-by-investment programme; citizenship comes by residence-based naturalisation.
Tax and residence days
A residence permit and tax residence are different tests. See the India tax rates, count your days with the India day test and see what changed in the data, day by day.
Sources
The India profile cites 3 sources, 3 of them from a government or a statute. Data as of 2026-Q4.
- Regular employment visa requirements · Indian Ministry of Home Affairs, Visa Online, official, read 10 November 2026
- Employment is not an e-Visa category · Indian Ministry of Home Affairs, Visa Online, official, read 10 November 2026
- Consular visa fee varies by route and duration · Indian Ministry of Home Affairs, Visa Online, official, read 10 November 2026
Rules, fees and minimums change, and many routes have conditions not shown here. Did you find an error? Tell us, with the source.
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