In a development with significant implications for Indian-origin expatriate families, the Karnataka government on 24 January released draft regulations redefining how Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card-holders may compete for medical and dental seats in the state. Under the proposal, any OCI student born or registered after 4 March 2021 will be limited to Non-Resident Indian (NRI) or other supernumerary seats and will no longer be entitled to reservation benefits available to Indian citizens.
The draft aligns state policy with a 2021 Supreme Court judgment holding that OCIs are ‘foreign nationals’ for the purpose of educational admissions. Candidates born or registered before the 2021 cut-off also lose access to caste-based or domicile quotas but may still vie for open-merit seats. Public objections can be filed within 15 days before the rules are finalised.
For globally mobile Indian families, particularly those working in the Gulf or Southeast Asia, the change raises the cost of securing a coveted MBBS seat, as NRI fees can exceed INR 35 lakh per year.
![Karnataka Issues Draft Rules Curtailing OCI Quota in Medical Colleges]()
For parents who now have to weigh multiple admission scenarios across countries, VisaHQ offers an added layer of support by streamlining visa and passport paperwork for both students and their accompanying guardians. Through its India portal (https://www.visahq.com/india/) families can complete applications online, receive document-check guidance and track approvals in real time—valuable time saved that can instead be spent on entrance-exam prep and financial planning.
Education consultants expect a spike in applications to private universities in Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu that still reserve a percentage of seats for OCIs.
Corporate relocation programmes that include dependent-education planning should reassess projected budgets and counsel employees on emerging admission pathways, including NEET scores for general-merit competition or exploring campuses in states with more flexible policies.
The draft aligns state policy with a 2021 Supreme Court judgment holding that OCIs are ‘foreign nationals’ for the purpose of educational admissions. Candidates born or registered before the 2021 cut-off also lose access to caste-based or domicile quotas but may still vie for open-merit seats. Public objections can be filed within 15 days before the rules are finalised.
For globally mobile Indian families, particularly those working in the Gulf or Southeast Asia, the change raises the cost of securing a coveted MBBS seat, as NRI fees can exceed INR 35 lakh per year.
For parents who now have to weigh multiple admission scenarios across countries, VisaHQ offers an added layer of support by streamlining visa and passport paperwork for both students and their accompanying guardians. Through its India portal (https://www.visahq.com/india/) families can complete applications online, receive document-check guidance and track approvals in real time—valuable time saved that can instead be spent on entrance-exam prep and financial planning.
Education consultants expect a spike in applications to private universities in Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu that still reserve a percentage of seats for OCIs.
Corporate relocation programmes that include dependent-education planning should reassess projected budgets and counsel employees on emerging admission pathways, including NEET scores for general-merit competition or exploring campuses in states with more flexible policies.
