The Embassy of India in Washington, D.C. has named Cox & Kings Global Services Pvt. Ltd. (“CKGS”) as the new service provider for Indian Visas, Overseas Citizenship of India (“OCI”), Person of Indian Origin (“PIO”), Renunciation Certificates, and additional support services. CKGS will begin its India visa services and related operations on May 21, 2014.

The current outsourcing provider, BLS International Limited, will close its Indian visa services and related operations on May 20, 2014.

Given this transition, we recommend that all applicants wait until CKGS offices are fully operational before submitting new applications for processing. While CKGS will begin its contract with the Embassy of India on May 21, 2014, it may take a week or two for it to get fully up to speed.

To avoid additional processing delays, we recommend that clients wait until early June to initiate new matters with CKGS.

Danielle Head also contributed to this article.