‘System will ease compliance, tighten oversight’
New Delhi, Jun 30: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday said the newly launched FCRA 2.0 Portal will make compliance easier for genuine organisations while strengthening monitoring of foreign contributions to bolster national security.
Launching the FCRA 2.0 Portal and the electronic Overseas Citizen of India (e-OCI) Card here, Shah said technology-driven governance simplifies procedures for honest citizens while enabling stricter oversight of those attempting to misuse the system.
He said the revamped Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) portal replaces paperwork with a fully digital system, making processes such as registration, renewals, annual returns and other services end-to-end online.
The portal features Aadhaar-based authentication, e-Sign, Optical Character Recognition (OCR)-based document processing and integration with government databases, including PAN, Aadhaar, OCI, NGO Darpan and the ICAI’s UDIN system, he said.
Shah said the new system would improve ease of operations for organisations receiving foreign contributions while ensuring effective monitoring of funds received from abroad.
He said the portal, hosted on the Government Cloud (MeghRaj), would enhance data security and reduce the need for physical submission of documents. An AI-powered chatbot, a mobile application and a dedicated online dashboard for banks will also be introduced in the coming months, he added.
Launching the e-OCI Card, Shah said the initiative would benefit more than 50 lakh Overseas Citizen of India cardholders by making OCI services fully digital.
He said OCI cardholders will no longer be required to obtain a fresh OCI booklet after a new passport is issued beyond the age of 20. The new system also introduces a unique registration number and enables digital, real-time verification.
According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, around 14,500 active FCRA-registered organisations currently operate in the country. The portal processes approximately 15,000 to 20,000 applications and around 17,000 annual returns every year.
The ministry said the e-OCI system enables applicants to complete the entire process online, from application submission and document upload to downloading the digital card after approval. Existing OCI cardholders can also obtain their e-OCI Card digitally in most cases without filing a fresh application or undergoing physical verification.
