It’s every foreigner’s nightmare, but a necessary evil of staying in India for any extended period of time. I concluded my registration process today, quite successfully, and I came up with a few tips for anyone else who has to go through the same thing.
- Don’t expect to get done on your first trip
The required documents change so often, and the validity of the documents is up to the person behind the desk. I first went on Monday fully expecting my inch-thick packet of papers to fall short. It most certainly did. The undertaking form that my company had provided me back in June was in the old format. But, I went in with the mindset that I would be coming back, so it was okay. By some stroke of genius, if you have all the documents on the first try, you’ll be pleasantly surprised. - Bring extra copies
While it’s not exactly earth-friendly to bring more than the required copies, the woman helping me insisted I needed three copies of some things and only two copies of other things. Better have some extras lying around at home than have to run to the xerox-wallah and lose your place in line. - Include other relevant forms
My plan was to inundate the FRRO office with paper. I figured if I showed up with a huge stack of documents, they couldn’t possible tell me no, right? I included my employment contract, the company’s registration, a sponsorship letter and passport copies from Arnab’s cousin as proof of residency before we moved into our place. The woman included all of them in my file. Couldn’t hurt. - When in doubt, have people sign every paper
When it comes to copies of things, it’s best to have an original signature. Don’t have someone sign one copy of their passport and then make copies from that. Have them sign each and every copy. It’s tedious, I know, but required. I had to make a poor work colleague of mine sign 16 pieces of paper yesterday. - Bring along your flight information
For the online registration form that you fill out at the office, you need the flight number for the flight on which you first entered India. I didn’t have this, so I just put Jet Airways. That little tidbit of information doesn’t print out, so no one noticed—yet anyway. Best to be forewarned, so you’re prepared with all the information requested. - If you’re confused, ask
The organization system doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to the casual observer, but like a lot of things in India that seem to lack logic—like traffic—it works. When you aren’t sure where to go, ask. If you aren’t sure whether it’s your turn or not, ask. Likewise, if you look lost (like I did) someone will most likely ask you what your number is and tell you where to go. - Don’t try to make sense of it, just go along
Similar to the last one. There’s some sort of numbering system including counter numbers and token numbers, but I never quite caught on. The people working there know what they’re doing. They do what they need to do, and they’ll make sure you do the same.
I’ll be writing a more fun, narrative post about the whole experience for those of you that don’t ever plan on visiting the Mumbai FRRO office, Mumbai, or even India.
One Way Bombay 