Passport Rules

• One cannot depart the country without a valid passport. A ‘Passport’ refers to a valid and current passport issued by the Passport Authority as per Passport Act, 1920
• Classes of Passports

Passports are of 3 categories – 

• Ordinary Passport
• Official Passport
• Diplomatic Passport

Classes of Travel Documents

Travel documents refer to – 

• An emergency certificate authorising a person to enter India
• A certificate of identity for the purpose of establishing the identity of a person
• Any other certificate or document as may be prescribed

Applying for a passport 

An individual requiring a passport shall apply to the Passport authority through the prescribed channels and submit all required documents and pay the requisite passport fees to process the application. The Passport authority, upon scrutiny, shall approve or reject the passport application based on the laws and rules under the relevant sections of the Passport Law.

Different Kinds of Passport Applications: 

• Fresh Passport – for first time passport applicants
• Re-issue of Passport – for renewal of passport or modification and updation of information on your current passport

Where to submit your Passport Application?

Passport application can be done completely online. However, if you don’t have internet access, you can submit the duly filled application form at any of the following locations:

• Any Passport Seva Kendra (PSK)/ Post Office Passport Seva Kendra (POPSK) within the jurisdiction of your Passport Office
• District Passport Cell (DPC) of your district
• Select Speed Post Centre(s) (SPC) in your district
• Citizen Service Centre (CSC) if any, in your area N

Filling the application form

Name – The applicant’s full name should be written neatly on the application form. Initials have to be expanded.

Parent’s name – As per latest guideline, the applicant can enter either of the parent’s name or the legal guardian. This allows single parents to apply for a passport for their minor child.

Spouse’s name – Separated or Divorced individuals need not give the name of their spouse. They don’t even have to submit the divorce document.

Date of Birth Proof – Some lenience has been introduced with the date of birth proof document. Applicants can submit any one of the below documents for date of birth proof –

• Birth Certificate (BC) issued by the Registrar of Births & Deaths or the Municipal Corporation
• Transfer/School leaving/Matriculation Certificate issued by the school last attended/recognized educational board containing the DOB of the applicant
• PAN Card issued by the Income Tax Department with the DOB of applicant
• Aadhaar Card/E-Aadhaar having the DOB of applicant
• Copy of the extract of the service record of the applicant (only in respect of Government servants) or the Pay Pension Order (in respect of retired Government Servants), duly attested/certified by the officer/in-charge of the Administration of the concerned Ministry/Department of the applicant, having his DOB
• Driving licence with DOB
• Election Photo Identity Card (EPIC) issued by the Election Commission of India having the applicant’s DOB
• Policy Bond issued by the Public Life Insurance Corporations/Companies having the DOB of the holder of the insurance policy

Date of Birth Proof in case of Minors

• Orphaned children who do not have any proof of DOB such as Birth Certificate or the Matriculation Certificate or the declaratory Court order, may now submit a declaration given by the Head of the Orphanage/Child Care Home on their official letter head of the organization confirming the DOB of the applicant.
• In case of children not born out of wedlock, the applicant for the passport of such children should submit only Annexure G while submitting the passport application.
• In case of issue of passport to in-country domestically adopted children, submission of the registered adoption deed would no longer be required. In the absence of any deed to this effect, the passport applicant may give a declaration on a plain paper confirming the adoption.

• Annexures – As per the latest update, many annexures have been done away with. It means that all the annexes needed to be submitted by the applicants shall be plain paper in the form of a self-declaration. There is no need for attestation/swearing by/before any notary/executive magistrate/first-class judicial magistrate.
• Marriage certificate – Married couples are no longer required to attach the marriage certificate or Annexure K.
• Apply from anywhere in the country – With rapid migration for jobs, applicants can now apply in their nearest passport office irrespective of their permanent address location.
• Scheduling an appointment to visit the Passport Office

Once you have filled and submitted the passport application, you have to make the fee payment. Once that is completed, you can fix an appointment to visit the passport office for document verification. You can do that online through the Passport Seva Portal.

• Visit the official Passport Seva Kendra Portal
• Login with your credentials
• Now, click on the ‘Schedule Appointment’ option
• Click the Book Appointment button after reviewing the available appointment date shown on the PSK. For the chosen PSK, an appointment (if available) is booked automatically
• The Appointment Confirmation screen is shown with the Print Application Receipt button. You can print your appointment confirmation receipt from here.
• Police Verification

Once you have submitted the application, a police verification shall be done. There are 3 kinds application process for a passport;

• No PV - No police verification needed
• Post PV – Post Police Verification 
• Pre PV – Pre Police Verification

Police Verification Rules for Passports

No Police Verification: As provided for in the latest regulations, police verification (PV) is not necessary in the case of renewal/reissue of a passport if the application for a passport is submitted before the expiry of the passport or within three years of the expiry of the passport, because the system has a clear PV and no adverse effects have been identified. PV is also not needed for government employees if a No Objection Certificate (NOC) is required and other records are provided along with the application, such as proof of stay.

Instances such as government/PSU/statutory body personnel seeking a passport by sending a form known as an 'identity card' by Annex 'B' (in addition to their application documents) can receive their passport without any need for police authentication.

Police authentication will therefore not be mandatory for diplomatic or official passport applicants at the time of application for an ordinary passport, as they are applying for a certificate of identity by means of Annex 'B.'

Post Police Verification – In this scenario, after issuance of the passport, police review is carried out if the application for reissue of the passport is submitted within three years of the expiry of the passport, but the PV column in the system is either blank or incomplete; secondly, the application is submitted for reissue after the age of 18 for a minor; and lastly, for lost/completely damaged passports, provided that the specifics are issued.

Pre Police Verification - The most frequent scenario is this. The most popular method of passport application is police authentication before the issuing of a passport. Even for Tatkal passports, it's over.

Rules for Tatkal Passports

Tatkaal application can be perused for both fresh and reissue of passports. Earlier, Tatkaal passports required a Verification Certificate from a Gazetted officer. That requirement has been removed in recent years allowing applicants to get passports during emergencies.

Tatkaal passport applications should also be submitted online through the Passport Seva Portal. The applicants have to attend the personal interview for document verification. Once the documents have been verified and the passport has been ‘Granted’, applicants can expect the passport to be dispatched within a day’s time.

Your Tatkaal passport issue depends on the category it is processed under: 

• Police Verification is not required - Within one working day excluding the date of submission of application
• Police Verification is required on a Post-Passport Issuance basis - On third working day excluding the date of submission of application

Latest Passport Rules

Printing of address and parents name on the passport

As per latest regulations, it has been announced that the address and parents name shall not be printed on the last page of the passport. This is to avoid exposing personal information of the passport holder unnecessarily.

Post Passport Issuance Police Verification

Applicants seeking a new passport even under the normal quota can, at no extra cost, opt for a post-police verification alternative. The passport will be released first under this arrangement and post-issuance police checking will be carried out. To make use of this system, please note that it is mandatory to include the 28-digit Aadhaar enrolment number.

Photograph on your application form

For applications submitted to Passport Seva Kendra (PSK) or Post Office Passport Seva Kendra (POPSK), Photograph is NOT Needed. However, one passport size photograph must be affixed for other applications, i.e. those sent to other centres like the Collection Center at District Passport Cell (DPC), Approved Speed Post Centre (SPC) or other Citizen Service Centre (CSC).

Passport Rules FAQs