Under revised passport rules brought in by the Union government recently, codified as the Indian Passport Document Rule, 2025, individuals born on or after October 1, 2023, will be required to present birth certificates as the sole proof of their date of birth when applying for a passport.
It is equally important to remember that this rule does not apply to those born before October 1, 2023 can continue to provide alternative documents to validate their date of birth, as specified in the guidelines.
The official notification detailing these amendments to the Passport Rules of 1980 was issued this week. The new regulations will take effect once they are published in the official Gazette of the Government of India.
For a birth certificate to be acceptable, it must be issued by the Registrar of Births and Deaths, any municipal corporation or any other authority designated under the Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969.
The Passport Seva Online Portal further says that furnishing the Aadhaar card will expedite the processing of passport applications.
Documents for proof of date of birth for those born before October 1, 2023
Birth certificate issued by the Registrar of Births and Deaths or municipal corporation or any other prescribed authority empowered under the Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969, to register the birth of a child born in India
Transfer/school leaving/matriculation certificate issued by the school last attended/recognised educational board
Policy bond issued by the public life insurance corporations/companies having the DOB of the holder of the insurance policy
Copy of an extract of the service record of the applicant (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
Aadhaar Card/E-Aadhaar
Election Photo Identity Card (EPIC, that is, voter’s identity card) issued by the Election Commission of India
PAN Card issued by the Income Tax Department
Driving license issued by the Transport Department of the concerned state government
A declaration given by the head of the orphanage/child care home on the official letterhead of the organisation confirming the date of birth of the applicant
Documents for proof of address
Water bill
Telephone (landline or post-paid mobile bill)
Electricity bill
Income tax assessment order
Election Commission photo ID card
Proof of gas connection
Certificate from employer (from reputed companies) on letterhead
Copy of the first and last pages of spouse’s passport, mentioning the applicant as the spouse of the passport-holder (provided the applicant’s present address matches the address mentioned in the spouse’s passport)
Copy of the first and last pages of the parent’s passport , in the case of minors
Aadhaar Card
Rent agreement
Photo passbook of running bank account (only scheduled public sector and Indian private sector banks and regional rural banks)
