What is a passport, how to apply for passport online, complete information

What is a passport: A passport is a document issued by a National Government that certifies its Holder's Identity and Nationality for International Travel.  

For establishing identity, the details of Name, Date of birth, Gender, and Birth Place are presented in it. Generally, a person's nationality and citizenship are the same. (what are the requirements for a passport?) (how to apply for a passport online in Hindi)

Table of contents(TOC)

Passport Sewa

The holder does not have the right to enter any other country only by possessing a passport and even when the holder is in another country, he/she does not have the right of consular protection.  

In any special situation for which a special agreement for disposal is not in effect, in that case, the passport does not even entitle the holder to any other privileges, 

However, it generally allows the holder to return to the passport issuing country after traveling abroad.

Indian Passport

Indian Passport is a legal document issued by the Government of India and also certifies that the holder is a citizen of the Republic of India by birth or by nature.  

This case is based on the Passports Act, 1967. The CPV (Consular Passport and Visa), a division of the Ministry of External Affairs, has a major hand in certifying it.  

This department operates according to a central passport organization and is solely responsible for issuing all passports in India.  

The issue of passports is done at more than 93 different places across the country. 

 It has 162 diplomatic missions abroad where an Indian passport is the issue.  

Consulates, High Commissions, and Embassies are present under this.

What is written in passport

Passport Opening Cover Details:

• Type (S-stands for Service; D-stands for Diplomat; P-stands for Personal)

• Passport number

• Country code

• Surname

• Nationality

• Given name(s)

• Gender

• Place of birth

• Date of birth

• Date of issue

• Place of issue

• Date of expiry

• Passport holder Signature

• Passport holder Photo

With this, the information page ends at the MRZ (Machine Readable Passport) zone.

Passport closing end Details

• File number

• Old passport number

• Address

• Spouse Name

• Mother Name

• Father Or legal guardian Name

Documents required to get passport 2021?

Documents required to get a passport

• 10th mark sheet, Aadhar card, PAN card, Voter ID card, or driving license for date of birth.  (One of these documents).

• Electricity or water bill, ration card, income tax department assessment order, voter ID, Aadhaar card, bank passbook for address.

• Annexure Format-1: Affidavit of India's citizenship and no criminal record.

Passport Application Fee

The fee for making a passport is 1500 to 2000 rupees.  There is some extra fee for an instant passport.

How To Apply Passport Online

Step 1. Visit the website of Passport Seva https://portal2.passportindia.gov.in.

Step 2. Click on the new userbox.  This will take you to the registration page.

Step 3. Visit Passport Seva's website here.  Select the Passport Office of the city in which you are residing.  

Also, make sure that you have written your name as it is on your document.  The rest of the form is very easy.

Step 4. When the work is complete, click Register.

Step 5. Now that you have created your account, go back to Passport Seva's website.

Step 6. Click on the green Login button.

Step 7. Enter your Email ID and click Continue.

Step 8. Type the characters in your email, password, and image.  Then click on Login.

Step 9. Click Apply for Fresh Passport / Reissue of Passport.

Step 10. You have two options. You can download the form, fill it and then upload it back on the website, or it can be filled online. We would suggest that you fill the form online.

Step 11. If you want to fill the online form, then click on the option with click here to fill the Application Form Online. the alternative 2 pages.  We will still suggest you choose this option, as it is the easiest way to apply for a passport.

Step 12. On the next page, you have to choose between a new passport or re-issue Passport, normal or immediate, 38 pages Passport or 60 pages Passport. 

Choose the option according to your convenience and requirement and then click on the next page.

Step 13. You will have to provide personal information on the next page. 

Keep in mind that the information you are giving matches the document that you have.

Step 14.  After filling the form, click on the Submit Application button at the bottom right.

Step 15. After filling the form, go back to the web page which is mentioned in the number 8 step.

Step 16. Click View Saved / Submitted Applications.

Step 17. You will be able to see the application which was submitted a while back. 

Click on the radio button next to it. Then click on Pay and Schedule Appointment.

Step 18. Select Online Payment and click on Next.  Now the list of Passport Seva Kendra present in your city will appear on the screen.  

It will also mention the nearest date and time for the appointment.

Step 19. From the drop-down menu next to PSK Location, choose an option at your convenience.

Step 20. After this type the characters created in the image. Then click on Next.

Step 21. Click on Pay and Book Appointment.

Step 22. This will take you to the payment gateway page. As soon as your payment is completed, you will once again reach the Passport Seva website.

Step 23. Now you will be able to see a page on which Appointment Confirmation will be written.  

On this page, complete details of the appointment from Passport Seva Kendra (PSK) will be available.

Step 24. Click on Print Application Receipt.  On the next page, you will be able to see the detailed view of your application.  Click Print Application Receipt once again.

Step 25. On the next page, you will be able to see the preview of the recipe.  Click Print Application Receipt once again.  

After doing this you will be able to take a printout of your appointment confirmation.

Step 26. You will need a printout of this receipt for entry at the Passport Seva Kendra. Now you reach the Passport Seva Kendra at the scheduled time. 

We are telling from our experience that if you have all the documents available then you should not take more than two hours.

How to apply for Passport easily

First, apply for passport online. Then go to your nearest PSK and submit all your documents and get it verified.  

On doing this you will get a message that you have come to Passport Seva Kendra and have your documents verified.

After this, you have to start Police Verification.  Which will take at least 3 weeks to happen.  You may also have to go to the police station for verification.  

While running this work, you will be informed about the updates happening in the middle.

 Then after a few days printing of your passport will start.  Once it is complete, you will get an SMS.

Then your passport will be sent to your address through Speed ​​Post.

This whole procedure takes 40 to 45 days to be done in the normal way.

Indian Passport Application New System

In 2007, a new passport issuance mechanism has been implemented by the Union Cabinet.  

This service has been approved under the Passport Seva Project. Many facilities are available under this new system.

Such as the activities associated with passport issuance, dispatch of passports, linking them to the online police department for verification, and maintaining centralized passport printing by this system.  

This new system has made the application process quick and hassle-free. 

Now an applicant can visit any of the 77 Passport Seva Kendras to retrieve new or old passports.

Note - you will get your passport only after completion of police verification. During this time, you can check the status of your application here.

Passport Application Status

Passport status can be checked online. For this, you have to visit the PSP portal IE or the Government of India website www.passportindia.gov.in.  

After this, you click on the Track Your Application status option, after which a page will open in front of you, in which you will get any information related to passport.

How to check passport status online

Step 1. To check the status of your Indian passport online, first of all, you have to go to the official website (passportindia.gov.in) and go to the three options application status, diplomatic/official application status, RTI status.

Step 2. Now click on track Online Status.

Step 3. Select the application status option.  And after entering the applicant's file number and date of birth, click on the "track" button.

Step 4. The information of the Status Tracker will be displayed on the screen.

If you want further additional information or clarification, please contact the toll-free number 1800-258-1800 of the National Call Center, Government of India.

Passport Appointment Fix

If you are applying for a passport in India, the applicant will have to appear at the Regional Passport Office to make a verification application, whatever information you have presented in that application form. 

For this, the applicant must first take an appointment which can be done by following some steps:

Step 1: First of all, you have to log in to the online Passport Seva Portal with your registered login ID.

Step 2: After this, you have to click for Fresh / reissue passport and apply.

Step 3: After this, you will have to fill all the required details in the form and then submit it.

Step 4: Then you have to click on the link "Pay and Schedule Appointment" which will be present in the "View Saved / Submitted Applications" screen, by doing this you will be allotted the appointment slot.

Passport Rules that everyone should know about

The Ministry of External Affairs has made a lot of changes in the passport rules that you have to follow if you want to get a new passport.  

But it is true that with these new rules, the process of issuing passports has become much easier.  Then let's know what these new rules are.

To apply for a passport, all applicants must have one of the following documents:

• Driving Licence

• Public Life Insurance Company issued policy bonds

• Election Photo Identity Card

• Pay pension order

• Service record (If you are a Government Employee)

• Aadhaar Card or E-Aadhaar

• PAN card

• Matriculation Certificate or school leaving certificate or transfer certificate

• Birth Certificate

• If you have a divorce or you live separately then there is no need to fill in the name of your spouse (husband or wife) in the passport application form.

• Mother’s name, father’s name, or legal guardian’s name must be in the form.  But it is enough to have only the name.  This makes it easy for single parents to apply passports for their children.  Keep in mind that it is mandatory for the father to be in the form otherwise the mother's name.

• Passport Rule has 1980 to nine annexes.  Which was the first 15.  Where some annexes have been merged and Annexes A, C, D, E, J and K have been removed.

• All annexes have to be given by the applicants in the plain paper on the basis of self-declaration. From now on there is no need for any attestation, swearing by or executive magistrate.

• If the child is born without wedlock, then the applicant must submit Annexure G in due course while filling the application.

• There is no need to provide Annexure K, or marriage certificates to marriage applicants.

• It is not mandatory for domestically adopted children to give a registered deed of adoption.

• Children who do not have any parents can also apply for a passport by writing in authorized paper from the head of an orphanage.

• If Sanyasis and Sadhus are applying for passports then you must write the name of your spiritual Guru’s in your application.

Passport Services Or Passport Sewa

If you have to re-issue a new passport or passport, then you have to fill the application form online through e-form submission or online form submission.  

Apart from this, the applicant can also submit the application form directly at their respective CPO / Passport Office / Passport Seva Kendra (PSK) / District Passport Cell (DPC) / Speed ​​Post Centers.

What are the other various passport services:

1. Fresh Passport issue: If you are applying for the first time then you can apply for a new passport.

2. Passport Reissue: You can also apply for any other passport, if you want a passport in lieu of the same passport, you can apply for any of these reasons:-

•  Changes to existing personal information.

•  If validity expires within 3 years / or has expired.

•  If validity is expiring more than 3 years ago.

•  If the passport pages are corrupted.

•  If your passport is damaged.

•  If you have lost your passport.

Keep in mind that if you have ever got a passport, then no matter what age you are, if something happens to you and you intend to make a new passport, you will always have to choose the category of re-issue.

3. Miscellaneous Service: Police Clearance Certificate (PCC) has to issue.

Passport Issuing Authorities And Collection Centers

As I have told you earlier, MEA works closely with CPO and PSK and embassies/consulates in India.

1. MEA – Also called the Ministry of External Affairs is a part of the government which takes care of all the functions related to passports. There is only one MEA in India.

2. CPV – MEA, also known as Consular Passport and Visa, is a division of MEA through which MEA undertakes passport issuance. 

CPV located at Patiala House, New Delhi processes all official and diplomatic passports.

3. PO/RPO – Also known as Passport Office / Regional Passport Office. They refuse to issue or passport. 

POSs serve as the back-end of passport-related processes and services. Along with this, they also oversee PSK.  

They process applications, print them, and send approved passports. He belongs to MEA, State Police, and State Administration. 

Along with this, they also handle financial, legal, and RTI activities. Currently, there are around 37 passport offices in India.

4. PSK – Also known as Passport Seva Kendras, they are extensions of POs by which all front-end work of passport-related processes and services are carried out.  

It is a physical place where applicants have to be physically present on getting an online appointment. 

This is where you have to submit all your documents, photographs are taken and the application is reviewed. 

They are then sent to the Passport Office for processing. There are 77+ PSKs operating in India right now.

5. PSLK – Also known as Passport Seva Lagu Kendra. These are similar to POs that manage services like PSK. But only some areas such as the eastern and north-eastern regions.  

With their help, the weight of PSK is reduced in those places. There are 16+ PSLKs in India. They are built, operated, and controlled entirely by the government.

6. DPC, SPC, CSC – The district is also known as Passport Cell, Speed ​​Post Center and Citizen Service Center.  

They can only process new passports. Other services such as Renaissance cannot be performed immediately.

Special things regarding passport

Some regional groups such as the Group of South African Countries, the European Union, the Gulf Cooperation Council of the Gulf Countries, and the Mercosur, a group of South American countries, allow citizens of their member countries to travel only on an identity card basis.

 In 1995, 26 European countries entered into agreements with each other without border controls.  

But the airline company can ask for a passport to identify the passengers. 

For example, if a US citizen is going to the Caribbean country of Bermuda, then only a passport card, driving license or military identity card can work in place of a passport.

Citizens of Britain and Ireland can also come to each other with only a photo IDs.  

The Queen of Britain is the only British who does not need a passport.

What does a passport use abroad?

Helps in buying liquor abroad Apart from traveling abroad, passports are used for many other purposes.  You will not be able to get alcohol abroad without a passport. With passport, you will be able to buy liquor, SIM cards abroad because you will not be able to buy liquor or a SIM card without showing your passport there.

What is the difference between a passport and a visa?

A passport is a legal document that is given by any country to its citizen to travel abroad and in the form of that person's ID (ID Proof).

A visa is a kind of temporary official permission that a person has to take to travel, live or work in a country other than his or her own country.

A passport is a short diary-like document. While the visa is an official stamp.

The government of that country issues passports to the person who has citizenship.

Issues visas from the country in which the person wants to go.

The purpose of issuing passports is to identify the time while traveling abroad and while returning to your country.

The purpose of issuing visas is to enter abroad and stay there temporarily.

The visa is issued by the Embassy Embassy while the passport is issued by a specific government department.