Passport New Rule: The Government of India has made a major change in the passport application process for international travel. Applicants for new passports will now have to use the government platform DigiLocker. All the documents have to be uploaded using DigiLocker. Once the documents are uploaded, applicants can make their passport application online through the official website, passportindia.gov.in.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has said that if applicants have uploaded their documents through DigiLocker, they will not be required to carry original hard copies while applying. The step is taken to reduce the time in application process of the passport. It has been implemented with an aim to reduce the need for hard copy of document verification.

What is DigiLocker?

DigiLocker is a digital wallet service provided by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology. In this, users can securely store and access government documents such as driving license, vehicle registration certificate and marksheet. The Ministry has now also permitted the use of Aadhaar documents through DigiLocker for online application submission.

How to save documents in DigiLocker?

Users can also store and access important official documents such as Education Certificate, Birth Certificate, PAN Card, Aadhaar Card, Passport and Voter ID Card in DigiLocker. This change has been implemented to speed up the application process and reduce the need for physical document verification at Passport Seva Kendras and Post Office Passport Seva Kendras in various regions.

How to use DigiLocker?

To open a DigiLocker account, users need to register with a mobile number and this number should already be linked with Aadhaar.

Users will be sent a One-Time Passcode (OTP) to the linked mobile number while logging into the DigiLocker account.

If you want to make changes in DigiLocker, then that data has to be updated in Aadhaar.