If you filed an RTI application and the Public Information Officer (PIO) went silent — no reply, no rejection, no extension notice — the law is unambiguous: that silence is a deemed refusal under Section 7(2) of the RTI Act 2005. You have the right to file a first appeal immediately after 30 days. This guide gives you the exact letter, the filing steps, and the common traps to avoid.
Direct answer. If your PIO has not replied within 30 days of submitting your RTI application, file a first appeal to the First Appellate Authority (FAA) of the same public authority under Section 19(1) of the RTI Act. The appeal is free and must be decided within 30 days (extendable to 45). No lawyer is required. Use the template below.
Section 7(1) of the RTI Act 2005 gives the PIO 30 days to provide information (21 days if the application concerns life or liberty). If the PIO does nothing within that window — no reply, no request for clarification, no transfer notice, no extension request, no rejection — Section 7(2) treats that silence as a deemed refusal and the applicant can immediately appeal under Section 19(1).
The Supreme Court in T. Ramakrishnaiah v. State of Andhra Pradesh (2017) confirmed that silence does not require the applicant to wait further; the first appeal is the correct remedy the moment the deadline lapses.
Use this template when all of the following are true:
If the PIO replied but refused on the merits, use the S.8 rejection appeal template instead.
Copy the block below, replace the text in [SQUARE BRACKETS], and print/upload:
To,
The First Appellate Authority,
[NAME OF PUBLIC AUTHORITY],
[Full postal address of the authority]
Date: [DD/MM/YYYY]
Subject: First appeal under Section 19(1) of the Right to Information Act,
2005 — deemed refusal for RTI Application No. [YOUR APPLICATION NUMBER /
REFERENCE NUMBER] dated [DD/MM/YYYY].
Sir / Madam,
1. I, [Your Name], submitted an RTI application dated [DD/MM/YYYY] to the
Public Information Officer (PIO), [Name/Designation if known], [Name of
Public Authority], requesting the following information:
[REPRODUCE YOUR ORIGINAL RTI QUESTIONS VERBATIM, NUMBERED 1, 2, 3…]
2. The application was submitted along with the prescribed fee of ₹10 by
[mode: IPO / DD / online payment] bearing receipt No. [RECEIPT NO.] dated
[DATE OF PAYMENT].
3. Under Section 7(1) of the RTI Act, 2005, the PIO was required to furnish
the information or communicate a decision within **30 days** of receipt
of the application, i.e., on or before [DEADLINE DATE = application date
+ 30 days].
4. As on the date of this appeal — [TODAY'S DATE] — I have received no reply,
no intimation of delay, no request for clarification, and no transfer
notice from the PIO. The silence of the PIO constitutes a **deemed
refusal** under Section 7(2) of the RTI Act, 2005.
5. In view of the above, I prefer this first appeal under Section 19(1) of
the RTI Act, 2005 and respectfully request this authority to:
(a) Direct the PIO to provide the information sought in my application
within the time frame prescribed under the Act;
(b) Record adverse remarks against the PIO for failure to comply with the
statutory time limit without lawful excuse; and
(c) Pass any other order that this authority deems fit and proper in the
interest of justice.
I am enclosing copies of: (i) my original RTI application, (ii) proof of
fee payment, and (iii) this appeal letter.
Yours faithfully,
[Your full name]
[Postal address]
[Mobile number / email address]
[Date]
Enclosures:
1. Copy of RTI application dated [DATE] (pages: ___)
2. Fee payment receipt (pages: ___)
State vs Central government. The template above works for both. For state government authorities, the appeal goes to the state FAA. If the authority participates in the state's online portal (e.g., Rajasthan, Maharashtra, UP all have portals), use the online route for a date-stamped record.
Filed online via rtionline.gov.in. Your application reference number is your “Registration No.” shown in the portal. Upload the PDF of this letter in the “First Appeal” tab.
Posted by speed post. Write on the envelope: “RTI First Appeal — FAA.” Keep the tracking number. The date of posting counts as date of filing.
No fee for BPL applicants. If you had filed as a BPL applicant (with BPL certificate), no fee is required at the appeal stage either.
Application transferred mid-way. If the PIO transferred your application under Section 6(3) to another authority and you have no reply from the new authority, the 30-day clock started afresh at the date of transfer. Address the first appeal to the FAA of the new authority.
No. First appeals under Section 19(1) are completely free of charge. No court fee, no stamp, no application fee.
Address the letter to “The First Appellate Authority, [Name of public authority]” — the designation is enough. The authority's RTI manual (Section 4(1)(b)(xvi)) must list the FAA; you can access it on the authority's website or file a new RTI asking for it.
Rarely, but it can happen if your original application was not in the prescribed format or was not accompanied by proper fee payment. If so, re-file the original application correctly and restart the 30-day clock.
If the FAA fails to decide within 30 days (or 45 days with written reasons), you can file a second appeal directly to the Central Information Commission (for central government authorities) or the State Information Commission (for state authorities). See the second appeal guide.
Not by the FAA. The FAA can record adverse remarks. The penalty of ₹250/day (up to ₹25,000) under Section 20 can only be imposed by the Information Commission — raise this in your second appeal if the FAA order is also unsatisfactory.