RTI fee in Bihar — the verified 2026 schedule

The Bihar schedule rests on the Bihar Right to Information Rules, 2006 and the fee notifications the General Administration Department issued under them — all published on the Bihar Information Commission's Acts and Rules page. The ₹10 appeal figure comes from the department's notification No. 08/law 15-03/07 S.Ni.-6550 dated 8 May 2012, which replaced the older ₹50-per-appeal schedule of 2006.

• Application fee: ₹10 per application — payable by cash against a receipt, demand draft, banker's cheque or Indian Postal Order, and by card, net banking, UPI and wallet on the Jaankari portal
• Photocopies: ₹2 per page of A4 or A3 size
• Larger paper: actual cost of photocopying on bigger paper
• Samples or models: actual cost, following the department's own procedure
• Inspection of records: no fee for the first hour, then ₹5 per hour or part — where a department already runs an existing perusal system, its current rates continue
• Floppy or CD: ₹50
• Appeals: ₹10 each — first appeal to the department's First Appellate Authority, and both first and second appeals when filed online through Jaankari

Bihar is one of the few states that charges for appeals, so do not let anyone charge you more. Notification No. 6161 of 28 June 2006 originally allowed the Appellate Authority to collect ₹50 per appeal. The department then revisited the figure, and its notification of 8 May 2012 fixed the fee at ₹10 per appeal application, expressly including first and second appeals filed online through the Jaankari network. That ₹10 is the operative number today. A PIO or FAA demanding ₹50 for an appeal is quoting a schedule that was replaced.

Section 7(5) of the RTI Act bars any fee from a below-poverty-line applicant, and the Jaankari portal's own FAQ states it plainly: filing is free of cost for BPL applicants with a valid BPL certificate.

• Tick the BPL option and upload or enclose the certificate copy
• Cite §7(5) in the application
• No PIO in Bihar can demand the ₹10 — or any further fee — from a BPL applicant

• Online: jaankari.bihar.gov.in — applications, first appeals and second appeals to the Bihar Information Commission, with debit card, credit card, net banking, UPI and mobile-wallet payment
• By post: to the PIO of the concerned public authority, with a ₹10 Indian Postal Order or demand draft
• In person: cash across the counter — insist on a stamped receipt
• The Commission: sic.bihar.gov.in — the Bihar Information Commission's site, with the full Acts and Rules library

Real example. Kashvi Pathak's neighbour in Patna was asked for ₹100 “file charges” at a block office for a six-page reply. She re-filed through Jaankari paying ₹10 online, asked for the fee rule in writing, and got the pages at ₹2 each — ₹12 in total. When a different office later demanded ₹50 to accept her first appeal, the 8 May 2012 notification settled it: ₹10, paid online.

Search charges, handling fees, urgent fees — none exist in the Bihar schedule. Ask for the demand in writing with the rule number, keep your receipt, and file a first appeal within 30 days.

• AI RTI Drafter: Auto-fill PIO + Act sections
• First appeal builder: First Appeal Generator
• Bihar SIC contacts: Bihar Information Commission — contacts and jurisdiction

₹10 for the application. Copies are ₹2 a page after the PIO intimates the count. That is the whole schedule.

Yes — ₹10 per appeal under the GAD notification of 8 May 2012, including first and second appeals filed online through Jaankari.

Yes. Jaankari takes cards, net banking, UPI and wallets. By post, use an Indian Postal Order or demand draft.

Nothing. Attach the BPL certificate and cite §7(5) of the RTI Act.

• RTI fees in all states
• State-wise fee chart
• RTI forms + downloads
• Bihar Information Commission contacts
• The RTI Playbook

• Bihar Information Commission — Acts and Rules: Bihar RTI Rules 2006 and fee notifications
• Jaankari portal FAQ — payment modes and BPL exemption
• GAD notification No. 6161 of 28 June 2006 — schedule of fees

Last reviewed: 26 August 2026. Fees verified against the Bihar Information Commission's Acts and Rules library and the Jaankari portal FAQ.