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+{{htmlmetatags>metatag-keywords=(how to apply CGHS card,CGHS 2026 guide,Central Government Health Scheme,CGHS smart card,CGHS wellness centre,CGHS empanelled hospital,CGHS pensioner card,CGHS contribution slab,CGHS dependent parents,cghs.gov.in registration,CGHS PIO RTI,Add Director CGHS,CGHS card delivery delay,CGHS Beneficiary ID,CGHS family eligibility)&metatag-description=(Step-by-step 2026 guide for serving central government employees to apply for a CGHS card — eligibility, contribution slabs, online + offline routes, family inclusion of spouse, dependent children and parents, what to do when the smart card is delayed. With escalation path: Wellness Centre Officer → Add. Director CGHS → CPGRAMS → RTI to PIO CGHS.)}}
+====== How to apply for a CGHS card — complete 2026 guide ======
+{{ :social:auto:apply-cghs-card-central-govt-employee-2026.png?direct&1200 |How to apply for CGHS card 2026 — RTI Wiki citizen guide for central government employees}}
+{{page>snippets:dpdp-banner}}
+<WRAP info>
+**Quick answer.** If you are a serving central government employee posted in any of the ~80 CGHS-covered cities, apply for your **CGHS Smart Card** online at **cghs.gov.in → "Online Beneficiary Registration"**, or offline at the nearest **CGHS Wellness Centre** / **Office of the Additional Director, CGHS**. The contribution is auto-deducted from salary every month — **₹250** (Pay Level 1-5), **₹450** (Level 6), **₹650** (Level 7-11), **₹1,000** (Level 12 and above). The card covers you, your **spouse, dependent children, and dependent parents** (parents must have monthly income below ₹9,000 from all sources). It gives **OPD at 600+ Wellness Centres** plus **cashless IPD at 2,000+ empanelled hospitals**. Smart card is delivered in **30-60 days** from attestation. Stuck beyond that? File an RTI to the PIO of your city's Add. Director, CGHS — costs ₹10 by IPO and gets a 30-day reply.
+</WRAP>
+===== Suresh's story — "₹85,000 saved on wife's surgery, two months after the card arrived" =====
+<WRAP center round box 80%>
+//Suresh, 42, Section Officer at the Ministry of External Affairs, Shastri Bhavan, Delhi. Family: wife and two school-going children. Was using a private mediclaim policy of ₹18,000/year — never used it for the first six years, paid ₹1.08 lakh in premiums.//
+> "I joined MEA in 2018 but never enrolled for CGHS — I had a HDFC ERGO mediclaim and felt that was 'enough'. In March 2025 my Section Officer Suresh-ji from another wing told me 'why are you paying ₹18,000 a year when ₹650 a month is taken anyway in the next pay cycle once you sign?'. I logged into **cghs.gov.in**, hit **'Online Beneficiary Registration'**, and filled the form for myself + wife + two kids. Uploaded my office order, our four Aadhaars, four passport photos, our marriage certificate, and the kids' birth certificates. The system generated a temporary registration number. I printed the form, took it to my **DDO (Drawing & Disbursing Officer)** in MEA — he attested it in two days and forwarded to the **Pay & Accounts Officer** for the contribution-deduction sanction. The **Add. Director, CGHS Delhi (R.K. Puram)** issued my Beneficiary ID in 18 days. The physical **CGHS Smart Card** with chip arrived by Speed Post on day 38. Two months later — May 2025 — my wife had to be hospitalised at **Apollo Hospital, Vasant Vihar (a CGHS empanelled centre)** for a gall bladder surgery. I just showed the smart card. Total bill ₹85,000 — **paid zero rupees out of pocket**. The whole hospital reception treated me like a private patient. **My contribution that month: ₹650.** Six years of mediclaim premium, never claimed, never refunded. One year of CGHS, one claim, ₹85,000 saved."
+—Suresh, June 2025
+</WRAP>
+About **42 lakh beneficiaries** were on CGHS rolls as of February 2026 (MoHFW Lok Sabha reply). About 13 lakh of these are pensioners. Around **18%** of all new applications get stuck at the **office attestation stage** (DDO/PAO delays) — the most common bottleneck — and another 6% get stuck at the **physical card despatch** stage. Both are fixable with one polite RTI.
+===== What CGHS is — and how it differs from other health schemes =====
+The **Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS)** was launched in **1954** by the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare. It's a **contributory** scheme that provides comprehensive healthcare — OPD consultation, medicines, diagnostics, and IPD (in-patient hospitalisation including surgery) — to:
+  * Serving central government employees (and their families) in CGHS-covered cities;
+  * Pensioners of the central government anywhere in India (lifetime, on a one-time contribution);
+  * Sitting and former Members of Parliament (free, no contribution);
+  * Freedom fighters, accredited journalists, judges of the Supreme Court / High Courts, and the Diplomatic Wing of MEA.
+The legal anchors are the **CGHS Manual 2024 (revised edition)**, the periodic **MoHFW Office Memoranda on contribution rates and ward entitlement**, the service rules of the central government (**FR 9(21A)**, **CCS Rules**), and the larger directive principle under **Article 41** of the Constitution which requires the State to make provision for public assistance in cases of sickness.
+**CGHS is different from the CGHS reimbursement claim** (which is what you file *after* you've already paid out of pocket at a non-empanelled hospital — see [[:claim-cghs-reimbursement-2026|Claim CGHS reimbursement]]). The card itself is the gateway; reimbursement is one of the things you can do after you have the card.
+It is also different from **Ayushman Bharat (PMJAY/ABHA)** — which is for non-government, primarily BPL families. If you are a central government employee, you are **not eligible** for PMJAY but you are entitled to CGHS. The Ayushman Bharat **ABHA Health ID** (the digital health record) is a separate thing — see [[:apply-ayushman-bharat-abha-card-2026|Apply Ayushman Bharat ABHA card]]. You can hold an ABHA Health ID alongside CGHS.
+===== Eligibility — who can get a CGHS card =====
+==== Mandatory conditions ====
+  * You must be a **serving employee** of the central government (Ministry, Department, attached/subordinate office, statutory body funded by central government), **OR** a **central government pensioner** drawing pension from a Pay & Accounts Office.
+  * Your office of posting must be in one of the **80 CGHS-covered cities** (Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Pune, Jaipur, Lucknow, Patna, Bhubaneswar, Guwahati, Chandigarh, Thiruvananthapuram, Bhopal, Indore, Kanpur, Nagpur, Vadodara, Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam, etc. — full list at cghs.gov.in). Officers posted in **non-CGHS cities** get reimbursement under **CS(MA) Rules 1944** instead.
+  * Pensioners can take a CGHS card from **any** CGHS city irrespective of where they live, but must mention the city of choice for the wellness centre.
+==== Family members included ====
+  * **Spouse** — included automatically. If the spouse is also a CGHS-covered employee, only one card is held; the other surrenders.
+  * **Dependent children** — sons up to **age 25 OR start of earning, whichever is earlier**; unmarried daughters of any age (until marriage); divorced/widowed daughters in some circumstances; physically/mentally disabled children for life regardless of age.
+  * **Dependent parents** — both parents (or in-laws if the spouse is the breadwinner). The income test: **monthly income from all sources must be below ₹9,000** (last revised 2018 — verify if any 2026 revision is notified). Pension counts as income; rental income counts; dearness relief counts.
+  * **Stepchildren, adopted children, dependent siblings** in restricted cases (must be specifically certified by the head of office).
+==== Contribution (deducted monthly from salary) ====
+The contribution depends on the **Pay Level** under the 7th Central Pay Commission (will become 8th CPC slabs once notified — verify current rates):
+<code>
++-----------------------------+-----------------------------------+
+| Pay Level (7th CPC)         | Monthly contribution               |
++-----------------------------+-----------------------------------+
+| Level 1 to Level 5          | ₹250                               |
+| Level 6                     | ₹450                               |
+| Level 7 to Level 11         | ₹650                               |
+| Level 12 and above          | ₹1,000                             |
++-----------------------------+-----------------------------------+
+| MPs (sitting + former)      | NIL (free)                         |
+| Diplomatic Wing             | As per separate MEA notification   |
++-----------------------------+-----------------------------------+
+</code>
+For **pensioners**, the contribution is a **one-time payment** for lifetime cover, calculated as **10 years × monthly contribution** at the last drawn Pay Level — so anywhere from ₹30,000 (Level 1-5) to ₹1.20 lakh (Level 12 and above). Pensioners with a disability or those above 80 years often get fee waivers — check the latest OM on cghs.gov.in.
+===== Where to apply =====
+  * **Online** — **https://cghs.gov.in** → "Online Beneficiary Registration" (the most reliable route since 2023; all approvals are tracked digitally).
+  * **Offline at your CGHS Wellness Centre** — pick up Form CGHS-A (for serving employees) or Form CGHS-P (for pensioners), submit with documents.
+  * **Office of the Additional Director, CGHS** for your city — every CGHS city has one. Delhi has multiple zonal Add. Directors (R.K. Puram, Mayur Vihar, Karol Bagh, etc.) — apply at the one in your jurisdiction.
+===== Step-by-step process =====
+==== Step 1 — Confirm your CGHS city + Pay Level ====
+Before logging in, confirm:
+  * Your office is in a CGHS-covered city — search cghs.gov.in → "CGHS Cities".
+  * Your **Pay Level** as per your last salary slip — this decides your contribution and your **ward entitlement** (general ward / semi-private / private — Pay Level 12+ gets private).
+  * Your DDO's name, designation, and office address — you'll need these for the attestation.
+==== Step 2 — Open the Online Beneficiary Registration form ====
+  * Go to **https://cghs.gov.in**.
+  * Click **"Online Beneficiary Registration"**.
+  * Choose category — **"Serving Employee"** (or "Pensioner" / "MP" / "Freedom Fighter" as applicable).
+  * Enter your **office name + DDO code** + **Pay Level** + **city of posting**.
+The system creates a **temporary registration number** — note it down.
+==== Step 3 — Fill personal + family details ====
+  * Personal: name (as in service record), DOB, designation, mobile, email.
+  * Spouse: name, DOB, marriage date, Aadhaar.
+  * Each child: name, DOB, school/college, Aadhaar (if available), photo.
+  * Each parent (if claiming dependency): name, DOB, address, **declared monthly income from all sources** (must be below ₹9,000), Aadhaar, photo.
+==== Step 4 — Upload documents ====
+For the serving employee:
+  * **Office order** confirming current posting + Pay Level (issued by your Establishment section).
+  * **Aadhaar** of self + each family member.
+  * **Recent passport-size photo** of self + each family member.
+  * **Marriage certificate** for spouse.
+  * **Birth certificates** for children.
+  * **Income proof of parents** (PPO of pension, bank statement, declaration on stamp paper) if claiming dependency.
+  * Cancelled cheque (for any future medical advance / reimbursement credit).
+==== Step 5 — Submit + take printout for office attestation ====
+  * Click "Submit". The system generates a **PDF of the filled form** with your temporary registration number.
+  * Print **two copies**.
+  * Hand both to your **DDO/Head of Office**. The DDO verifies your Pay Level, signs, stamps, and forwards to the **Pay & Accounts Officer (PAO)** for **contribution-deduction sanction** (so the ₹250-1,000 starts being deducted from your salary from the next pay cycle).
+  * The PAO returns the attested form to the Add. Director, CGHS of your city — either by post or by digital upload through the BHARATKOSH/PFMS interface.
+==== Step 6 — Beneficiary ID generation ====
+  * Once the Add. Director, CGHS receives the attested form, a **CGHS Beneficiary ID (BID)** is generated for you and each family member (separate sub-IDs for each member, with the same primary BID).
+  * You'll get an SMS/email. You can now **immediately use OPD at any Wellness Centre** by quoting the BID — even before the physical card arrives. Carry your office ID + a print of the BID confirmation as backup.
+==== Step 7 — Smart card delivery ====
+  * The **physical CGHS Smart Card** (chip-enabled) is printed at the central card-printing facility and despatched by Speed Post to your registered address.
+  * Standard delivery: **30-60 days** from BID generation. Pensioners may take longer (up to 90 days).
+  * Each family member gets a separate physical card.
+  * If undelivered after 60 days, raise a grievance on cghs.gov.in (and read the "If stuck" section below).
+==== Step 8 — First use ====
+  * **OPD:** Walk into your assigned Wellness Centre (the one closest to your home — you can change later). Show the smart card to the receptionist; the doctor will issue a prescription; medicines are dispensed free at the WC pharmacy.
+  * **IPD (planned hospitalisation):** Get a referral from your WC Medical Officer to a CGHS-empanelled hospital. Carry the referral + smart card to the hospital — admitted **cashless**.
+  * **IPD (emergency):** Walk into any CGHS-empanelled hospital with the smart card, get admitted; the hospital obtains post-facto referral from CGHS.
+  * **Non-empanelled hospital (emergency only):** Pay first, then claim reimbursement — see [[:claim-cghs-reimbursement-2026|Claim CGHS reimbursement]].
+===== Sample contribution + benefit + fee table =====
+<code>
++--------------------------------+--------------------------------------+
+| Application form (online)      | NIL                                  |
++--------------------------------+--------------------------------------+
+| Monthly contribution           | ₹250 / ₹450 / ₹650 / ₹1,000          |
+| (deducted from salary)         | (Pay Level 1-5 / 6 / 7-11 / 12+)     |
++--------------------------------+--------------------------------------+
+| Pensioner one-time contribution| 10 × monthly slab = ₹30,000 to       |
+| (lifetime card)                | ₹1.20 lakh (waived for some senior + |
+|                                | divyangjan categories — verify OM)   |
++--------------------------------+--------------------------------------+
+| OPD at Wellness Centre         | FREE — consultation + medicines      |
++--------------------------------+--------------------------------------+
+| OPD reimbursement (non-WC)     | Up to ₹1,500 / month (basic)         |
++--------------------------------+--------------------------------------+
+| IPD at empanelled hospital     | CASHLESS (subject to ward            |
+|                                | entitlement: General / Semi-private /|
+|                                | Private)                             |
++--------------------------------+--------------------------------------+
+| IPD non-empanelled (emergency) | Reimbursed at CGHS-approved rates    |
++--------------------------------+--------------------------------------+
+| Smart card replacement (lost)  | ₹50 per card                         |
++--------------------------------+--------------------------------------+
+| RTI to PIO CGHS                | ₹10 by IPO. BPL = free.              |
++--------------------------------+--------------------------------------+
+</code>
+===== Common reasons your CGHS application gets stuck =====
+  * **Office attestation delay (DDO / PAO)** — the single biggest bottleneck. The DDO is busy and the PAO sometimes loses files between sections. The fix: a polite written reminder citing CGHS OM dated 18.07.2018 which prescribes a **15-day SLA** for PAO sanction.
+  * **Aadhaar mismatch** — typically a typo in the spouse's name on Aadhaar vs marriage certificate, or DOB difference of a few days for an older parent. Update Aadhaar at a UIDAI Seva Kendra first; then re-upload.
+  * **Parent fails income test** — if mother is a pensioner with monthly pension > ₹9,000 (after dearness relief), she is **not** eligible as dependent. You can declare only one parent (the lower-income one) and absorb the other through a separate insurance.
+  * **Spouse re-marriage** — a divorced/widowed daughter who re-marries loses CGHS cover; family must update.
+  * **Dependent child crosses 25** — son's CGHS lapses on the day he turns 25 OR starts earning above the threshold (currently ~₹15,000/month) — whichever is earlier. Daughters: until marriage.
+  * **Empanelment of preferred hospital pending** — your favourite hospital may not be on the CGHS panel for your city. The OPD/IPD card still works at all empanelled hospitals — but at a non-empanelled one you'll have to use reimbursement (with all its rate-cap pain).
+  * **Smart card chip damaged / unreadable** — apply for replacement at the WC; ₹50 fee; takes 15-30 days.
+  * **Wellness Centre changed without intimation** — when you move from one CGHS city to another, you must apply for **CGHS card transfer**. Until the transfer is approved, the new WC will deny OPD.
+===== If stuck — the escalation ladder =====
+==== Rung 1 — your CGHS Wellness Centre Officer ====
+  * Walk into the WC nearest your home. Ask for the **Chief Medical Officer (CMO) in-charge**.
+  * Best for: card not delivered, OPD denied, medicine shortage, doctor unavailability.
+==== Rung 2 — Office of the Additional Director, CGHS (city) ====
+  * Each CGHS city has an Add. Director CGHS — addresses at cghs.gov.in → "CGHS Cities".
+  * Submit a written grievance with your BID and a copy of your registration acknowledgement.
+  * SLA: response in 21 days.
+==== Rung 3 — Director CGHS, Headquarters, Nirman Bhavan, New Delhi ====
+  * **Director, CGHS HQ**, R. No. 545-A, Nirman Bhavan, Maulana Azad Road, New Delhi - 110011.
+  * For systemic issues: empanelment delays, contribution rate disputes, ward entitlement clarifications.
+==== Rung 4 — CGHS Beneficiary Grievance Cell + CPGRAMS ====
+  * **CGHS Grievance** — cghs.gov.in → "Citizen Corner" → "Grievance".
+  * **CPGRAMS** — https://pgportal.gov.in → Ministry **"Health and Family Welfare"** → Sub-org **"CGHS"**. 30-day SLA, escalates to a Joint Secretary.
+==== Rung 5 — Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) ====
+  * For serving central government employees, **CAT** has jurisdiction over service-condition disputes including CGHS denial of dependent status, ward entitlement, etc.
+  * Filing fee ₹50. No advocate required for OAs by the employee.
+==== Rung 6 — Right to Information (RTI) ====
+CGHS is a **public authority** under §2(h) of the RTI Act 2005 — every Add. Director, CGHS, the Director CGHS HQ, and the CGHS PIO at the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare are PIOs.
+**RTI helps here when:**
+  * Your smart card was attested by the PAO 60+ days ago and still not delivered — RTI to PIO Add. Director CGHS for the **despatch register entry**, **Speed Post AWB number**, and the dealing officer's name.
+  * Your dependent parent's claim was rejected without a written reason — RTI for the **calculation sheet showing the income test** and the order of rejection.
+  * Your IPD reimbursement was reduced ("rate capped") — RTI for the **CGHS rate list** applicable to that procedure on that date.
+  * Your contribution deduction is showing in salary slip but BID is not yet generated — RTI to the PAO + Add. Director CGHS for the **file movement note-sheet**.
+See the dedicated guide: [[:claim-cghs-reimbursement-2026|RTI for CGHS card delay — copy-ready template]].
+**RTI does NOT help here when:**
+  * You want CGHS to admit your sister-in-law as a dependent — she is **not** in the CGHS family definition; RTI cannot rewrite the rules.
+  * You want a non-empanelled hospital reimbursed at full bill rate — CGHS pays only at its rate list; RTI will give you the rate list, not a higher rate.
+  * You want a private ward when your Pay Level entitles you to general ward — RTI can confirm the entitlement but not change it. To change ward entitlement you must wait for a Pay Level upgrade.
+  * You want CGHS to extend cover to your son above 25 (and earning) — extension is allowed only for permanently disabled children; RTI cannot grant it.
+  * You filed the registration last week and want status — wait at least 30 days. PIOs treat premature RTIs as fishing expeditions.
+===== FAQs =====
+**Q. I'm posted in a non-CGHS city (say, Shimla). Can I still apply?**\\
+No — CGHS is geo-restricted to the 80 CGHS cities. In a non-CGHS city you are covered by **CS(MA) Rules 1944** for medical reimbursement; rates are similar but cashless empanelment is much smaller.
+**Q. I'm a contractual employee in a Ministry. Am I eligible?**\\
+Generally no — CGHS is for regular central government employees. Some autonomous bodies have separate health schemes (e.g., AIIMS staff). Contractual staff often get a CGHS-style scheme via their consultancy contract — verify with HR.
+**Q. My wife works in a state government job — she also has state health cover. Can both run together?**\\
+Yes, both schemes can run in parallel, but you cannot **claim the same expense twice**. CGHS-covered family members must declare their other-scheme cover at the time of claim.
+**Q. Can I add my mother-in-law if I'm the breadwinner?**\\
+Yes — if your wife's parents are **wholly dependent on you** (and her father has no income / passed away), they qualify as your dependents subject to the ₹9,000 income cap on the mother-in-law.
+**Q. My pensioner father wants a CGHS card. He's 78. Does he have to pay the ₹30,000-1.20L lump sum?**\\
+There are partial fee waivers for pensioners above 80 years and for divyangjan pensioners — check the latest OM on cghs.gov.in. Below 80, the full one-time contribution is payable but only **once for life**.
+**Q. The Apollo near my house is empanelled but only for cardiac. I need orthopaedic surgery. What now?**\\
+CGHS empanelment is **specialty-wise**. The hospital will deny cashless for orthopaedic. Either pick another empanelled hospital with orthopaedic empanelment OR pay first and seek reimbursement at CGHS rates (rate-capped, so out-of-pocket likely).
+**Q. Can I use my CGHS smart card while travelling outside my CGHS city — say, on official tour to Mumbai while I'm posted in Delhi?**\\
+Yes — for OPD at any CGHS Wellness Centre across India, and for IPD at any empanelled hospital across India. Carry the smart card.
+**Q. I retired last year — when does my serving-employee CGHS card stop?**\\
+On the date of retirement. You must convert to a **pensioner CGHS card** by paying the lump sum within 30 days of retirement; there's a 30-day "no break" grace if you apply quickly. If you delay beyond 30 days, you must pay arrears and may face a coverage gap.
+**Q. I lost my CGHS smart card while travelling. What now?**\\
+File a written report at your WC; pay ₹50 for replacement; new card in 15-30 days. Meanwhile your BID continues to work — carry the BID printout + Aadhaar.
+===== Related on RTI Wiki =====
+  * [[:claim-cghs-reimbursement-2026|Claim CGHS reimbursement — for non-empanelled / emergency expenses]]
+  * [[:apply-ayushman-bharat-abha-card-2026|Apply Ayushman Bharat ABHA Health ID — for digital health records]]
+  * [[:claim-cghs-reimbursement-2026|RTI for CGHS card delay — copy-ready template]]
+  * [[:rti-for-beginners|RTI in 12 simple steps — for first-time filers]]
+  * [[:helplines:start|All Indian government helplines — one master directory]]
+  * [[:forms:start|RTI forms + state-wise fee chart]]
+//Last reviewed: 26 April 2026 by RTI Wiki editorial team. CGHS contribution slabs and ward entitlements are revised periodically by MoHFW Office Memoranda — verify current rates on cghs.gov.in or write to admin@bighelpers.in if you spot a stale figure.//
+{{tag>cghs cghs-card central-government-employee mohfw cghs-wellness-centre cghs-smart-card pay-level-contribution dependent-parents cghs-empanelled-hospital pensioner-cghs add-director-cghs rti-cghs citizen-guide help-first 2026}}

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