RTI for Aadhaar Update Delay: What Records You Can Ask For

Use this guide if (a) your Aadhaar update or correction has been stuck for weeks despite an SRN; (b) you keep getting “biometric mismatch” rejections; © the enrolment centre lost your documents; (d) the address update was rejected without reasons; (e) you suspect your Aadhaar has been deactivated or duplicated and want the audit trail.

• RTI Act 2005, Sections 6 and 7(1).
• Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act 2016, Sections 28, 29, 33, restrictions on disclosure of identity information.
• Aadhaar (Enrolment and Update) Regulations 2016.
• UIDAI's RTI Manual under Section 4(1)(b).
• Supreme Court ruling, KS Puttaswamy v Union of India (2017 and 2018), privacy and proportionality.

The Central Information Commission has held in Lalit Mohan Rai v UIDAI (CIC/UIDAI/2018) and similar matters that procedural records of an applicant's own enrolment and update are disclosable to the applicant, while third-party Aadhaar data and biometric identifiers remain exempt.

1. Identify the right PIO. UIDAI's CPIO at the Headquarters in New Delhi or the Regional Office (eg Bangalore, Delhi, Lucknow, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chandigarh, Guwahati, Ranchi, Manesar) under whose jurisdiction the enrolment centre falls.
2. Pin the request. SRN, Enrolment Identification Number (EID), date of update, enrolment centre code.
3. Use the body's own redressal first. myAadhaar portal grievance, 1947 helpline, and the email aadhaar.update@uidai.gov.in.
4. Draft the RTI asking for SRN log, date received, present status, reason for rejection, biometric exception entry, document verification trail, and the enrolment centre file.
5. Pay ₹10 fee through online RTI or IPO and submit.
6. Wait 30 days then escalate.

To,
The Central Public Information Officer,
Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI)
[Address of HQ or Regional Office]

Subject: RTI under Section 6 regarding update Service Request Number [SRN], EID [number], date [DD/MM/YYYY]

Sir / Madam,

I, [Full name], a citizen of India, holder of Aadhaar [last 4 digits only], request the following under the RTI Act 2005. Fee of Rs. 10 paid by IPO / online.

In respect of my update request with SRN [number], EID [number], dated [DD/MM/YYYY], submitted at enrolment centre [code, name, address]:

1. Date and time of receipt of my update request at the Central Identities Data Repository.
2. Present status of the request.
3. If rejected, the reason recorded in writing for the rejection.
4. If "biometric mismatch", the entry in the biometric exception register and the operator log.
5. Documents accepted and documents rejected as proof of address / identity / date of birth, with the reason for rejection.
6. Date on which a fresh attempt was logged, if any.
7. Reason recorded for delay beyond the UIDAI norm of 30 days for an update.
8. Standard Operating Procedure for [the type of update] in 2026.
9. Any communication issued to me from your office, including SMS / email log.
10. Present location of my update file and the present custodian.

I confirm that I am the data principal whose record is concerned. I do not seek any third-party Aadhaar data. I invoke Section 10 (severability) and acknowledge Section 8(1)(j) and Section 33 of the Aadhaar Act 2016 to the extent applicable to others. I undertake to pay further fee under Section 7(3).

Yours faithfully,
[Signature, name, date]

• Asking for someone else's Aadhaar data. Strictly exempt under Section 28, 29 and 33 of the Aadhaar Act 2016 and Section 8(1)(j) of the RTI Act.
• Filing with the enrolment centre. Most enrolment centres are run by Registrars (banks, post offices, state agencies). The PIO is at UIDAI, not at the centre.
• Missing the SRN. Without the SRN, the PIO cannot trace your request. Get it from the receipt or the myAadhaar portal first.
• Mixing Aadhaar update and PAN seeding. They are different, PAN-Aadhaar linking is at the Income Tax department; UIDAI is for the Aadhaar record itself.
• Asking for the biometric template. UIDAI does not share biometric templates of any individual. Ask only for the audit log, not the template itself.

• No reply in 30 days → First Appeal under Section 19(1) to the FAA at UIDAI.
• Parallel grievance → myAadhaar portal, 1947 helpline.
• CIC second appeal under Section 19(3).
• Writ in High Court for fundamental right impacted by deactivation of Aadhaar (entitlements, banking, ration).

No, not for your own record. Section 8(1)(j) protects third-party data, not the applicant's own. The CIC has consistently directed UIDAI to share the applicant's own update trail.

UIDAI norm is 30 days for online updates and a similar window for centre-based updates. Anything beyond is a delay.

No. Biometric templates are out of bounds even to the data principal under the Aadhaar Act 2016. RTI cannot override the Act on this point.

Ask for the deactivation order, the reason, and the de-activation register entry. Many deactivations turn out to be data quality flags that reverse on representation.

Yes, but the redressal route is also a Section 33 inquiry to UIDAI; the RTI runs in parallel for the audit trail.

Yes. UIDAI is integrated with rtionline.gov.in.

Yes, UIDAI maintains operator IDs and audit logs. The operator ID is not personal information; it is professional information.

• UIDAI: uidai.gov.in
• myAadhaar portal: myaadhaar.uidai.gov.in
• RTI Online: rtionline.gov.in
• Aadhaar Act 2016: uidai.gov.in
• UIDAI grievance helpline: 1947

Last reviewed: 9 May 2026.

• AI RTI Drafter
• Guide hub
• How to file an RTI application
• RTI for PAN correction and refund
• RTI vs complaint
• RTI for missing government file
• First Appeal procedure