Sample RTI for stuck passport — citizen guide 2026

A passport is the official travel document issued by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) under the Passports Act, 1967. Applications are processed by Regional Passport Offices (RPOs) through Passport Seva Kendras (PSKs) and Post Office PSKs (POPSKs). Police verification (PVR) is a parallel process by the local Superintendent / Commissioner of Police. Both must complete before a passport can be printed and dispatched.

• Founding statute — Passports Act, 1967.
• Operational rules — Passports Rules, 1980 (Rule 5 prescribes the verification window: 21 days for normal, 7 days for Tatkal).
• MEA Citizen Charter — sets the 30-day SLA for passport delivery (post-PVR).
• Online portal — passportindia.gov.in (Passport Seva, run by MEA + TCS).
• Public-authority status under RTI — the MEA, every RPO, every PSK / POPSK, and every state Police Commissionerate / SP office is a public authority under §2(h) of the Right to Information Act, 2005.
• Jurisprudence — *Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India* (1978) 1 SCC 248: the right to travel abroad is part of personal liberty under Article 21. A passport cannot be impounded or refused arbitrarily.

1. PVR officer has not visited your address — the police constable assigned to your locality has not done the in-person verification. Most common silent stall.
2. “Unable to trace” tag falsely applied — neighbour gave wrong info (“doesn't stay here”) or the PVR officer didn't ring the bell. The application sits in this state until challenged.
3. Address proof mismatch — Aadhaar address differs from current address; rental agreement not registered; electricity bill in landlord's name.
4. Adverse remark — past FIR, arrest, court case, or family-court matter. PVR may flag without disclosing reason.
5. Police-verification report (PVR) not dispatched — verification is done but the report lies in the police office's outbox.
6. Print queue backlog — RPO has approved everything; passport is in the print queue at RPO's central printing facility.
7. Tatkal queue jumped to normal — your Tatkal slot was downgraded due to documentation issues. SLA reverts to 30 days.
8. Re-issue / page-out / lost passport delay — these have separate verification flows and are slower than fresh issue.

1. Step 1 — Locate your application file number. From your Passport Seva account at passportindia.gov.in, copy the 15-digit File Number / ARN. Without it, RPO cannot pull your file.
2. Step 2 — Identify your jurisdictional RPO. It is the RPO that received your PSK application. Listed at the top of your appointment slip.
3. Step 3 — Identify your verifying police office. Your application's address determines this — usually the District Superintendent of Police (rural) or the Commissioner of Police (urban / metro).
4. Step 4 — Draft two parallel RTIs. RPO + Police. Each ₹10 IPO. Use the sample below for RPO and the police verification RTI sample for the police side.
5. Step 5 — Send by Speed Post (AD). India Post Speed Post with Acknowledgement Due. Keep both AD cards as filing-date proof.
6. Step 6 — Wait 30 days. Both PIOs must reply by Day 30 under §7(1) of the RTI Act. Silence = deemed refusal under §7(2).
7. Step 7 — Use the reply to unstick. If the reply identifies a specific officer / file location / pending step, take that information to the corresponding office in person.
8. Step 8 — Escalate if needed. §19(1) First Appeal in 30 days. §19(3) Second Appeal in 90 days. Use the First Appeal Builder.

• Application receipt / appointment slip with the 15-digit file number
• Photo ID (Aadhaar / PAN / Voter ID) — for the citizenship test under §6(1); not required to be attached to the application
• ₹10 IPO (or court-fee stamp / DD / online receipt). BPL certificate if claiming §7(5) exemption
• Address-proof copies (rent agreement / utility bill / Aadhaar) — useful if PVR officer cited an address issue
• Speed Post (AD) receipt as filing-date proof

To,
The Public Information Officer (PIO),
Regional Passport Office,
[City], [State]

Subject: Application under Section 6(1) of the Right to Information Act, 2005 -
       Status of passport application, File Number [your 15-digit file number]

Date: [DD Month YYYY]

Sir / Madam,

1. I, [Your full name], a citizen of India residing at [your full address],
   am filing this application under Section 6(1) of the Right to Information
   Act, 2005, seeking the following records concerning my passport application:

       File Number       : [15-digit File Number / ARN]
       Date of submission : [DD/MM/YYYY]
       Type              : Fresh / Re-issue / Tatkal / Lost / Damaged
       PSK / POPSK        : [Name of Passport Seva Kendra]

2. Information sought (please supply certified copies and not opinions):

   (a) Current status of my passport application as on date of reply, with the
       date of last action and the date when each subsequent step is expected.

   (b) Certified copy of the file noting recording every officer's action
       on my file since submission.

   (c) Status of police verification (PVR): date sent to police, date received
       back at RPO (if received), officer dispatching the PVR.

   (d) Reasons for delay (if statutory window of 30 days has been exceeded
       for normal / 7 days for Tatkal).

   (e) Expected date of printing and dispatch of the passport booklet.

   (f) If any adverse remark is on file, the certified copy of the remark
       and the supporting evidence relied upon.

   (g) Name, designation, room number and contact of the officer currently
       holding my file.

   (h) Grievance Register entries pertaining to my application (if any).

   (i) Name and contact of the First Appellate Authority for this RPO.

3. Fee: An Indian Postal Order (IPO) of Rs. 10 in favour of "Accounts Officer,
   Regional Passport Office [City]" is enclosed.

4. Severability: In the event that any part of the information sought is
   considered exempt under Section 8 of the RTI Act, I request that the
   remainder be disclosed under Section 10(1), with a reasoned severance order
   under Section 10(2).

5. Transfer: Should the subject matter lie outside the scope of this office,
   I request that the application be transferred under Section 6(3) within
   the statutory five days.

6. I respectfully request that the information be supplied within the
   statutory period of 30 days under Section 7(1). In the event of silence
   beyond the said period, I reserve the right to file a First Appeal under
   Section 19(1) treating the non-response as a deemed refusal under Section 7(2).

Mode of receiving information: please send to my registered email
[admin@bighelpers.in] AND postal address. Soft copy preferred.

Thank you.

Yours faithfully,


([Your full name])

Applicant details:
Name    : [Your full name]
Address : [Your full postal address with PIN]
Phone   : [Your phone]
Email   : [Your email]

Encl.: 1. Indian Postal Order of Rs. 10 favouring Accounts Officer, RPO [City].
       2. Photocopy of passport application receipt (15-digit file number).

To,
The Public Information Officer (PIO),
Office of the Commissioner of Police / Superintendent of Police,
[District / City], [State]

Subject: Application under Section 6(1) of the RTI Act, 2005 -
       Status of police verification for passport application

Date: [DD Month YYYY]

Sir / Madam,

1. I, [Your full name], citizen of India at [address], am filing this
   application under Section 6(1) of the RTI Act, 2005 seeking the
   following records:

       Passport file number : [15-digit File Number]
       Date verification was sent to police : [DD/MM/YYYY] (from RPO records)
       PSK / POPSK          : [Name]

2. Information sought:

   (a) Current status of police verification on my file, as on date of reply.
   (b) Certified copy of the file noting + verification report (or interim).
   (c) Name + designation of constable / officer assigned to my address.
   (d) Date of field visit (if any), with the dispatch register entry.
   (e) If any "unable to trace" tag has been applied, the basis on which it
       was applied (with neighbour's statement / address-clarification request).
   (f) Date of expected dispatch of the verification report back to RPO.
   (g) Any adverse remark on file, with supporting evidence.
   (h) Name + contact of the FAA for this office.

3. Fee: Rs. 10 IPO in favour of Accounts Officer, [Office name] enclosed.

4. Severance + transfer per Section 10(1), 10(2) and Section 6(3); reply
   within 30 days per Section 7(1).

[Signature, name, full address, phone, email, date.]

1. Visit passportindia.gov.in → “Passport Office Locator” or “RPO Information”.
2. Enter your state + district.
3. The list shows: RPO name + address + Passport Officer name + phone + email.

(Other RPOs: Lucknow, Jaipur, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Patna, Trivandrum, Cochin, Surat, Goa, Chandigarh, Dehradun, Guwahati, Shimla, Srinagar, Ranchi, Raipur, Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam, Madurai, Coimbatore, Tiruchirappalli, Mangalore, Vellore, Panaji, Amritsar, Jammu, Imphal, Agartala, Aizawl, Gangtok, Itanagar, Kohima, Shillong, Port Blair.)

• Filing only to one office — RPO + Police are TWO public authorities. File parallel RTIs to both.
• No file number — without the 15-digit file number, RPO + Police cannot pull your file.
• Vague queries — say “the noting on file as on [date]”, not “what's happening”. Be specific.
• No fee — non-acceptance memo. Always include the IPO / DD / online receipt.
• Smart quotes / WhatsApp formatting — many PIOs reject “fancy” applications. Plain text is best.
• Sending to wrong police office — verify your jurisdictional Police Station + Sub-Divisional Officer. Use the police-station locator on your state police website.
• Asking the verifying constable directly — the RTI must go through the PIO, not the field officer. The PIO will route internally under §5(4).

Normal: 30 days post-PVR (typically 6-10 weeks total). Tatkal: 7 working days. Re-issue: 30 days. Lost / damaged: 60 days. The MEA Citizen Charter is at passportindia.gov.in.

File RTI to RPO immediately. Tatkal applications get post-issue PVR — the passport must be printed and dispatched first. If 7 working days have lapsed without printing, RTI breaks the silence.

File an RTI invoking §7(1) proviso — “*where the information sought concerns the life or liberty of a person, the same shall be provided within 48 hours*”. Travel for an immediate visa interview can constitute “liberty”; document the urgency (interview letter, return-ticket reservation, employment offer). Parallel: write to the MEA grievance cell at passportindia.gov.in.

Yes. RPOs are central public authorities. File at rtionline.gov.in → Ministry of External Affairs → Passport. Pay ₹10 online. The 30-day §7(1) clock applies the same way.

Yes, indirectly. File RTI for: (a) the date of his / her field visit, (b) the next-step procedure, © the SHO's contact. In parallel file a complaint with the State Vigilance Commission / Lokayukta + State Police's Anti-Corruption Bureau. Once you have the RTI reply, you have official records to back the complaint.

Yes, if you retain Indian citizenship. NRI status does not affect RTI eligibility — it is citizenship that matters. The reply will come to your foreign address (you may need to enclose international postage / pre-paid envelope, or use email-only reply via rtionline.gov.in).

No. OCI (Overseas Citizen of India) is not Indian citizenship — RTI does not apply. PIO cards are also not citizenship. For OCI matters, use the MEA grievance route or the consular post in your country.

File RTI for: (a) date + time of the visit, (b) name of the constable, © the noting that “unable to trace” or “address not verifiable”, (d) basis of the noting (neighbour statement / building-society log). With the RTI reply, take an address-clarification application to the SHO with proof (rent agreement, neighbour-affidavit, society NOC).

RTI gets you (a) the FIR copy, (b) the closure / charge-sheet status, © the police “no objection” status. With these you can either await closure or file in the appropriate court for an exemption order. The Mohinder Singh Gill principle (administrative orders must record reasons) applies — RTI surfaces the reasons.

File a §19(1) First Appeal to the FAA (typically the Joint Passport Officer). Free of cost. Use our First Appeal Builder — it pre-loads citations to *Bhagat Singh v. CIC* (2007) and *Adesh Kumar v. UoI* (2014).

For fresh / re-issue normal, no — PVR is mandatory before printing. For Tatkal, yes — passport prints first, PVR happens after dispatch. If your Tatkal printing is delayed, the issue is internal RPO queueing, not PVR.

These are re-issue category. PVR rules vary: minor changes (page-out) skip PVR; major changes (address, name) usually retain PVR. Use the AI RTI Drafter which knows the right RPO + likely sub-route.

• Full RTI for police verification guide
• All sample RTI letters index
• Sample RTI for stuck PF withdrawal
• Sample RTI for land-mutation
• Sample RTI for MPLAD funds

• Passport delay — CIC, 2017
• Jasbir Singh v. RPO Chandigarh — Punjab and Haryana HC, 2020
• Khalid v. CP Delhi — CIC, 2017
• Sushil Kumar v. RPO Bhopal — CIC, 2018
• Subhash Agarwal v. RPO Delhi — CIC, 2019
• Maneka Gandhi v. UoI (1978) — right to travel under Article 21
• Full passport-delay case-law cluster (21 rulings)
• Bhagat Singh v. CIC — procedural objections cannot defeat RTI
• Adesh Kumar v. UoI — irrelevance is not a ground

• 🪄 AI RTI Drafter — free, 60 seconds, auto-detects your RPO + police jurisdiction
• 🎤 AwaazRTI — voice in 11 Indian languages
• ⚖ First Appeal Builder — for §19(1) appeals
• 📅 Timeline Tracker — Day 30 + Day 60 alerts
• 📬 PIO Reply Checker — analyse evasive replies
• 🌐 Citizen 360 — PIN code → all civic services in your area
• 🔖 Citation Formatter — for case-law citations in your appeal

• RTI for police verification — full citizen guide
• RTI for money and schemes
• National helplines for grievances — including the MEA grievance cell
• Apply for Aadhaar address update — if address mismatch is the bottleneck

• Right to Information Act, 2005 — Sections 6, 7, 8, 10, 19, 20. Full text on RTI Wiki.
• Passports Act, 1967 — IndiaCode.
• Passports Rules, 1980 — Rule 5 prescribes PVR window: 21 days normal, 7 days Tatkal.
• Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India (1978) 1 SCC 248 — right to travel as part of Article 21 personal liberty.
• Mohinder Singh Gill v. Chief Election Commissioner (1978) 1 SCC 405 — administrative orders must record reasons.
• Bhagat Singh v. CIC (Delhi HC, 2007) — procedural objections cannot defeat RTI.
• Adesh Kumar v. UoI (Delhi HC, 2014) — irrelevance is not a ground for refusal.
• passportindia.gov.in — official Passport Seva portal (MEA + TCS).
• mea.gov.in — Ministry of External Affairs.
• rtionline.gov.in — central RTI online portal.
• MEA Passport Citizen Charter — Standard SLAs for passport services.

• All sample RTI letters
• How to file an RTI application
• How to file a §19(1) First Appeal
• 10 fundamental facts every RTI applicant should know
• RTI case-law database (300+)
• Master directory of landmark RTI rulings
• State-wise RTI fees
• State RTI rules
• RTI Act, 2005 — full text

Last reviewed: 4 May 2026 by RTI Wiki editorial team. Passport SLAs verified against MEA Citizen Charter + passportindia.gov.in. Real-life case (Naveen, Pune) used with consent. Statute citations verified against IndiaCode.