Aadhaar name correction rejected after marriage or divorce

Reviewed on: 2026-06-12.

Meera Nair married in December and applied on myAadhaar to become Meera Pillai. She uploaded her marriage certificate and paid Rs 50. Two weeks later the request came back rejected: “supporting document not acceptable”. Her certificate named her only as Meera Nair, bride. Nothing on it connected her to the new name Meera Pillai, so the verifier had no proof the two names belong to one person.

That single gap, a document that does not link the old name to the new name, causes most rejections after marriage or divorce. The fix is to submit a proof that shows both names, or a gazette notification, and to resubmit before you burn through UIDAI's lifetime limit of two name updates.

Scan whichever document you use in colour, all four corners visible, text sharp. A blurred or cropped scan gets rejected even when the document is perfect.

1. Read the exact rejection wording in myAadhaar and note your request number (URN or SRN). Do not guess the reason.
2. Pick one document from the table above that genuinely links your old and new names.
3. If you need a gazette notification, apply through the Department of Publication's e-Gazette route or your state gazette. Budget around Rs 1,100 in central gazette fees plus typing or CSC charges, and one to three weeks.
4. Resubmit online through myAadhaar for Rs 50, or book an enrolment centre slot. After one or two online failures, the centre is safer because the operator checks the document in front of you.
5. Save the new request number and the acknowledgement. You will quote it in any grievance or RTI.

Meera's first attempt cost Rs 50 and failed. She then applied for a central gazette notification: Rs 1,100 fee plus Rs 200 at a CSC for drafting, published in 16 days. She resubmitted at an Aadhaar Seva Kendra with the gazette copy and her marriage certificate, paid another Rs 50, and the update was approved in six days. Total: Rs 1,400 and about five weeks. Had her marriage certificate shown both names, the whole thing would have been one Rs 50 request. Ask the marriage registrar to record both names at the time of registration. It is the cheapest favour you can do your future self.

UIDAI allows a name update only twice in a lifetime. Marriage and divorce can use both slots within a few years. So never spend an attempt on a weak document hoping it slips through. If both slots are exhausted and you still need a correction, the route is an exception request through the UIDAI Regional Office with strong documentary proof, similar to the process in our guide on the date of birth correction limit. It is slow. Protect your second slot.

UIDAI is a public authority, so once you have a request number and a rejected status, you can file an RTI asking: the specific reason your request was rejected, the document deficiency recorded by the verifier, and the list of documents UIDAI will accept for your case. The portal's one-line rejection message is often vaguer than the internal noting, and the RTI reply gives you something concrete to fix. File it after one grievance attempt, not as step one. See how to file RTI online and why RTI applications get rejected before you draft. RTI cannot order UIDAI to approve the change, and it cannot issue your marriage certificate or decree. Those come from the registrar and the court.

• Resubmitting the same certificate that just failed, wasting Rs 50 and possibly a lifetime slot.
• Uploading a black-and-white or cropped scan of a valid document.
• Asking for a name format different from what the proof shows, for example adding a middle name the certificate does not carry.
• Forgetting the ripple effect: once Aadhaar is corrected, your bank, PAN and passport names need the same change, or authentication mismatches start elsewhere.
• Losing the request number, which locks you out of grievance and RTI.

Twice in a lifetime. Spelling corrections and full name changes both count against the limit. Plan each attempt as if it were your last.

It works if your new name is simply your first name plus the spouse's surname already printed on the certificate. If your new name differs in any other way, get a gazette notification that states both names.

A certified copy of the divorce decree or a court order is the standard proof. If the decree does not record the maiden name clearly, add a gazette notification.

No. It is the fallback when no single document links the old and new names. Many post-marriage updates go through on the marriage certificate alone.

Yes, each update request carries its own Rs 50 fee, online or at a centre. A rejection does not earn a refund, which is one more reason to fix the document before resubmitting.

Fix the mobile link first at an enrolment centre. Our guide on a delayed mobile number update covers tracking and escalation.

Download your Aadhaar update history, which lists earlier names with dates. See using update history as proof for a bank or court.

Grievance on the UIDAI portal first, then CPGRAMS at pgportal.gov.in, then an RTI for the recorded reason. If the RTI reply is evasive, file a first appeal.

Download the Aadhaar name correction document checklist (PDF).