Hyderabad: To obtain passports under the Tatkal (or fast track) scheme, a letter from an IAS, IPS or Group 1 officer is no longer required. Instead, applicants must have an Aadhaar number or enrolment number, a self-declaration document and any two identification documents of the 12 listed.
The passport will be processed and issued within three days, but the police verification will be carried out after the passport has been dispatched, unlike in the earlier system.
Regional Passport Officer, E. Vishnu Vardhan Reddy, said that applicants seeking passports under Tatkal must submit their 12-digit Aadhaar card number or 28-digit Aadhaar enrolment ID printed on the slip issued by the UDIA while applying for the Aadhaar card.
“In addition, applicants must submit a self-declaration letter prescribed under annexure-E of the Passport Rules-1980 along with any two identity proofs out of 12 IDs listed out by the ministry. This is apart from a fee of Rs 3,500.
The new facility is called ‘Out of turn issue of Passport under Tatkal Scheme’ and has come into force from January 11, after the MEA issued a notification.
The ministry of external affairs has also introduced another facility called ‘Out of turn issue of fresh passport’ under the normal scheme, without paying any additional tatkal fee.
Under this, the passport will be issued within a week after paying a fee of Rs 1,500, the RPO said.
