The Ministry of External Affairs has introduced fresh amendments to the passport rules, including changes to the validity period of passports issued to children under 15 years of age, along with revised fees for various passport-related services, NDTV reported.
Under the newly substituted Sub-Rule (1A) of Rule 12, a 36-page ordinary passport issued to a child below the age of 15 will remain valid for five years from the date of issue, or until the child reaches 18 years of age, whichever comes earlier, according to NDTV.
The amended regulations were signed by Joint Secretary and Chief Passport Officer BS Mubarak and came into effect immediately after being published in the Official Gazette on September 15, NDTV reported.
The latest changes amend the Passports Rules, 1980, which were last updated in June this year. The amendments cover both passport validity provisions for children and the fee structure applicable to different passport services.
The amendments also specify that the fee structure for different passport application categories must follow the revised rates mentioned in Schedule IV of the Passports Rules, 1980, NDTV reported.
The Ministry had earlier revised passport-related fees, with the new rates coming into effect from July 1. The revised charges apply to several services, including fresh passport issuance, renewal and reissue, Tatkaal processing, replacement of lost or damaged passports and Police Clearance Certificates.
For adults, the cost of a 36-page passport under the normal category has increased to Rs 2,500 from the earlier fee of Rs 1,500. Meanwhile, a 60-page passport booklet will now cost Rs 3,500, compared with Rs 2,000 previously, according to NDTV.
The fees for Tatkaal passport services have also gone up. A 36-page passport under the Tatkaal category will now cost Rs 5,000, compared with Rs 3,500 earlier. For a 60-page Tatkaal passport, applicants will have to pay Rs 6,000, up from the previous fee of Rs 4,000.
The cost of replacing a 60-page passport under the Tatkaal category has also increased. Applicants will now have to pay Rs 8,500 for the service, compared with Rs 5,500 earlier, NDTV reported.
For minors, a 36-page fresh passport or reissue under the normal category will now cost Rs 1,750. This is an increase from the earlier fee of Rs 1,000. Under the Tatkaal category, the same 36-page passport service for minors will now cost Rs 3,000.
Despite the overall increase in passport fees, the Ministry has retained certain concessions for specific groups. A 10% discount will continue to be available for fresh passport applications submitted by children below eight years of age and senior citizens above 60 years.
However, according to NDTV, this 10% concession will not be applicable to passport reissue cases.
The changes therefore affect both passport validity provisions and the cost of several passport-related services. Parents applying for passports for children below 15 years will now need to consider the revised validity rule, while applicants across age groups will need to check the updated fee applicable to their particular passport service and category.