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Passport Update: All you need to know about India’s chip-based e-Passports

India chip-based e-Passports 2025: The Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) is an essential component that enables building a strong framework for an e-passport, enables protecting private data, and verifies the accuracy and legitimacy of the biometric and personal information stored on the chip.

By facilitating automated identity verification procedures and simplifying their interactions with immigration authorities, the Indian e-Passport will make travel easier for Indian nationals.

Indian chip-based e-Passport 2025: By facilitating automated identity verification procedures and simplifying their interactions with immigration authorities, the Indian e-Passport will make travel easier for Indian nationals. (Representational image)

To enhance identification and security, the Indian e-passport has been introduced, combining cutting-edge electronic passport technology with conventional paper passports.

The rollout of the e-passport initiative has begun as part of a pilot program alongside the Passport Seva Programme (PSP) Version 2.0, which commenced on April 1, 2024, as reported by the Ministry of External Affairs.

The regional Passport Offices in Nagpur, Bhubaneswar, Jammu, Goa, Shimla, Raipur, Amritsar, Jaipur, Chennai, Hyderabad, Surat, and Ranchi are presently equipped to issue e-passports to Indian citizens, with plans for further expansion.

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On a significant note, the issuance of e-passports in Tamil Nadu started on March 3, 2025, at the Regional Passport Office in Chennai. By March 22, 2025, a total of 20,729 e-passports had already been issued in the state.

All you need to know about e-Passports in India:

The e-Passports in India include an antenna and a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) chip incorporated into an inlay, which makes it easily distinguishable from standard passports due to a distinctive gold-coloured symbol printed beneath the front cover.

The Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) is an essential component that enables building a strong framework for an e-passport, enables protecting private data, and verifies the accuracy and legitimacy of the biometric and personal information stored on the chip.

One of the main benefits of the e-passport is improved data security, which ensures the protection of the integrity of the passport holder’s information and mitigates risks associated with forgery and fraudulent activities like the creation of fake passports during border checks.

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*However, it is important to keep in mind that switching to e-passports is not a prerequisite. All passports issued by the Indian government will remain valid until their respective expiration dates.

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