What are the common passport related terms?

Glossary of Passport Related Terms

• Annexures

  1. Annexure ­ is an additional form to be submitted with a supporting attachment.

  2. Annexure A is an affidavit of Date of Birth to be submitted by illiterate applicants.

  3. Annexure B is the Identity Certificate.

  4. Annexure C is a passport application annexure required while applying for the Passport of a Minor Child. It contains the Affidavit by either parent, provided that the parents are currently separated but not legally divorced.

  5. Annexure D is the Affidavit for women applicants who wish to change their names on the passport post marriage.

  6. Annexure E is the Sworn Affidavit for a change in name or Deed Poll.

  7. Annexure F is the Verification Certificate required for applications submitted through the Tatkaal scheme.

  8. Annexure G is for the issuance of a minor passport by the parent or legal guardian. A declaration is given when the consent of one of the parents is not available.

  9. Annexure H is the declaration by both the parents for a minor's passport.

  10. Annexure I is the Standard Affidavit.

  11. Annexure J is the Specimen Verification Certificate.

  12. Annexure K is the specimen affidavit required for the (re)issue of passports in specific cases like passports obtained before marriage by married applicants who are unable to submit the marriage certificate. It also serves as a joint affidavit submitted by couples for any reason pertaining to marital disharmony or separation without formal divorce or desertion by the spouse, etc.

  13. Annexure L is the specimen affidavit for passport applications in lieu of lost or stolen or damaged passports.

  14. Annexure M is the NOC (No Objection Certificate).

  15. Annexure N is the PI (Prior Intimation letter).

• Ministry of External Affairs (MoEA/MEA) is the Ministry of the Indian Government which is responsible for conducting all functions and governing all official, governmental, diplomatic, ambassadorial and consular matters which are related to the Indian International Policy. It is the highest authority for all passport-related issues.

• CPV stands for Consulate, Passport and Visa Division of the Ministry of External Affairs. As the name suggests, this unit handles all transactions and activities related to consulates, passports, and visas. It is the governing authority of the CPO.

• CPO stands for Central Passport Organization. Its primary functions include governance as well as the execution of all procedures related to issuing passports to citizens of India. The CPO is an integral part of MEA's (Ministry of External Affairs) CPV division. It governs the activities of the RPOs, PSKs, Indian Missions, Posts, etc. in the disbursal of passports, Visas and consular services to Indians in India and abroad.

• CPIO stands for Central Public Information Officer. It is the point of contact for the RTI applicants. A specific person is assigned to this post, the list of which is available online along with the contact details.

• Diplomatic is a term which is generally used for referring to the diplomatic or official passport. It also refers to the ambassadorial, consular or political attributes of a passport holder, a policy, or a circumstance.

• DOB stands for Date Of Birth.

• Dual Nationality refers to people who have citizenship in more than one country and thus hold more than one passport.

• ECNR stands for Emigration Check Not Required. The ECNR stamp on passports exempts the passport holder from going through an emigration check. All passports issued since January 2007 without any notation regarding ECR are considered as ECNR. However, passports issued before January 2007 without an indication or notation are treated as ECR.

• ECR stands for Emigration Check Required. The ECR stamp on passports informs officials to conduct an Emigration Check.

• Fresh Passport is issued only once to every Indian Citizen. If an Indian citizen has ever held a passport in the past, they will be given a new passport under Passport Re-Issue.

• Grievance refers to any complaint or difficulty pertaining to passports that are faced by the public.

• LOC Permit stands for Line of Control permit. The RPOs at Srinagar and Jammu issue LoC Permits to the residents of Jammu and Kashmir. This document is for those who wish to visit their close relatives residing in PAK (Pakistan Administered Kashmir) across the LoC (Line of Control). This document is issued to people strictly for valid and verified reasons.

• NOC stands for No Objection Certificate. NOCs are required for several reasons from various parties during the passport application, depending upon the case. This document confirms that a party of official, authoritative or legal standing has no objection to the applicant obtaining a passport.

• Official refers to the Official Passport. It also refers to the governmental, corporate, political or official aspects or the attributes of a passport holder, a policy, or a circumstance.

• Passport is an official document issued by a country's government which certifies that passport holder is a citizen of the issuing country and permits the person for international travel. It serves as proof of identity and address.

• PI stands for Prior Intimation. It refers to the Prior Intimation Letter which is required for applications of Diplomatic or Official Passports. It is an attachment to be submitted with Annexure N0.

• PSP stands for Passport Seva Project. It is an effort by the Ministry of External Affairs. It aims to optimize the efficiency and maximize the capacity of issuing passports to Indian citizens.

• Passport Validity is a timeframe within which the passport remains valid and can be used for identification purposes and for international travel. The passport loses its value after the date of expiry.

• Postal dispatch refers to when the passport is dispatched to the Indian Postal service by the RPO to be delivered to the applicant.

• Re-Issue a passport happens when the Passport Office issues another passport to an applicant who was a passport holder at some point. A re-issue happens if the existing passport expires or is lost/stolen/damaged, requires a modification in personal particulars or is misprinted.

• RPO stands for Regional Passport Offices that are present all over India. These are the passport issuing authorities as well as a point of contact between the public and the government. Passport applications are typically submitted at RPOs for the government to verify and approve each individual application. Applicants also bring grievances to the RPO in all matters related to the passport.

• PSK stands for Passport Seva Kendra. These are smaller offices which act as branches of the RPOs. PSKs disburse most of the passport-related services to the public. The RPOs govern and control the activities of the PSKs.

• PCC stands for Police Clearance Certificate which is obtained after a successful Police verification (PV) and it reflects a positive police verification report.

• PIA stands for Passport Issuing Authority. The Indian PIA is the CPO.

• PV stands for Police Verification. It is the process by which the local police station of the applicant's residential address conducts an investigation. The process involves a police officer visiting the applicant at the residential address mentioned in the passport application form to conduct an identity verification. The police station also checks its reports to determine whether the individual has any pending court case from past criminal or illegal activities. If the applicant has no history of a misdemeanor or pending legal cases, the police station generates a positive PVR.

• PVR stands for Police Verification Report that is generated by the police station after assessment of the applicant and his/her past records by the investigating officer. Depending upon the criminal history or pending legal cases involving the applicant, the PVR can be positive or adverse. Pre-Police Verification happens when the RPO asks the police department to first conduct a background check and identity verification of an applicant before issuing the passport. Post-Police Verification is when these checks are conducted after the issuance of the passport. No Police Verification is for some special cases in which police verification is not required for issuing the passport.

• Photograph refers to a passport-size photo required for passport applications. The photo is clicked at the PSK for all online applications.

• Types of Visas issued to foreign nationals: Indian Government issues Visas to foreigners depending upon the purpose of their visit. These are the different types of Visas:

  1. D - Diplomat.

  2. O - Official.

  3. UD - United Nations Official.

  4. TR - Transit.

  5. X - Entry.

  6. T - Tourist.

  7. E - Employment.

  8. P - Project.

  9. S - Student.

  10. J - Journalist.

  11. B - Business.

  12. M - Missionary.

  13. X - Mountaineering.

  14. C - Conference, Seminar, Meeting.

  15. R - Research.

  16. MED - Medical.

  17. MEDX - Medical Attendant.

  18. U - Universal.

• RTI stands for Right To Information and it refers to the RTI Act.