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Can Bank Passbook Be Used as Address Proof for Passport Services? In 2015, Ministry of External Affairs said that as per the existing provisions, Passbook/ Statement of running bank account of Public Sector Banks is accepted as one of the valid documents for proof of address for submitting a Passport application.
The Ministry said that it has been receiving references for inclusion of photo passbook issued by the Scheduled Private Indian Banks as well as Regional Rural Banks in addition to Scheduled Public Sector Banks.
The matter was examined in the Ministry and it has been decided that henceforth photo passbooks of the following categories of banks authorized by the Reserve Bank of India may be accepted as proof of address and photo identity: (a) Scheduled Public Sector Banks;(b) Scheduled Private Sector Indian Banks; and(c) Regional Rural Banks.
In 2021, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had again confirmed that a photo passbook of a running bank account can be used as a valid proof of address for passport services in India.
According to the Office Memorandum issued by the Ministry’s Passport Seva Project (PSP) Division on March 3, 2021, photo passbooks issued by Scheduled Public Sector Banks, Scheduled Private Sector Indian Banks and Regional Rural Banks are accepted as one of the valid documents for proof of address while providing passport services.
The Ministry referred to the provisions of the Passport Manual, 2020 and an earlier Office Memorandum dated February 19, 2015, which already allowed the use of photo passbooks of eligible banks as proof of address.
The Ministry said it had received requests from newly opened banks to include their names in the indicative list of eligible banks and to allow their photo passbooks to be used for passport services. Following this, the indicative list of banks given in Appendix-7 of the Passport Manual 2020 was revised.
The memorandum also stated that the Reserve Bank of India’s website may be consulted in case of any doubt regarding the addition or deletion of the name of a Scheduled Public Sector Bank, Scheduled Private Sector Indian Bank or Regional Rural Bank from the list.
So, Yes, a photo passbook of a running bank account can be used as a valid address proof for Indian passport services.
