A quick-reference FAQ on India's Right to Information Act, 2005 — written for applicants, Public Information Officers, First Appellate Authorities, and anyone researching the Act. Current with the 14 November 2025 amendment to Section 8(1)(j) via the DPDP Rules, 2025. For the underlying articles, follow the links.

The Right to Information Act, 2005 (Act No. 22 of 2005) gives every citizen of India the right to request information held by a public authority. It repeals the 1923 Official Secrets Act culture of default secrecy and replaces it with a rule of default disclosure. See the full text of the Act and the section-by-section summary.

Only a citizen of India may file an RTI application under Section 3. Companies, NGOs, and foreign nationals cannot file under the Act, though their citizen-directors or representatives can. See Citizenship under the RTI Act.

Three routes. Online through rtionline.gov.in (Central Government) — fastest, Rs 10 by card or UPI. By post with a hand-written or printed application and a Rs 10 Indian Postal Order. In person at the public authority's counter with the fee in cash. See How to File RTI Online in India — 2026 step-by-step.

Rs 10 for the Central Government under the Right to Information (Regulation of Fee and Cost) Rules, 2005. First appeal is free. Copies cost Rs 2 per page if the information runs to many pages. BPL applicants pay no fee with a valid certificate. States may prescribe their own fees under Section 27 — see RTI Rules.

Thirty days from the date the application is received under Section 7(1). Forty-eight hours where life or liberty is at stake. Forty days where a third party has been notified under Section 11. Silence beyond the deadline is a deemed refusal under Section 7(2).

Yes. Under Article 350 of the Constitution and Section 6(1) of the Act, you may file in any Scheduled language. Central authorities accept English and Hindi. State authorities accept the State's official language as well. The Public Information Officer must provide reasonable assistance if the applicant cannot write.

No. Section 6(2) expressly says the applicant need not give any reason. The only details needed are the applicant's name, address, and the specific information sought. Your purpose is irrelevant to the Officer's duty to respond.

Ask for documents, not explanations. Name the file number, the date, the period, and the specific office. Number each question. Confine each query to a single sub-paragraph. For a full walk-through see Why RTI Applications Get Rejected — and How to Avoid It.

• Why questions (“Why was my claim rejected?”) — reframe as “please provide the file noting on claim X”.
• Opinions (“Is this fair?”) — the Act does not require officers to express views.
• Bulk sweeps (“All files for twenty years”) — invites a Section 7(9) refusal for disproportionate diversion of resources.
• Third-party personal data about someone else — Section 8(1)(j) applies.

See Template: first RTI application for a clean format.

Name the document category and the period (e.g., “certified copy of all order sheets in my service record between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2025”). The PIO is required under Section 7(9) to render reasonable assistance in identifying records. If truly unsure, file with the most proximate authority; the Officer transfers under Section 6(3) within five days.

Section 8(1) lists ten grounds of exemption: sovereignty and integrity, contempt of court, breach of parliamentary privilege, commercial confidence, fiduciary relationship, foreign government, life or safety, investigation or prosecution, cabinet papers, and personal information. See Grounds for rejection — concept note and Justification for denial.

The Digital Personal Data Protection Rules, 2025 (notified 14 November 2025) substituted Section 8(1)(j) via Section 44(3) of the DPDP Act, 2023. The earlier proviso (information that could not be denied to Parliament cannot be denied to a citizen) has been removed. The public-interest override now runs only through Section 8(2). See DPDP Rules, 2025 — the amendment to Section 8(1)(j) and PIO reply after DPDP Rules, 2025.

Yes, but only on the narrow ground in Section 7(9) that compliance would disproportionately divert the resources of the public authority. The remedy is to split the request into multiple narrower applications, each tied to a specific record. The Officer may also offer inspection rather than copies.

Yes. Section 2(i) of the Act defines “record” to include file notings. The position was consolidated by the Supreme Court and by CBSE v. Aditya Bandopadhyay (2011). Notings written in the file are as disclosable as any other record. See File notings under RTI.

Where the information relates to a third party supplied in confidence, the PIO must follow Section 11: give the third party notice, hear the objection within ten days, and then decide in writing on the public interest. The procedure is mandatory — skipping it is itself grounds for appeal. See Third party under RTI and Template: third party notice.

File a first appeal under Section 19(1) within thirty days of the Officer's reply or the deemed refusal. There is no fee at the Central Government level. Address the appeal to the officer senior to the Public Information Officer in the same public authority. Use Template: first appeal.

File a second appeal under Section 19(3) to the Central Information Commission at cic.gov.in (for Central matters) or the relevant State Information Commission, within ninety days of the First Appellate Authority's order — or of the date on which the order was due. See Template: second appeal.

Under Sections 18, 19, and 20, the Commission can summon witnesses, examine records, impose costs on the public authority, and impose a penalty on the Public Information Officer under Section 20 — Rs 250 per day of delay, up to Rs 25,000, plus departmental action on record. The order is binding under Section 19(7).

Yes, under Section 18, for specific failures such as a refusal to receive the application, non-appointment of a PIO, or malafide action. A Section 18 complaint is different from a Section 19 appeal — the Commission may pass binding orders under either. See Complaint under Section 18.

Respond in thirty days (forty-eight hours for life/liberty, forty days for third-party matters). Every denial needs a specific Section 8 clause and a reason on record under Section 7(8). Silence equals refusal plus personal liability under Section 20. See Guide for PIOs and Template: standard PIO reply.

To test the PIO's order against the Act, not to protect the PIO. Decide within thirty days (extendable to forty-five with written reasons). Pass a speaking order addressing each item refused. See Guide for FAAs and Template: FAA speaking order.

Start with the Act, current text as amended and the section-by-section summary. For jurisprudence, see the landmark decisions library organised by section. For recent shifts, read A decade of change 2015 to 2025.

The Act applies to “public authorities” as defined in Section 2(h) — bodies owned, controlled, or substantially financed by the State, or constituted by law. Purely private bodies are outside the Act. The Supreme Court's Thalappalam (2013) narrowed “substantially financed”. See Public authority and Substantially financed.

In 2013 the Central Information Commission held that six national political parties are public authorities. The parties have not complied. The question of enforcement remains open. See A decade of change for the current position.

The DPDP Act, 2023 (in force for Section 44(3) from 14 November 2025) substituted Section 8(1)(j) of the RTI Act to align “personal information” with the DPDP definition. The RTI Act remains the source of the right; the DPDP framework tightens the test for personal-data disclosure. Section 8(2) of the RTI Act (public-interest override) still operates. See DPDP Rules, 2025: the amendment.

• The Right to Information Act, 2005 — current text.
• RTI Act, 2005 — summary, sections, and notes.
• How to File RTI Online in India — 2026 step-by-step.
• Why RTI Applications Get Rejected — and How to Avoid It.
• Guide for applicants.
• Templates — first RTI, first appeal, second appeal, PIO replies.
• Case law library.
• DPDP Rules, 2025 — the amendment.

1. The Right to Information Act, 2005 (No. 22 of 2005), Sections 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 18, 19, 20.
2. The Right to Information (Regulation of Fee and Cost) Rules, 2005.
3. The Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (No. 22 of 2023), Section 44(3).
4. The Digital Personal Data Protection Rules, 2025, notified 14 November 2025.
5. Central Board of Secondary Education v. Aditya Bandopadhyay, (2011) 8 SCC 497.
6. Thalappalam Service Cooperative Bank Ltd. v. State of Kerala, (2013) 16 SCC 82.
7. Girish Ramchandra Deshpande v. Central Information Commissioner, (2013) 1 SCC 212.

19 April 2026