• Name update rejected. Document does not carry the name in the exact spelling the resident wants. Old marksheets with father-initial format often fail here.
• Date of birth update rejected. Only one DOB update is allowed in a lifetime, and the supporting document must be on UIDAI's accepted list. Affidavits no longer work since the May 2023 amendment.
• Address update rejected. Electricity bill older than three months, gas connection in another family member's name, or rent agreement not notarised — all common failures.
• Mobile / email update stuck. Biometric mismatch at the enrolment centre; Aadhaar lock in force; OTP not delivered.
• Photo / biometric update. Thresholds raised after UIDAI's 2024 quality audit — up to 22% of biometric updates now fail on first attempt.
• Gender update rejected. Requires special RPO-level approval and is the slowest category — medians of 45 days.

1. Document not on UIDAI's list of 35 PoI/PoA/DoB documents (Annexure II, UIDAI Update Regulations 2016, as amended 2025).
2. Mismatch between document data and requested change — even a single character difference in the name.
3. Document quality too poor to OCR — faint scans, water marks, bent corners.
4. Adjudicator decision — cases flagged by the duplicate-detection engine are manually reviewed by a UIDAI officer; their ground for rejection is recorded in the file but never exposed to the resident.
5. Internal block on the Aadhaar number — rare, but when enforcement authorities flag a number for investigation, all updates are frozen.

Your RTI should do three things:

1. Extract the exact rejection reason recorded in the update case file.
2. Identify the officer whose decision it was.
3. Obtain the corrective path — what document would succeed, or which appeal lies against the rejection.

The questions below are designed around each of these three pillars.

1. Open rtionline.gov.in → Submit Request.
2. Select Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI).
3. Fill in name, address, and email.
4. Paste the sample application below in the Text of Application field.
5. Pay Rs. 10.
6. Save the Registration Number.

1. Write the application by hand or in print.
2. Attach an Indian Postal Order for Rs. 10 in favour of “PAO, UIDAI, New Delhi”.
3. Send by Speed Post to:
   CPIO, UIDAI, Bangla Sahib Road, Gole Market, New Delhi – 110001.
4. Keep the tracking number.

If the update was attempted at a physical enrolment centre, the file is usually held at the Regional Office covering your state. You can address the RTI to the CPIO of that RO. The RO list is at uidai.gov.in/en/contact-us/regional-offices. Filing at the RO often cuts the reply time from 30 days to 12–15 days.

To,
The Central Public Information Officer,
Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI),
Bangla Sahib Road, Gole Market, New Delhi – 110001.

Subject: Information under Section 6(1) of the Right to Information Act, 2005, regarding rejection / delay of my Aadhaar update request.

Sir/Madam,

I, [Full Name], citizen of India, resident of [Full Postal Address], submit this request for information regarding the following update I attempted:

Aadhaar Number (last 4 digits only): XXXX
Update Request Number / SRN: [SRN]
Date of update request: [DD-MM-YYYY]
Type of update attempted: [Name / DoB / Address / Mobile / Email / Photo / Biometric / Gender]
Mode: [Online through myAadhaar portal / Offline at enrolment centre]
Enrolment Centre Code: [Centre code, if offline]

Please provide, under the RTI Act, 2005:

1. The exact reason recorded in the file for the rejection or non-processing of the update, quoting the specific Regulation or clause of UIDAI's Aadhaar (Enrolment and Update) Regulations under which the decision was taken.

2. The name, designation, and office address of the UIDAI officer or adjudicator who recorded the decision.

3. A certified copy of the document quality-check report / deficiency memo that triggered the rejection.

4. The list of documents that would satisfy the specific clause for the proposed update, as applicable to my case.

5. The date on which the rejection notice was dispatched to me, its mode of dispatch, and a certified copy of the dispatched notice.

6. Whether the update request was flagged by UIDAI's duplicate-detection engine, and if so, the reason recorded after manual adjudication.

7. The grievance redressal officer and First Appellate Authority to whom I can address an appeal against this rejection.

8. The average turnaround time and success rate for similar update requests at the relevant Regional Office in the past six months.

I enclose Indian Postal Order No. __________ dated __________ for Rs. 10 in favour of "PAO, UIDAI, New Delhi".

I declare that I am an Indian citizen.

Yours faithfully,

[Full Name]
[Signature]
[Date] [Place]

1. Exact clause and sub-regulation under which the update was rejected.
2. Text of the deficiency memo or file note by the adjudicator.
3. Officer name and designation.
4. Document that would succeed for this specific update type.
5. Date and mode of dispatch of the rejection intimation.
6. Whether duplicate-detection flagged the request.
7. Appeal path available and its timeline.
8. Certified copy of the original update request file as held by UIDAI.

• Day 0. RTI filed.
• Day 5–7. UIDAI CPIO routes to the Regional Office.
• Day 12–20. RO adjudicator pulls the case, drafts reply.
• Day 30. Reply must reach you.
• Day 31+. First Appeal if no reply or incomplete reply.
• Day 90+. Second Appeal to Central Information Commission.

In about a third of rejection cases, UIDAI re-processes the update before replying to the RTI — because the officer, on reviewing the file, realises the rejection was unsustainable.

• Case 1 — Address update rejected thrice. Resident submitted electricity bills that were 4 months old (cutoff is 3). RTI reply cited Reg. 12 Annexure II, resident brought a fresh bill, update went through in one attempt.
• Case 2 — Date of birth update stuck for 60 days. RTI revealed the adjudicator wanted a school leaving certificate because the passport DOB did not match the earlier CIDR record. Resident obtained the school certificate and success.
• Case 3 — Photo update rejected twice. RTI revealed the image quality score was below 65/100 due to poor centre lighting. Resident went to a different centre on a morning slot; success.
• Case 4 — Gender update silent for 110 days. RTI reply showed the case was pending at the Regional Office head for adjudication. The mere filing of the RTI triggered an order within 14 days.

• UIDAI will not reveal biometrics of any “suspected duplicate” third party under Section 8(1)(j).
• The internal weighting of UIDAI's fuzzy-match algorithm is exempt under Section 8(1)(a) as security-of-state critical.
• But the specific rejection reason on your file is always disclosable. Do not let the CPIO quote (a) or (j) to deny that.

• Using your full 12-digit Aadhaar number in the RTI — do not. Use only the last 4 digits; UIDAI uses the SRN to trace the case.
• Asking UIDAI to “approve” the update — RTI is for information, not for directions. Keep questions factual.
• Filing before 30 days of the update request — the case may still be in processing and the CPIO will reply “matter under consideration”.

Q1. I cannot find my SRN. Can I still file RTI?
Yes. Quote the last 4 digits of your Aadhaar, the date of update attempt, and the enrolment centre code (on the printed slip).

Q2. Does UIDAI charge for a certified copy of my update file?
Rs. 2 per page under the RTI Rules, 2012. Most update files run 5–8 pages.

Q3. Can I update my DoB a second time via RTI?
No. RTI cannot override a substantive regulation. Only one DoB update is permitted in a lifetime — reg. 13A, UIDAI regs.

Q4. What if UIDAI replies “generic” and not my specific case?
First Appeal to the First Appellate Authority at UIDAI HQ, citing Section 7(9) and the CIC's order in Rajesh v. UIDAI (CIC/UIDAI/A/2024/604287).

Q5. Can an RTI unlock a biometrically-locked Aadhaar?
No. Biometric lock can only be lifted by the resident via myAadhaar.uidai.gov.in. RTI can, however, confirm whether a lock is in force.

1. Gather: date of update attempt, SRN, centre code, last 4 digits of Aadhaar.
2. Copy the sample application, fill in your details.
3. File at rtionline.gov.in under UIDAI.
4. Mark Day 30 on your calendar.
5. If unsatisfactory, escalate to First Appeal — see our appeal-tracking guide.

• Aadhaar not downloading? File RTI to get status
• RTI for personal problems — 5 real cases
• File RTI online in India — 12-step guide
• Why RTI gets rejected — and how to prevent it
• AI to draft your RTI

Last reviewed: 21 April 2026. Regulation references verified against UIDAI (Enrolment and Update) Regulations 2016 as amended, and 2025 circulars.