How Can NRIs, OCI Cardholders and Foreigners Get Aadhaar (Aadhar)?

Which group are you?

The rules depend on your citizenship, where you live and which address you want on the Aadhaar. Answer a few questions to find your route.

Who can get an Aadhaar if you live abroad or aren't Indian?

• Residents must have spent 182 days or more in India in the 12 months before applying.
• NRIs (Indian citizens living abroad) are exempt from the 182-day rule (UIDAI notification of 20 Sep 2019). They can enrol as soon as they arrive in India.
• Foreign nationals can enrol after 182 days in India. UIDAI names OCI cardholders, Long Term Visa (LTV) holders, Nepal and Bhutan citizens, and visa holders. They enrol at Aadhaar Seva Kendras.
• Email is compulsory for NRIs and foreign nationals. For residents it is optional.

Enrolment is in person only; there is no online or postal enrolment. Since 1 December 2022, adults can enrol only at designated centres, such as Aadhaar Seva Kendras. Your original documents are scanned and handed back.

How do the rules differ for NRIs, OCI cardholders and foreigners?

Children's forms for NRIs: Form 3 (age 5 to under 18) and Form 5 (under 5) with an Indian address; Form 4 and Form 6 with a foreign address.

Which Aadhaar form do you fill in?

UIDAI's 2026 enrolment and update forms are split by age, by NRI or resident status, and by where your address is. The same form is used for enrolment and for updates; you tick one. The form itself is free.

• On the form you tick Resident Indian or NRI. By signing, an NRI declares they hold a valid Indian passport.
• A wrong declaration can get the Aadhaar deactivated and lead to legal action.
• Your name is written as in the identity document, without titles such as Mr, Dr or Er, and without aliases.
• The children's forms for Indians (Forms 3 to 6) are signed by the mother, father or legal guardian. For a child under 5, only a photo is taken. A child born on or after 1 Oct 2023 needs a birth certificate as date-of-birth proof.

Field-by-field help: Aadhaar form: field-by-field.

Which documents does an NRI need?

• The passport must be valid. For NRIs, no other identity document is accepted, and there is no introducer route.
• Indian address proof: any address proof on UIDAI's list works, such as a recent electricity or water bill or a rent agreement. See Documents required for Aadhaar, or test one with the Aadhaar document checker.
• Bring originals. They are scanned at the centre and handed back. In our experience, centres don't accept a DigiLocker copy on your phone.
• Email address: compulsory for NRIs. Bring one you check regularly.
• PAN is not accepted as any proof for Aadhaar.

How does an NRI enrol on a visit to India?

1. Check that you're ready before you fly

   You need a valid Indian passport and an email address. If you want an Indian address on the Aadhaar, also bring an accepted Indian address proof in your name.

2. Book a slot at a designated centre

   Adults enrol only at designated centres, such as Aadhaar Seva Kendras. Booking is free at bookappointment.uidai.gov.in, and you can book at most 2 appointments a month. The OTP for booking goes to the mobile number you enter, so use an Indian number if you have one. See Book an Aadhaar appointment.

3. Fill in Form 1 or Form 2

   Tick NRI. Use Form 1 for an Indian address, Form 2 for the foreign address in your passport. Write your email address; it is compulsory.

   Give an Indian mobile number if you can. UIDAI's forms say a non-Indian number gets no SMS, and most online services need an OTP.

4. Give your photo, fingerprints and iris scans

   For anyone aged 5 or more, all biometrics are taken. Read every detail on the screen before the operator finishes.

5. Keep the acknowledgement slip

   The slip shows your 28-digit enrolment ID (EID). UIDAI's standard is up to 180 days for an adult's Aadhaar (30 days for under-18s), so you may be back abroad when it is ready.

   You'll know it worked when you have the slip with the EID. Photograph it before you travel.

The Aadhaar letter is sent by India Post. For Forms 2 and 4, UIDAI says sending the letter to a foreign address may carry a charge that it notifies. With your EID and an OTP on your registered mobile, you can download the e-Aadhaar instead. See Download e-Aadhaar.

Aadhaar Seva Kendras usually open 7 days a week, 9:30 am to 5:30 pm, and close on about 10 holidays a year. Check your centre before you go. More: Aadhaar centres: what to expect.

How do OCI cardholders and foreign nationals enrol?

Forms 7 and 8 ask for your nationality and your valid foreign passport (number, expiry date and date of entry into India), plus one of these:

• OCI card: number, issue date and e-FRRO number.
• Long Term Visa: number, issue date and expiry date.
• Indian visa: type, issue date, expiry date and e-FRRO number.

Nepal and Bhutan citizens may give two identity documents instead. Email is compulsory for every foreign national.

• Foreign nationals can change their date of birth only to fix an operator's mistake.
• Fees are the same as for everyone: enrolment is free; a demographic update is ₹75 and a biometric update ₹125 for adults.

Can you use a foreign mobile number, and how do OTPs work abroad?

Almost every online Aadhaar service sends a 6-digit OTP by SMS to your registered mobile: downloading e-Aadhaar, logging in to myAadhaar, updating your address online and using the Aadhaar App.

• Foreign number: the mobile number is optional on the form, but UIDAI's 2026 forms say a non-Indian mobile number gets no SMS. So it can't receive Aadhaar OTPs.
• What works: an Indian mobile number that is active and can receive SMS while you are abroad.
• e-Aadhaar by email OTP: UIDAI announced in 2019 that NRIs would be able to download e-Aadhaar with an OTP on email. We could not confirm that this works today, so don't rely on it.
• Lost Aadhaar number: Retrieve EID/UID asks for your name plus your registered mobile or email. In our experience, if an email is registered, the OTP has usually come by email and the number was found, but this is not guaranteed.

• In the Aadhaar App, a mobile update needs an OTP on the new number (and on the old one too, if a different number is registered in the app), plus a face check. If you no longer have the old number, only a centre can change it.
• Email update in the Aadhaar App is free until 31 Dec 2026, then ₹75. You still need to log in with an OTP on your registered mobile.

Full steps: Update the mobile number in Aadhaar.

What can you do from abroad, and what needs a visit to India?

You already have an Aadhaar and live abroad: what should you know?

• Became a foreign citizen? UIDAI says an Indian who has become a foreign citizen does not need to "convert" their Aadhaar for now.
• PAN–Aadhaar link: non-residents (under the Income-tax Act) are exempt from linking. If you link voluntarily, the ₹1,000 late fee applies. Name, date of birth and gender must match in both. See Link Aadhaar with PAN, and on the PAN side, PAN for NRIs and foreigners.
• Voting: as reported by secondary sources, NRIs register as overseas voters with Form 6A.
• Locking while away: UIDAI's lock page lists "staying outside India for long" as one reason to lock your Aadhaar. Before a full Aadhaar (UID) lock, generate and save your VID. While it is locked, no OTP or bank KYC works, and in our experience unlocking can be hard when UIDAI's servers are down. For everyday protection, a biometric lock is often the safer choice. Both need your registered mobile. See Lock Aadhaar and biometrics.

What goes wrong for NRIs, and how do you fix it?

Bottom line

NRIs enrol free on arrival in India with a valid Indian passport and an email address. OCI cardholders and other foreign nationals enrol at an Aadhaar Seva Kendra after 182 days. Register an Indian mobile number, because a foreign one gets no OTPs. For help, UIDAI's free helpline is 1947.