Aadhaar Update! EPFO Update On Aadhaar: Check New List Of Valid Documents For Date Of Birth Proof Here

The Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has issued a circular saying Aadhaar Card will no longer be accepted as a valid document for being considered as Date of Birth (DOB) Proof.

In a circular dated January 16, 2024, the EPFO said that Aadhaar has been removed from the list of acceptable documents for proof of date of birth (DoB) for correction, and updation purposes. The removal of Aadhaar as proof of date of birth by EPFO seems to be aligning with the UIDAI's directive and the legal stance on Aadhaar's limitations. EPFO members and entities involved in date-of-birth corrections should be aware of this latest EPFO update.

The circular on "Removal of Aadhaar from the list of acceptable documents as a Date of Birth Proof," states that a letter has been received from the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) wherein it has been stated that the use of Aadhaar as a DoB needs to be deleted from the list of acceptable documents.

"In this connection, a letter has been received from UIDAI (copy attached), wherein it has been stated that use of Aadhaar, as a proof of DoB needs to be deleted from the list of acceptable documents," the EPFO Circular issued on 16 January 2024.

As Aadhaar is no longer a valid document for Date Of Birth Proof, here is the updated list of other documents that can be submitted as DoB proof in EPFO. One should note that all below-mentioned documents should have the correct name and date of birth.

-Birth Certificate
-Marksheet of any government board or university
- Passport
-PAN number
-School leaving certificate
-School transfer certificate
-Medical certificate issued by a Civil Surgeon
-Government pension
-Mediclaim certificate
-Domicile certificate will also be valid for update/correction.

The circular was in reference to a previous UIDAI circular that had directed that "An Aadhaar number can be used for establishing the identity of an individual subject to authentication and thereby, per .ce it's not a proof of date of birth...".

What did UIDAI say about Aadhaar for DOB proof?
In a circular dated December 22, 2023, the UIDAI said, "It is pertinent to mention that, an Aadhaar is a unique 12-digit ID issued to a resident after he/she undergoes the enrolment process by submitting his/her demographic and biometric information. Once a resident is assigned an Aadhaar number, it can be used to authenticate the resident through various modes as prescribed under the Aadhaar Act, 2016 and the Regulations framed there under. At the time of enrolment/updation, UIDAI records DoB as claimed by the resident, on the basis of the documents submitted by them, as specified under the list of supporting documents for Aadhaar enrolment, provided on the UIDAI website (https://uidai.gov.in/images/commdoc/26 JAN 2023 Aadhaar List of documents English.pdf). Further, it is to be noted that Regulations 10(4) and 19A of the Aadhaar (Enrolment and Update) Regulations, 2016, mention that verification of the enrolment and update data shall be performed as provided in Schedule III."

"In this regard, attention is drawn towards Office Memorandum dated 20.12.2018 issued by MeitY through UIDAI, wherein it has been stated that "An Aadhaar number can he used for establishing identity of an individual subject to authentication and thereby, per .ce its not a proof of dale of birth" (copy enclosed). This aspect of the Aadhaar Act, 2016 has been reiterated/highlighted/stressed upon by different High Courts in recent judgments. The most recent one is given by the Hon'ble High Court of Bombay, in the case of State of Maharashtra V/s Unique Identification Authority of India And Ors. dated 28.07.2023 (copy enclosed). In view of the above, it is required that the use of Aadhaar, as a proof of DoB needs to be deleted from the list of acceptable documents," said the UIDAI circular.