mPassport Seva app review: Apply for passport from anywhere but too many bugs for now

• 
  

• READ LATER

This is not a change that we can call momentous. You could earlier apply for passport from your home earlier too. Although, to do so you would have to sit in front of the computer or laptop to fill the lengthy passport application form on the Passport Seva website. And then you had to login to the website for everything -- be it to get an appointment with passport office, make payment, track application status or any other service. But with the launch of the mPassport Seva app it gets better now, even if there is still room for improvement.

With the launch of the mPassport Seva app, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has made the process to apply for passport easier. You can now apply for a fresh passport via the mPassport Seva mobile application from anywhere, at any time.

The mPassport Seva app was launched last week and it is available for download on both Android phones as well as the iPhone. Within just two days of launch, the mPassport Seva app received around 1 million downloads on Google Play store, tweeted Sushma Swaraj. According to an official press release issued by MEA, the key idea behind the launch of mPassport Seva app is to help applicants apply for a passport from anywhere in India.

So over here at the India Today Tech we decided to give the app a spin. Apart from applying for a passport, the mPassport Seva app offers several other services like status tracker, appointment availability, document advisor, fee calculator, locate centre and more. We are going to explain to you how to use the application and whether the app is as helpful as the MEA claims.

REGISTER WITH MPASSPORT SEVA APP

Before applying for a passport, you'll first need to register with the app. To register, open the app, and click on New User Register option. The mPassport Seva requires you to enter some details like nearby Passport office -- which should be according to the present residential address -- name, date of birth, email id, login id, and password. After entering all the information click on the 'submit' option at the end of the page. On clicking the submit button you will get an email on the mentioned email address with a link to activate the account. On clicking the link, you will receive a message stating "your account has been activated successfully". Now, come back to the mPassport Seva app on your phone and login with the login id, password and by solving the captcha. If you are an existing user, open the app and click the Existing User Login option to login.

THE APP IS BUGGY

The login process may take some time. While I initially tried logging into my account, which was pre-registered with the Passport Seva service, I faced an error stating "please correct enter the characters displayed in the picture" again and again (almost 5-6 times). This error occurred even after I entered the correct captcha. I had to close the app, clear the cache to make the app work. This shows that the app is full of bugs and still needs a lot of work.

Another problem that I faced while using the app is that it crashed a lot of times. There was a time when I was in the middle of filling the passport application and the app suddenly cashed. Thankfully I'd saved the form before the app crashed. If in case you don't save it, you will lose all your entered information and will need to fill the form all over again.

HOW TO APPLY FOR A FRESH PASSPORT VIA MPASSPORT SEVA APP

-- Log into your account using the login id, password and by solving captcha.

-- You'll then see three options -- apply for fresh passport/re-issue of passport, apply for police clearance certificate and view saved/submitted applications.

-- To apply for a fresh passport, click on the first option -- apply for fresh passport/re-issue of passport.

--The passport application form is 9-pages long, you'll now need to fill all the required details in the form.

--Ensure that you save each page after filling it, so that your information is saved even if the app crashes in the middle (it happens a lot that crash).

-- After the form has been filled, you'll need to select a passport office. Note that the passport office that you select should be close to the present residential address in the form.

-- On selecting the nearby passport office, the mPassport Seva app will show you the available dates on which you'll need to take a print out of the form and all the required documents to get it verified by the passport officer. I wish there would have been an option to somehow avoid taking the print out given that this is an app and all the records that you submit using it already go to the passport office servers.
-- It is only after the documents have been verified that the police verification process will be initiated.

-- You can click on the Status tracker option on the mPassport Seva app to track your application

-- After the police verification is done, the passport will go for printing and delivered to the present residential address as mentioned in the passport application form.

It is important to note that if you're living away from home, which means your present and permanent address are different, the address that will be printed in the final passport will be the current one. You can, however, get the address changed anytime you want via the mPassport Seva app and by applying for the re-issuing of a new passport.

HOW TO APPLY FOR RE-ISSUE OF PASSPORT

You can apply for re-issue of passport if you want to change address or any other existing personal particulars. Here's how you can do it:

-- Login to your account.

-- Click on Apply for a fresh passport or re-issue passport option.

-- Click on Applying for re-issue of passport option.

-- Select the reason for re-issue.

-- Click on Next option.

-- Fill the nine pages long re-issue form. Ensure you save all details after filling each page.

-- Click on submit application option.

--Then make the payment and chose an appointment date by clicking "Pay and Schedule Appointment" link in the app.

Details about the documents verification and police verification process will be informed to you via an email. You can also check the status of your application via the status tracker option on the app.

OTHER FEATURES OF MPASSPORT SEVA APP

The mPassport Seva app clearly doesn't offer as many services as the Passport Seva website. The mobile app offers only some of the very basic services like status tracker, appointment availability, document advisor, fee calculator, locate centre, change password and annexures/affidavits. The mPassport Seva app lets you check both passport application status and RTI status. To check the application status, you'll need to enter your file number and date of birth. To check RTI status, you'll need to enter the RTI reference number.

APPLY FOR PASSPORT FROM ANYWHERE, IRRESPECTIVE OF PERMANENT ADDRESS

Alongside launching the mPassport Seva app, Sushma Swaraj also made things easy for people like me, who live away from home in a different city due to a job or higher studies. Swaraj said that from now on, an individual can apply for a passport from anywhere in India irrespective of their residential address. Previously, to get a passport done, one had to be present in his/her permanent residential address, but this doesn't apply any longer.

For example, a resident of Kolkata, who is currently residing in New Delhi, will now be able to apply for document verification at a PSK/POPSK under RPO, New Delhi. The applicant will not need to travel all the way back to Kolkata to submit an application for passport at a PSK/POPSK under RPO, Kolkata. The police verification will be conducted in New Delhi, and if only absolute necessary the verification may happen in Kolkata. RPO, New Delhi will print and dispatch the passport at the address specified in the passport application form. All of this can be done with the mPassport app.