How to Apply for Senior Citizen Card
Overview
- According to a 2016 report by the Ministry for Statistics and Program Implementation, India’s senior citizen population stands at almost 104 million, which is about 8.5% of the population above 60 years of age. This considerable percentage calls for initiatives that ease the senior citizens’ financial burden, benefits that add to their convenience and assist them in a considerate manner.
- One such initiative is the Senior Citizen ID Card which provides unique benefits to citizens above the age of 60. Apart from allowing senior citizens to avail various government and private schemes, it also has a person’s necessary details like blood group, emergency contact numbers, allergies, and their medication details printed.
About Senior citizen card
- The Social Welfare Department provides recognized proof for the elderly and aged people to encourage and give access to many discounts, concessions, and priority services from government, private and public companies, and commercial establishments.
- Besides enjoying their golden years by spending time with family, senior citizens enjoy the different benefits for their convenience and financial burdens from this card.
- The population of senior citizens in India has been steadily growing due to improved health standards, longevity, and strides taken in the improvement of medical amenities. Besides getting to enjoy your golden years and spending time with family, senior citizens in India enjoy a variety of benefits that add to their convenience, ease their financial burdens, and assist them in a considerate, systematic way. The Government of India provides several benefits that can be availed by using an identity card called the Senior Citizen ID card.
How to Get Your Senior Citizen Card
To apply for a Senior Citizen ID card in India, simply fill out the application form along with the following documents: Proof of age, proof of name, proof of address, doctor's certificate, 3 recent passport size photographs, and INR 50. The completed form and documents must be submitted online or in-person to an authorized center in your state/city. For more information, please visit the official government website of the state you reside in.
Benefits Of Having Senior Citizen Card
The benefits for senior citizens can be divided into four broad categories:
Travel
Railways: Senior citizens can enjoy 40-50% concession on railway tickets. Separate counters or queues are available for booking tickets.
Airways: Select airlines offer up to 50% discount on domestic flights in the economy class.
Finance
Income Tax: Depending on the income slabs, senior citizens can pay fewer taxes than the rest of the country.
Banks offer an extra 0.5% interest rate on fixed deposits.
Citizens above the age of 65 also get a 100% exemption from the state professional taxes.
The post office also offers a 9% interest in the Post Office Investment Schemes.
A lot of banks also offer priority services, higher returns on investments, and door to door verification of documents.
Health
Free treatment at government hospitals and discounted treatment at private hospitals.
Other Benefits
Priority hearing: Senior citizens get priority hearing dates at the high court combined with a faster response time.
Reduced phone charges: Senior citizens applying for MTNL and BSNL connections get priority installation, and registration charges are waived off for them. They also receive a 25% discount on their MTNL monthly rental charges.
Old age homes also offer services at a nominal fee.
More straightforward passport application: The mandatory police verification for senior citizens, depending on their health condition and letter issued by children living or studying abroad, is done after the issuance of the passport instead of earlier.
Senior Citizen Identity Card
The Government of India provides various facilities for its Citizens. Special attention is always provided to the senior citizens of the Country, and it has resulted in the National Capital along with various other states offering Senior Citizen Identity Card in order to assist senior citizens while availing the schemes allotted for them and also for various other requirements.
Required Documents
Application form.
Two photographs of the applicant.
Aadhaar card
ID card of the applicant (Pension book/ School certificate/ Identity Card issued by competent authority OR Bank passbook with photo)
Residential Proof(Ration cards/Valid Passport/Voter ID card)
Pan card ( For Monthly Pension above Rs.15,000 per month)
Birth certificate/document to prove the age
Residence certificate issued by Competent Authority for the said period as required.
Eligibility Criterion
The applicant should satisfy the following eligibility criterion to attain the Senior Citizen Identity Card:
Every individual applying for the Identity Card should be above 60 years old.
The applicant should possess Government proof stating that he/she is a Permanent Resident of the State.
Applicants satisfying the above-mentioned criterion are eligible for online registration towards getting a Senior Citizen Identity Card.
Benefits of Senior Citizen Identity Card
There are several benefits incorporated behind the distribution of the Senior Citizen Identity Card which is enlisted as follows:
The Senior Citizen Identity Card allows the cardholder to avail numerous facilities such as discounts on Railway tickets and Flight tickets.
The application process towards availing Senior Citizen Identity Card is absolutely free of cost.
Documents Required
The primary document required is the proof of residence issued by the Corresponding State officials to the applicant.
The candidates should also submit a government document stating their Date of Birth which serves as the age proof.
know more about the Fees:
Authorities will provide fee details while applying in person.
During the online payment fee, details will be displayed
Conclusion
The population of senior citizens in India is increasing steadily because of their improved health and medical amenities. People getting older brings them many physical challenges, many health problems, and even they become inactive. The Social Welfare Department has a scheme for senior citizens to avail of some benefits. They introduced the senior citizen cards to make the process much easier.
Questions and Answers
How to Apply In-Person?
To apply for the senior citizen certificate, please approach the concerned tahsildar office.
The following link provides contact details: link for contact details
Please go to the respective office to get details for applying and also the application form.
Make sure that you have all the proper documents mentioned in the “Required Documents” section below.
Submit the completed form along with the documents to the concerned authority.
This application will be processed internally. Verification of submitted documents will also be carried.
After successful completion, the Certificate will be delivered to the applicant postal address or in person as per the applicable norms.
The whole process of issuing the Senior Citizen Certificate will take 10 to 15 working days.
How To Obtain Your Senior Citizen’s Card?
A senior citizen ID card can be obtained by filling an online application form available on every state government’s website. Along with this, the following documents (originals) have to be submitted for verification:
Proof of age
Valid documents: Passport, PAN Card, School Leaving Certificate, etc.
Proof of residence
Valid documents: Ration Card, Passport, Election Card, Electricity/Phone Bill in the name of the person applying.
Medical Information
Blood Report and Reports about medication and allergies.
Three stamp-sized photographs
How does the Application Procedure work?
- The applicant may apply for the Senior Citizen Identity Card by filling up the details in an Online Form available on the official website of each state.
- For reference, kindly check the Online application form updated for the National Capital Region here. Similarly, the online forms are available on the official websites of various state governments.
- The applicant has to register and submit the application form along with two photographs and a copy of the address proof and an age proof document.
- Followed by this, the applicant may proceed with the registration process.
- Every applicant who has submitted the required documents and has completed the registration process will receive the Senior Citizen Identity Card after the approval of the application and verification of documents