IDENTITY VERIFICATION GUIDELINES

Version 1.8

April 23 2019

Controller of Certifying Authorities

Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology
Document Control

Document Name IDENTITY VERIFICATION GUIDELINES

Status Release
Version 1.8
Release Date Apr 23 2019
Last update Apr 23 2019
Document Owner Controller of Certifying Authorities, India

2 / 42
Contents
Contents.................................................................................................................................................... 3
1 General guidelines to CAs ................................................................................................................... 5
2 Guidelines for issuance of Digital Signature Certificates (Personal/ Organizational Person) ...................... 7
2.1 Personal Digital Signature Certificate – through RAs of CA ............................................................. 7
2.2 Organizational Person Digital Signature Certificates for officers of Central Government/State
Government/PSUs/Autonomous body of Central Government /Banks...................................................... 10
2.3 Organizational Personal Digital Signature Certificates for individuals affiliated with
Companies/Corporate - Organisation function as RA ............................................................................. 11
2.4 Organizational Personal Digital Signature Certificates for individuals affiliated with
companies/corporate or private firms or partnership firms – through RA of CA ......................................... 12
2.5 Terms and conditions for use of HSM for class 2 or class 3 Organisational Person DSCs. ................ 16
3 Guidelines for Issuance of DSC to Foreign Applicant ............................................................................ 17
3.1 Verification of identity and address documents for foreign applicant ........................................... 17
3.2 Organisational person DSC for the categories 3.1 a-c .................................................................. 18
3.3 Physical verification of persons for Class 3 DSC for applicants ...................................................... 18
3.4 Telephone verification .............................................................................................................. 18
3.5 Attestation for applicants ......................................................................................................... 18
4 Guidelines for issuance of Special purpose DSCs ................................................................................. 19
4.1 SSL Certificates......................................................................................................................... 19
4.2 Document Signer Certificate ..................................................................................................... 21
5 Guidelines for maintaining e-KYC account by CA (Only for empanelled ESPs) ....................................... 23
5.1 General Guidelines ................................................................................................................... 23
5.2 Aadhaar offline eKYC ................................................................................................................ 24
5.3 Organisational KYC for Organisational Person Certificates ........................................................... 25
5.4 Banking eKYC for Banking Customers ......................................................................................... 25
6 Guidelines for issuance of Digital Signature Certificates to bank account holders and bank RAs ............. 27
6.1 Security Guidelines for usage of DSC in Banking. ......................................................................... 28
7 Key Generation ................................................................................................................................ 30
Annexure 1 Attestation............................................................................................................................. 31
Annexure 2 summary of verification .......................................................................................................... 33
Annexure 3 GST registration Verification ................................................................................................. 34
Annexure 4 Change History .................................................................................................................... 35
Annexure 5 FAQ ...................................................................................................................................... 39

3 / 42
Definitions
"CA premises" means the location where the Certifying Authority system is located.

"CA Verification Office" means the office owned or leased by CA for the purpose of
verification of identification and address of any person requesting a Digital Signature
Certificate.

"trusted person" means any person who has:-

a) direct responsibilities for the day-to-day operations, security and
performance of those business activities that are regulated under the Act or
Rules in respect of a Certifying Authority, or
b) duties directly involving the issuance, renewal, suspension, revocation of
Digital Signature Certificates (including the identification of any person
requesting a Digital Signature Certificate from a licensed Certifying Authority),
creation of private keys or administration of a Certifying Authority's
computing facilities.

"CA Verification Officers" means trusted person involved in identity and address verification of
DSC applicant and approval of issuance of DSC.

"Subscriber Identity Verification method" means the method used for the verification of
the information (submitted by subscriber) that is required to be included in the Digital
Signature Certificate issued to the subscriber.

"Attestation", for the purpose this document, is defined as certifying copies of document as
true copies of the original.

4 / 42
 1 General guidelines to CAs

i. The guidelines issued by the Controller of Certifying Authorities are to be strictly followed by
CAs. Unless and otherwise the date of implementation is specified, the effective date of
implementation of guidelines will be from the date of publication on the website of Office of
CCA. The changes due to these guidelines should be referred to or incorporated in the
subsequent revision of CPS of CAs.
ii. The following text should be part of DSC application form
Section 71 of IT Act stipulates that if anyone makes a misrepresentation or suppresses any
material fact from the CCA or CA for obtaining any DSC such person shall be punishable
with imprisonment up to 2 years or with fine up to one lakh rupees or with both.
iii. DSC application form can be generated by CA based on the verified information held in eKYC
account maintained by CA as per section 5 after obtaining the two factor authentication of
the applicant.
iv. CAs should put in measures to ensure that email addresses that are included in Digital
Signature Certificates (DSC) are unique to the DSC applicant. Provisions can be made for
issuance of multiple DSC with a single email Id where it is established that these multiple
DSCs are being issued to a unique DSC applicant.
v. CA should put procedure in place to ensure that no Class 2 or Class 3 individual Signing DSCs
are issued in cases where the key pair has not been generated on a FIPS 140-1/2 level 2
validated Hardware cryptographic module.
vi. In respect of Class 1 certificate, if the subscriber prefers to use Non FIPS 140-1/2 Level 2
validated Hardware Cryptographic module/ Software token, the corresponding risk should be
made known to the DSC applicant and an undertaking should be taken to the effect that the
DSC applicant is aware of the risk associated with storing private keys on a device other than
a FIPS 140-1/2 Level 2 validated cryptographic module
vii. A list of approved cryptographic device manufacturers / suppliers and information relating to
their FIPS 140-2 Level 2 validated tokens must be published on the website of the CA.
viii. The application forms, supporting documents and all other verification information including
Video Recording and details of telephonic verification shall be preserved and archived by CAs
for a period as mentioned in the IT CA rules, 27. Archival of Digital Signature Certificate is
from the date of expiry of the Digital Signature Certificate.
ix. For the purpose of DSC application to CA(paper), all signatures including DSC applicant,
attestation and authorisation should be preferably with blue-ink .
x. In case applicant's signature is different from that in ID Proof, a physical verification needs
to be carried out.
xi. In the case of applicant is unable to sign due to disability, paralysis, or other reasons, the
DSC issuance should be through eKYC verification.
xii. Power of attorney is not allowed for the purpose of DSC application to CA and Issuance of
DSC.
xiii. In case of paper based application form , the applicant should affix signature covering
Photo and application form
xiv. A CA may ask for more supporting documents, if they are not satisfied with the documents
that have been submitted.

5 / 42
 xv. The inspection and approval of physical DSC application form should be carried out by a
trusted person of CA. Such approval should be clearly indicated on the physical DSC
application form in the form of ink signature of trusted person of CA along with name,
designation and date. In the case of electronic DSC application form, electronic approval
should be with the Digital Signature of trusted person only.
xvi. CA should make sure that the trusted person' roles and responsibilities should not be
delegated to or controlled by anyone else. All the CA Verification Officers should be
employees of the CA and should have undergone training by CA in respect of verification.
xvii. Incomplete application forms should not be accepted by the CA. CA SHALL NOT accept any
Digital signature certificate application forms that do not meet the requirements
mentioned in the Identity Verification Guidelines. CA SHALL look for any indication of
alteration or falsification in application or supporting documents.
xviii. Application form along with the supporting documents must be available for inspection at
CA premises within 30 days of issuance of DSC. In the case of lost DSC application form,
the same should be informed to office of CCA within 45 days of issuance with the report of
action taken.
xix. DSCs shall be issued by CAs only after the application form (with ink signature) and
supporting documents (duly attested) have been physically received and verified at the CA
premises/Verification Office.
xx. CAs, for issuing personal DSCs, should mandatorily provide mechanism to apply for DSC
directly to CA through their web interface.
xxi. For personal and organisational person DSCs, a letter/certificate issued by bank containing
the DSC applicant's information as retained in the Bank database can be accepted. Such
letter/certificate should be certified by the Bank Manager. Any information which is
required to be part of the DSC but is not a part of such certified letter should be verified
by CA. Mobile verification (all applications) and Video Verification will still be required to be
done prior to issuance of DSC by CA.
xxii. The eKYC single factor classes of certificates can be used for signing of electronic DSC
application form applied from DSC applicant's banking account.
xxiii. In the case of Personal/Organisational Person Digital Signature Certificate issuance (Class
1, Class 2 and Class 3), CA should directly invoice to the DSC applicant or applicant’s
organisation. CA should carry out periodic reconciliation of invoices raised for DSC
issuance with corresponding DSC issued to subscriber. Copy of the invoices issued to DSC
applicant should be preserved by CA.
xxiv. For all categories of DSC applicants, it is mandatory to provide either PAN or Aadhaar
Number. In the case of PAN or Aadhaar Number not having been issued to a DSC applicant,
CA should issue DSC only after obtaining an undertaking from the DSC applicant stating the
following.
“I hereby declare that neither PAN nor Aadhaar Number has been issued to me"
xxv. Physical verification of DSC applicant by CA is mandatory prior to issuance of Class 2 &
Class 3 DSC.

6 / 42
 2 Guidelines for issuance of Digital Signature Certificates
(Personal/ Organizational Person)

2.1 Personal Digital Signature Certificate – through RAs of CA

1) Registration authority (RA) is an entity engaged by CA to collect DSC Application Forms (along
with supporting documents) and to facilitate verification of subscriber credentials. RA interacts
with the CA and submit the applicant’s request for certificate issuance to CA. RA should have
legally enforceable agreement with CA.

2) The physical verification of person is also compulsory for Class 2 & Class 3 DSCs

3) For all Classes of certificates, other than identity & address proof, the identity credentials which
appear in the certificate, like PAN number, e-mail, mobile number etc. should be verified.

4) The mobile number of DSC applicant in the DSC application form is mandatory for Class 1, Class
2 and Class 3 certificates facilitated through RAs of CAs. The authentication credentials will be
sent to mobile of the applicant. Prior to issuance of DSC,
i). The CA should carry out a telephonic verification of the DSC applicant on the mobile
number specified in the application form and the recording of same should be stored. CA
should log the information as part of audit logs, which shall include Identity of the CA Officer
(Name / ID) who conducted the mobile verification and the date and time of the verification.
OR
ii). The designated CA system should receive SMS directly from the DSC applicant (from
the mobile number specified in the application form). The SMS should contain at least
information relating to the DSC Application Number and the Date of birth/email of the DSC
applicant and the same should be validated against the details given in the DSC application.
The details of SMS (message id, content, applicant mobile number, date and time) should be
preserved as part of verification information
CA should issue DSC only after conducting the telephonic verification or on receipt of the SMS
from the DSC applicant.

5) In case of using eKYC service for verification of individuals, guidelines to be followed is given in
the section 5.

6) Each applicant for a personal digital signature certificate must provide proof of Identity and
proof of address as detailed below:

Document as proof of identity (Any one):

a) Aadhaar (eKYC Service)
b) Passport
c) Driving License
d) PAN Card

7 / 42
 e) Post Office ID card
f) Bank Account Passbook/statement containing the photograph and signed by an individual
with attestation by the concerned Bank official.
g) Photo ID card issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs of Centre/State Governments.
h) Any Government issued photo ID card bearing the signatures of the individual.

Documents as proof of address (Any one):

a) Aadhaar (eKYC Service)
b) Telephone Bill
c) Electricity Bill
d) Water Bill
e) Gas connection
f) Bank Statements signed by the bank
g) Service Tax/VAT Tax/Sales Tax registration certificate.
h) Driving License (DL)/ Registration certificate (RC)
i) Voter ID Card
j) Passport
k) Property Tax/ Corporation/ Municipal Corporation Receipt

With the above documents the following conditions will apply.

I. Validation of signature on application forms: At least one identity or address proof should
contain signature of applicant. If signature is absent, subscribers should submit their
signatures validated by the bank where they hold a bank account. The CA should use that
verification document to confirm the signature of subscriber present on the application
form.
II. Validity of the Address Proof: In case of any utility bills like electricity, water, gas, and
telephone bill, in the name of the applicant, the recent proof, but not earlier than 3 months
from the date of application should be attached.
III. Using single document copy to be used for both Identity & Address proof: This may be
considered. However, if the address in the Photo-id is different from the address given in the
application then a separate address proof may be insisted for.
IV. Attestation against original copy: Copy of supporting document should be attested by any
one of the following:
 Group ‘A’ /Group ‘B’ Gazetted officers (refer Annexure 2)
 Bank Manager/Authorised executive of the Bank
 Post Master
Physical verification of original documents against the copy of documents submitted is
mandatory before attestation
7) DSC shall be issued by CAs only after the application form (with ink signature) and copy of
supporting document(s) (duly attested) have been physically received and verified at the CA
verification Office. A trusted person of each CA, would be responsible for confirming the
correctness of the documents provided, before issuing the DSC.

8 / 42
8) For Physical verification, a CA should make available a tamper proof video capture facility in
their application. The video recording of interactive session with DSC applicant by using the
facility provided by CA application should be not less than 20 seconds. The CA should verify the
same prior to issuance of DSC to DSC applicant. CA should not make available option for
uploading offline video recording and also should not accept offline recording by any other
means.

9 / 42
2.2 Organizational Person Digital Signature Certificates for officers of Central
Government/State Government/PSUs/Autonomous body of Central
Government /Banks
Article 12 in The Constitution Of India 1949
12. the State includes the Government and Parliament of India and the Government and
the Legislature of each of the States and all local or other authorities within the territory of
India or under the control of the Government of India.

Government organization includes State/ Central Government and their departments, any
agency/ instrumentality on which the Government has deep and pervasive control, PSUs,
Government Companies, Government Corporations etc.

Identity verification requirements are as mentioned below:

a) Copy of applicant’s identity card or Proof of individuals association with
organisation
b) The application for DSC should be forwarded/Certified by the authorized signatory
(Competent authority of the Department/ Head of Office / NIC Coordinator….)
c) For Class 3 DSC, Department should certify the physical verification of applicant
(with a statement similar to that used for life certificate of pensioners)
d) In case the Department certifies applicant's mobile number, a separate mobile
verification is not required.
e) Copy of identity card of authorised signatory or proof of authorised signatory's
association with organisation
f) CA should ascertain the identity of authorised signatory by carrying out at least
one personal interaction, ID card, signature and seal of Department, Website RTI
disclosures, telephonic call to departmental phone etc.
g) The application forms should be preserved by CA. The electronic application form
should be archived in a location provided by CA.
h) The activation code should be sent only to the applicant's mobile number.
i) For eGovernance applications, wherever DSCs are issued to stakeholders within
Government, DSC activation code can also be facilitated through designated
departmental email address. This email ID should be included in the application
form and should be identified as a departmental email address.

BANKS
a) The authorization letter with seal and signature, by Bank Manager.(In case of Bank
Manager, authorization should be by his/her reporting officer.)
b) copy of Bank PAN Card attested by Bank Manager
c) Certified copy of organizational identity of Bank Manager.
d) The application forms should be preserved by CA.
e) The physical verification of applicant can be certified by Bank Manager.
f) In case the Bank Manager certifies applicant's mobile number, a separate mobile
verification through voice call or SMS is not required

10 / 42
2.3 Organizational Personal Digital Signature Certificates for individuals
affiliated with Companies/Corporate - Organisation function as RA

1) An organisational RA is an RA who collects and verifies organisational employees/board of

directors/partners etc /'s information that are to be entered into his or her public key
certificate. An RA interacts with the CA and submits their organisational person’s request for
certificate. An organizational RA should have legally enforceable agreement with CA.
2) The companies/Corporate should become Organisational RA of CA to obtain DSC for their
organisational person. The Organization Name of both applicant and verified organizational
RA name should be same.
3) Organization RA can certify the physical verification of DSC applicant.
4) The physical application forms & electronic application form should be archived by CAs.
5) Attested copies the following should be collected and verified by CAs at least once in a year

Supporting Documents Existence of organization

Category Documents required
Corporate 1) The authorization by the resolution of board of directors for
Entities the authorized representative to forward / certify the
application form for DSC.
2) The proof of organisational GST verification details as
mentioned in Annexure III
OR all the below mentioned documents
a) Original Bank Statement with transactions less than 3 months, signed by
the Bank. Bank Statement should be in the “organization name”. As an
alternate to bank statement, a signed letter from the bank confirming
the account existence and organisation name can be provided.
b) Copy of Organization Incorporation Certificate.
c) Copy of Organization PAN Card

6) The DSC application should be forwarded (with letter) to CA and after the verification by
Organisation RA along with copy of organisational person's organisational identity
attested/certified by organisation RA

11 / 42
2.4 Organizational Personal Digital Signature Certificates for individuals
affiliated with companies/corporate or private firms or partnership firms
– through RA of CA

1) Registration authority (RA) is an entity engaged by CA to collect DSC Application Forms (along
with supporting documents) and to facilitate verification of subscriber credentials. An RA
interacts with the CA and submits the subscriber's request for certificate. A RA should have
legally enforceable agreement with CA.

2) For all Classes of certificates, other than identity & address proof, the identity credentials which
appear in the certificate, like PAN number, e-mail, mobile number etc. should be verified. In the
case of PAN verification, CA should preserve the evidence of verification with their physical /
digital signature.

3) The mobile number of DSC applicant in the DSC application form is mandatory for Class 1, Class 2
and Class 3 certificates facilitated through RAs of CAs. The authentication credentials will be sent
to mobile of the applicant. Prior to issuance of DSC,
i). The CA should carry out a telephonic verification of the DSC applicant on the mobile
number specified in the application form and the recording of same should be stored. CA
should log the information as part of audit logs, which shall include Identity of the CA Officer
(Name / ID) who conducted the mobile verification and the date and time of the verification.
OR
ii). The designated CA system should receive SMS directly from the DSC applicant (from the
mobile number specified in the application form). The SMS should contain at least
information relating to the DSC Application Number and the Date of birth/email of the DSC
applicant and the same should be validated against the details given in the DSC application.
The details of SMS (message id, content, applicant mobile number, date and time) should be
preserved as part of the verification information.

CA should issue DSC only after conducting the telephonic verification or on receipt of the SMS
from the DSC applicant.

4) The attestation requirements for Organizational Personal Digital Signature Certificates for
individuals affiliated with companies or private firms or private firms or partnership firms
facilitated through RA are as per annexure 1

5) An authorized signatory shall duly authorize the DSC application, which signifies as the
authorization to avail DSC as an organizational person. The Authorized Signatory shall be verified
in the form of documents given below

12 / 42
 Authorization to Authorized Signatories
Category Documents required
Individual/Proprietor 1) Business registration certificate containing name of the
ship Firm: proprietor confirming the business ownership of Authorized
signatory (Proprietor).
2) Government issued ID card (PAN, Voter ID, Passport or Driving
License) of Authorized signatory shall be enclosed.
Partnership Firm: 1) Copy of List of partners from Partnership Deed. (First page and
page(s) containing Authorized Signatory/Partner Name)
2) If Authorized signatory is not a partner, an Authorization Letter
signed by a partner.
3) Government issued ID card (PAN, Voter ID, Passport or Driving
License) or organizational ID card of Authorized signatory shall be
enclosed.
Corporate Entities: 1. Copy of List of Directors. CA should cross verify such details in
MCA website.
2. If Authorized signatory is not a director, Board Resolution OR
Power of Attorney shall be enclosed.
3. Government issued ID card (PAN, Voter ID, Passport or Driving
License) or organizational ID card of Authorized signatory shall be
enclosed
Association of person 1. Copy of resolution from Association / Society authorizing the
(body of individuals) signatory.
2. Government issued ID card (PAN, Voter ID, Passport or Driving
License) or organizational ID card of Authorized signatory shall be
enclosed.
Limited Liability 1. Copy of List of Directors. CA should cross verify such details in
Partnership MCA website.
2. If Authorized signatory is not a director, Board Resolution OR
Power of Attorney shall be enclosed.
3. Government issued ID card (PAN, Voter ID, Passport or Driving
License) or organizational ID card of Authorized signatory shall be
enclosed
Non-Government 1. Copy of resolution from the NGO / Trust authorizing the
Organisation /Trust signatory.
2. Government issued ID card (PAN, Voter ID, Passport or Driving
License) or organizational ID card of Authorized signatory shall be
enclosed

6) In case the company is a single director company with no other authorized signatories, or a
proprietorship organization, it can be considered for self-authorization, provided that, ,
Information is verified in MCA website. In case of proprietorship organization where applicant
himself/herself is the proprietorship, self-authorization / no authorization is required.

7) For each applicant for an organisational person digital signature certificate, the DSC application
form should be submitted as detailed below:

13 / 42
 1 DSC Application Form
2 Applicant ID Proof
3 Authorization Letter
4 Authorized Signatory Proof
5 Proof of Organizational Existence

8) For each/group of DSC application, the documents required for verification of organizational
existence are as mentioned below. All the attested documents specified against the relevant
category should be collected and verified by CAs. The Organization Name (O Value) in the
certificate should exactly match the organization name given below document proof

Supporting Documents in respect of Existence of organization

Category Documents required
Individual/Proprieto 1) The proof of organisational GST verification details as mentioned in
rship Firm Annexure III.
OR all the below mentioned documents
1) Original Bank Statement with transactions less than 3 months, signed by
the Bank. Bank Statement should be in the “organization name”. As an
alternate to bank statement, a signed letter from the bank confirming
the account existence and organisation name can be provided.
2) Copy of Organization Business registration certificate including Shops &
Establishments
Partnership Firm 1) The proof of organisational GST verification details as mentioned in
Annexure III.
OR all the below mentioned documents
1) Original Bank Statement with transactions less than 3 months, signed by
the Bank. Bank Statement should be in the “organization name”. As an
alternate to bank statement, a signed letter from the bank confirming
the account existence and organisation name can be provided.
2) Copy of Organization Business registration certificate including Shops &
Establishments.
3) Copy of Organization PAN Card
Corporate Entities The proof of organisational GST verification details as mentioned in
Annexure III.
OR all the below mentioned documents
1) Original Bank Statement with transactions less than 3 months, signed by
the Bank. Bank Statement should be in the “organization name”. As an
alternate to bank statement, a signed letter from the bank confirming
the account existence and organisation name can be provided.
2) Copy of Organization Incorporation Certificate.
3) Copy of Organization PAN Card
Association of 1) The proof of organisational GST verification details as mentioned in
person (body of Annexure III.

14 / 42
 individuals) OR all the below mentioned documents
1) Original Bank Statement with transactions less than 3 months, signed by
the Bank. Bank Statement should be in the “organization name”. As an
alternate to bank statement, a signed letter from the bank confirming
the account existence and organisation name can be provided.
2) Copy of Organization Incorporation and Registration Certificate issued
by authority such as Registrar.
3) Copy of Organization PAN Card
Limited Liability 1) The proof of organisational GST verification details as mentioned in
Partnership Annexure III.
OR all the below mentioned documents
1) Original Bank Statement with transactions less than 3 months, signed by
the Bank. Bank Statement should be in the “organization name”. As an
alternate to bank statement, a signed letter from the bank confirming
the account existence and organisation name can be provided.
2) Copy of Organization Incorporation certificate.
3) Copy of Organization PAN Card
Non-Government 1) Original Bank Statement with transactions less than 3 months, signed by
Organisation /Trust the Bank. Bank Statement should be in the “organization name”. As an
alternate to bank statement, a signed letter from the bank confirming
the account existence and organisation name can be provided.
2) Copy of Organization Incorporation certificate.
3) Copy of Organization PAN Card

9) DSC shall be issued by CAs only after the application form (with ink signature) and copy of
supporting document(s) (duly attested) have been physically received and verified at the CA
premises/CA verification Office. Trusted person of the CA would be responsible for confirming
the correctness of the documents provided, before the DSC is issued.
10) For physical verification, a CA should make available a tamper proof video capture facility in CA
application. The video recording of interactive session with DSC applicant by using the facility
provided by CA application should not be less than 20 seconds. The CA should verify the same
prior to issuance of DSC to DSC applicant.
11) In case organization name is different from that in the documents submitted, the proof of name
change should be submitted.

15 / 42
2.5 Terms and conditions for use of HSM for class 2 or class 3 Organisational
Person DSCs.

In the case of DSC (class 2 or class 3) being applied for by Organisational Person, if the key-
pairs are proposed to be generated on Hardware Security Module (FIPS 140-1/2 level 3
validated), the certificate signing requests submitted offline may be accepted provided that,
along with the DSC application form, a letter of authorization from the authorised signatory
of the organisation is enclosed assuring the following.

a. The key pair was generated on a HSM which is under the administrative and physical
custody of (Organisation Name) and that signing key activation controls are only with
(the DSC applicant Name).
b. The HSM will not be used for any purpose other than for signature by (DSC applicant
name).
c. The HSM has been configured to ensure that signing keys generated from HSM are not
exportable from the HSM.
d. DSC will be revoked immediately in the event of (the DSC applicant name) quitting or
being transferred from (Organisation Name).
e. The following are the details of the HSM being used:
 make,
 model
 unique identification number(s)

16 / 42
 3 Guidelines for Issuance of DSC to Foreign Applicant
In respect of Verification of identity credentials of foreign applicant applying for Digital Signature
Certificates under IT Act 2000, the following method shall be followed.

Hague Convention/ Apostille Treaty: is an international treaty drafted by the Hague

Conference on Private International Law. It specifies the modalities through which a
document issued in one of the signatory countries can be certified for legal purposes in all
the other signatory states.

3.1 Verification of identity and address documents for foreign applicant

A DSC applicant is deemed as foreign applicant if the address( residential or
organizational) provided in the DSC application form does not belong to India or
identity document submitted is not issued by authorities under Government of India.

For the verification of foreign applicant prior to issuance of DSC, the information provided
by the DSC applicant in the DSC application form such as Name, photo, signature,
residential /organisational address and existence of organisation (if applicable) must be
supported by documents which shall be included as a part of attested/certified
documents. If any of these information is not a part of the attested/certified documents,
the applicant has to produce additional proof by submitting documents issued by the
government/bank of the respective country, in respective of proof of identity (Name,
photo & signature) or address (personal/organisational). Such proof shall also be
attested/certified
a. Foreign applicant is residing in native country

If native country is a signatory of Hague Convention: For attestation, proof of identity,

address proof and photo on DSC application should be notarized by the Public Notary of
that foreign country and apostilled by the competent authority of that foreign country.

If native country is not a signatory of Hague Convention: For attestation, proof of identity
,address proof and photo on DSC application should be notarized by the Public Notary of
that foreign country and consularized by the competent authority of that foreign country .

Documents required: Passport/Govt issued identity, Application form with Photo (all
attested).

b. Foreign applicant residing in India

The following documents should be certified by Individual's Embassy
1. Resident Permit certificate issued by Assistant Foreigner Regional Registration.
Officer, an officer of Bureau of Immigration India.
2. Passport
3. Visa
4. Application form with Photo(attested)

17 / 42
c. Foreign Applicant neither in India nor in the native country
The following documents should be certified by the local embassy of the country to which the
person belongs
1. Passport
2. Visa
3. Application form with Photo(attested)

d. Foreign applicant holding OCI passport

For foreign nationals with Indian dual citizenship (OCI passport issued by Govt of India and living
in India)
1. For DSC with Indian address, the identity and address proof requirements shall be same
as Indian nationals living in India.
2. For DSC with foreign address, the copy of their native country passport shall be treated
as identity and address proof.
3. No appostilisation and consularisation is required.
4. For DSC application and attestation requirements shall be same as Indian nationals living
in India.
5. If applicant not in India then he/she will have to follow the process of a foreign DSC
applicant
3.2 Organisational person DSC for the categories 3.1 a-c

For organisational person DSC, letter of authorization from organization should be certified in
addition to Proof of identity and address of the DSC applicant as given above.

3.3 Physical verification of persons for Class 3 DSC for applicants

For Class 3 Physical verification, a CA should make available a tamper proof video capture facility
in CA application. The video recording of interactive session with DSC applicant by using the
facility provided by CA application should not be less than 20 seconds. The CA should verify the
same prior to issuance of DSC to DSC applicant.

3.4 Telephone verification

For foreign applicant, mobile verification is exempted and also the activation code can be sent to
email ID of the applicant.

3.5 Attestation for applicants

i) The attestation/certification shall be carried out by Apostillization/ Consularization

ii) In case the address included in the DSC application form belongs to a country which is
different from the country where identity document has been issued, the ‘address proof’
should be attested by the attestation authority of the country to which the address belongs
iii) The documents issued by Indian authority can be attested as per attestation requirements
mentioned in Annexure 1.

18 / 42
 4 Guidelines for issuance of Special purpose DSCs
This section is applicable to the CAs that issue SSL certificates under the special purpose root
hierarchy. The pre-requisite for issuance of SSL certificate is that CA should have standalone
certificate issuance system for SSL issuance and CAs public key has been certified under
special purpose root hierarchy.

4.1 SSL Certificates

a) Only authorized organizational persons are entitled to apply for SSL certificates on
behalf of an organization.
b) Apart from the organizational person verification, the additional process
documentation and authentication requirements for SSL certificate shall include the
following:

i. The organization owns the Domain name, or the organization is given the exclusive
right and authority to use the Domain Name
ii. Proof that the applicant has the authorization to apply for SSL certificate on behalf
of the organization in the asserted capacity.(e.g. Authorisation letter from
organization to applicant)

c) A CA shall not issue SSL certificates to any organisational entity unless it owns/controls
that domain name.

d) The verification process for applicant's identity (e.g. name, office address, email, etc.),
authorization to apply for SSL certificate, and existence of organization should be as per
this document only.

e) The documents required for Domain name ownership, proof of existence of

organization and authorization to applicant to apply for a SSL certificate are given
below.

Domain Name ownership

Category Documents required
Individual/Proprietorss Affidavit of ownership in the name of individual or proprietorship firm.
hip Firm:
Partnership Firm: Affidavit of ownership in the name of Partnership firm or in the name of
Partner and in case it is in the name of Partner, additional affidavit from
Partner confirming authorisation for use by firm.
Corporate Entities: Certificate of ownership in the name of company issued by statutory
Auditor.
Government Domain Name ownership certified by Head of Office.
Organisations

19 / 42
 Existence of organization (all attested)
Category Documents required
Individual/Proprietorsh 1) The proof of organisational GST verification details as mentioned in
ip Firm: Annexure III.
OR all the below mentioned documents
1) Original Bank Statement with transactions less than 3 months, signed
by the Bank. Bank Statement should be in the “organization name”.
As an alternate to bank statement, a signed letter from the bank
confirming the account existence and organisation name can be
provided.
2) Copy of Organization Business registration certificate including Shops
& Establishments
Partnership Firm: 1) The proof of organisational GST verification details as mentioned in
Annexure III.
OR all the below mentioned documents
1) Original Bank Statement with transactions less than 3 months, signed
by the Bank. Bank Statement should be in the “organization name”.
As an alternate to bank statement, a signed letter from the bank
confirming the account existence and organisation name can be
provided.
2) Copy of Organization Business registration certificate including Shops
& Establishments.
3) Copy of Organization PAN Card
Corporate Entities: 1) The proof of organisational GST verification details as mentioned in
Annexure III.
OR all the below mentioned documents
1) Original Bank Statement with transactions less than 3 months, signed
by the Bank. Bank Statement should be in the “organization name”.
As an alternate to bank statement, a signed letter from the bank
confirming the account existence and organisation name can be
provided.
2) Copy of Organization Incorporation Certificate.
3) Copy of Organization PAN Card
Government o The application for SSL should be forwarded/attested/certified by the
Organisations Head of Office
o Copy of applicant's official identity

Authorization to applicant
Category Documents required
Individual/Proprietorss The applicant for SSL certificate should be individual/proprietor only
hip Firm:

20 / 42
 Partnership Firm: The applicant of SSL certificate should be duly authorized by the partners
and his photographs as well as identity and address should be mentioned
in the authorization letter
Corporate Entities: The applicant of SSL certificate should be duly authorized by the
resolution of board of directors. The applicant details i.e. address,
photograph of the authorized person should also be mentioned in the
authorization letter
Government SIO/DIO/HOD/NIC-Coordinator to ensure the authenticity of both
Organizations subscriber and Head of Office.

f) The CA should verify the information provided through email, phone call and publically
verifiable information through internet.
g) The attestation requirements are as per annexure 1
h) The CA should verify the Authorization of Domain Name Registrant to use the domain
name in the manner given below
Authorization of Domain Name Registrant: CA shall confirm that, as of the date the
Registration Certificate was issued, the Applicant either had the right to use, or had control
of, the Fully-Qualified Domain Name(s) listed in the Certificate, and was authorized by a
person having such right or control to obtain a Certificate containing the Fully-Qualified
Domain Name(s).
Third Party Tools: CA shall cross verify the right to use or control the Registered Domain
Name(s) from a third party data source like WHOIS.
Authorization of Domain Name if not yet Registered : If domain is not registered in the
name of applicant's organization, then the Authorization from the registered owner on the
letterhead of owner with a statement granting the Applicant the right to use the Fully-
Qualified Domain Name in the Certificate. The CA shall contact registered owner directly,
using contact information obtained from a reliable, independent, third-party data source,
and obtain confirmation from the Domain Name Registrant that the Domain Authorization is
authentic.

4.2 Document Signer Certificate

In continuation to publication of "Document Signer" certificates profile in the "Interoperability
Guidelines for Digital Signature Certificates issued under Information Technology Act" and Key
generation requirements in "X.509 Certificate Policy for India PKI" the following direction is issued for
strict compliance:

a) The verification requirements for "existence of the organization” and authorization to applicant
shall be same as mentioned in the verification requirements for SSL certificates.
b) The applicant of Document Signer certificate should be an organisational person of that
organisation. Attested copy of organisational person’s organisational identity should be
submitted along with application.

21 / 42
c) The following declarations should be obtained from subscriber in the Document Signer
Certificate application form
i. I hereby declare and understand that Organizational Document Signer Certificate issued
to us will be used only for automated signing of documents/information and will not be
used in any other context including individual signature.
ii. I hereby declare that necessary controls have been built in software applications to
ensure that there is no misuse
iii. I hereby declare and understand that the documents/messages authenticated using
Organisational Document Signer Certificate issued to us is having organisational
accountability.

22 / 42
 5 Guidelines for maintaining e-KYC account by CA (Only for
empanelled ESPs)
Under the Information Technology Act, Digital Signature Certificates (DSC) are being issued by
Certifying Authorities (CA) on successful verification of the identity and addresses credentials of the
applicant.

5.1 General Guidelines

In all the KYC and account creation processes described under section 5, General guidelines specified
in the section 5.1 will be applicable in addition to “1. General Guidelines for CA” unless and
otherwise specifically exempted.

I. These guidelines are intended to be used for DSC applicant to have eKYC account with CA
based of eKYC of applicant or CA verification. The verified information held by CA will be
used for issuance of DSC or eSign.
II. CA to verify the applicant one time and issue DSC subsequently based on 2-factor
authentication by applicant. The two factor authentication includes the OTP sent to the
verified mobile and PIN set by the applicant.
III. Mobile Number of applicant is a pre-requisite for creation of eKYC account by CA for
applicant.
IV. As a part of KYC ,before activation, subscriber should set PIN and "user ID"
a. The eSign Address is in the form "<user-id>@<id-type>.<ESP-id>".
b. The ESP-ids are eMudhra, nCode, CDAC, Capricorn, NSDLeGov etc. id-types are
mobile number, PAN and username.
c. To ensure ease of use by subscribers, it is recommended that CA should keep user
name limited to few characters.
d. CA shall ensure user IDs is unique within their system.
V. CA should implement security features such as system generated one-time user IDs,
temporary locking of accounts, etc.
VI. CA should make available a tamper proof video capture facility in their application. The
video recording of interactive session with DSC applicant by using the facility provided by CA
application should be not less than 20 seconds. The video verification should undergo at least
two levels, one electronic and one manual level verification, by CA. CA should implement
software capabilities to check face in video against photo obtained using KYC or eKYC to
perform photo match for electronic verification. For manual check, trusted persons of CA
should perform verification for match of photo obtained through eKYC or KYC with the face
in video. If automated video verification is not implemented, at least 2 trusted persons
should independently verify KYC data against video. CA should not make available option for
uploading offline video recording and also should not accept offline recording by any other
means.
VII. If PAN of the applicant is to be included in eKYC account for embedding it into the certificate,
CA should verify the PAN prior to inclusion in the eKYC account.

23 / 42
VIII. CA trusted person should approve and certify each account information with name
timestamp etc and all audits of verification logs should be preserved by CA for seven years
from the date of expiry of last certificate issued.
IX. In the case not able to ascertain the genuineness of the e-KYC data submitted by applicant,
CA should reject the request and provide option for applicant for direct verification by CA..
X. CA should notify applicant the agreement for the use of KYC information for DSC issuance by
CA on successful authentication by the applicant. The applicant should have option to accept
or reject the same.
XI. CAs should preserve the digitally signed proof of verification information as per the
requirements mentioned in the Information Technology Act.
XII. Applicant should be able to access notifications, history of eSign transactions, account
modification etc., activation & deactivation info and also manage any queries/disputes
through eKYC account maintained by CA.
XIII. Applicant should have an option to activate, deactivate and close account at any point.
XIV. Appropriate fraud detection and preventive security mechanisms should be implemented
against enrollment frauds.
XV. CA should have approval of CCA for maintaining eKYC account for applicants.

5.2 Aadhaar offline eKYC

1. It is assumed that subscriber has downloaded digitally signed eKYC XML
2. Subscriber uploads eKYC XML within CA app/website and provides the "share code/phrase"
which is used to encrypt the offline KYC XML.
3. CA decrypts XML, validates UIDAI signature, reads the Aadhaar eKYC XML, and extracts
demographic data, mobile number (when available), and photo.
4. CA should accept the mobile number within offline KYC only, no changes are allowed.
5. CA optionally captures email for communications, alerts, and PIN reset options. If CA
captures email, it must be verified by sending an OTP to email.
6. If PAN of the applicant is to be included in eKYC account for embedding it into the certificate,
CA should verify the same prior to inclusion in the eKYC account.
7. Subscriber sets up initial PIN and user ID.
8. CA does interactive video verification(ref 5.1) and also does a photo match of Aadhaar eKYC
photo with the video
9. CA should not accept eKYC of the applicant beyond 3 months. The validity of eKYC account
will be 2 years for eSign. For DSC issuance, video verification should have carried out within
last 3 months
10. CA should allow the usage of eKYC service only after having a digitally signed subscriber
agreement with eKYC applicant.

24 / 42
5.3 Organisational KYC for Organisational Person Certificates
1. This section is applicable only for eKYC applicant affiliated to Government organizations. KYC
of organisational eKYC applicant should be submitted to CA by the parent organisation
based on the verified data held by the them.
2. Organisation should have an agreement/undertaking with CA for the issuance of DSC or
eSign based on the same KYC details held by CA.
3. The authorised signatory of the organisation is responsible for requesting the creation,
modification and deletion of eKYC account for organisational persons to CA. All the requests
to CA should be certified by authorised signatory of the organisation.
4. CA should carryout verification of existence of organisation and its authorized signatory’s
identity as mentioned in 2.2,2.3 or 2.4 of the Identity Verification guidelines
5. In the case of electronic submission, the DSC of the authorized signatory should be
registered with CA and should be mapped with the name of the verified organisation. In the
case of paper based request by authorised signatory of the organisation, CA should verify the
authenticity of the request.
6. The eKYC account request should include Name, Office address, photo, PAN, mobile no,
Organisational ID etc. The mobile number and PAN of the applicants are mandatory. The
copy of the organisational ID card and PAN should be submitted to CA.
7. CA activates eKYC account after mobile, email and PAN verification. CA should allow the
usage of eKYC service only after having a digitally signed subscriber agreement with eKYC
applicant.
8. In case of any change in account holder's status or information, Organisation should inform
CA immediately.
9. CA should provide Organisational eKYC applicant to set up PIN and user ID up on the
authentication by CA.
10. CA should accept the mobile number within Organisational KYC only, no changes are
allowed.

5.4 Banking eKYC for Banking Customers

1. This section is applicable only for persons having Banking account and Banks submit the
KYC of the Banking Customer to CA directly after obtaining consent and authentication from
the customer.
2. CA should verify the source of the request and signature of bank prior to accept KYC
information
3. CA should have an agreement/undertaking with Bank.
4. CA should carryout verification of existence of Bank , authorised signatory's identity as
mentioned in 2.2,2.3 or 2.4 of the Identity Verification guidelines
5. The DSC to be used for signature by bank should be registered with CA and should be
mapped with the bank ID/Name
6. The KYC details should include Name, address, photo, PAN, mobile no, Bank account No,
Bank IFSC code.
7. The mobile number and PAN of the applicants are mandatory

25 / 42
8. CA should allow eKYC applicant to set up PIN and user ID up on the authentication by CA.
11. CA activates eKYC account after mobile, email and PAN verification. CA should allow the
usage of eKYC service only after having a digitally signed subscriber agreement with eKYC
applicant.
9. If email is not present in the KYC provided by Bank, the same can be captured by CA and
should accept only after verification.
10. CA should accept the mobile number within bank KYC only, no changes are allowed

26 / 42
 6 Guidelines for issuance of Digital Signature Certificates to
bank account holders and bank RAs
Digital Signature Certificates (DSC) are being issued on verification of the identity and address of the
applicant under the Information Technology Act. These guidelines are intended to be used to issue
DSCs by CAs to applicants who have bank accounts and the DSC application is received through the
applicant’s bank. The bank needs to verify the information retained by bank for establishing the
identity of the account holder for opening the bank account against that present in the DSC
application form. As the banks follow due-diligence in the verification of identity and address of
account holders as per RBI Guidelines, the same verified information can also be used in the DSC
application for obtaining a DSC from a Licensed CA.

1) The term “Banking Registration Authority” hereafter referred to as Bank RA is a branch

head/manager in each branch of their Bank, designated for the purpose of validation and
recommendation of account holder’s information present in their database to apply for a Digital
Signature Certificate to a Licensed Certifying Authority. The certificate issued to Banking RA by
IDRBT CA should comply with the profile mentioned in Annexure A and is intended only for
authentication of Banking RA by a licenced CAs.
2) The Bank RAs are required to retain/archive the DSC application form and be subject to audit in
accordance with the audit parameters specified in respect of the information used to obtain DSC
which is validated against the information retained in their database. A Bank RA should follow
the specific guidelines issued by CCA for issuance of DSC to its account holders. Bank-RAs are
subjected to audit as per the auditing checklist specified. As the issuance of DSC to account
holder and subsequent usage of DSC for authentication and transaction signing, has direct impact
on securing internet banking, banks should take remedial measures on any audit observation
immediately. An agreement needs to be executed between Banks and CA.
3) Information retained in the bank database for establishing the identity of account holder for
opening the bank account and a certification(Digitally Signed) of the same by a designated Bank
RA can be accepted by any Licensed CAs for issuance of DSC to bank account holder .
However any other information which is to be present in the DSC should be verified by CA
directly or in the process of communication prior to issuance DSC to account holder.
4) To enable issuance of DSC to bank account holder through Bank RA, the Identity and Address
proof can be used. If the required information is not present in the bank's database, it should be
modified to include the same.
5) After establishing the DSC applicant’s credentials from the database of bank, and submission of
authenticated electronic request to CA, further issuance steps should be taken care by CAs and
their Help Desk. The authenticated electronic request to CA should include IFSC code of the
bank so that CA can include IFSC code in the OU field of certificate of account holder. The
requirements in respect of certificate issued through bank channel are given in below.
6) For renewal of DSC, Submission of electronic application form by an account holder with valid
digital signature is permitted. However it should be necessarily be through same bank.
7) For Class 3 certificate issuance, personal verification is mandatory and the Bank RA should
complete the physical verification of applicant before recommendation for Class 3 certificate
issuance to CAs.

27 / 42
6.1 Security Guidelines for usage of DSC in Banking.

1) For authenticating DSC application form for issuance of DSCs to Banking account holders, Banks
RA should use DSC issued by IDRBT CA only. The Banking RA DSC should be of Class III level
assurance. As a part of the process of certificate issuance to Bank RAs, a unique serial number
(Bank IFSC Code) should be assign to Bank RA and a list of Bank RAs should be made available on
IDRBT’s site as an optional source of verification by CAs.
2) The designated location of functioning of Bank-RA should be consistent with address details
given in the DSC issued to Bank-RA. In the event of transfer of designated Bank-RA, the banking
procedures should insist on the revocation of Bank-RA certificate and issue a new certificate to
the newly designated Bank-RA.
3) The archival of digitally signed DSC application forms can be undertaken by CAs on the behalf of
Banks.
4) The cryptographic token for creating and holding the private credentials is to be made available
to the DSC applicant by CAs; however banks can facilitate the DSC issuance by distributing
crypto tokens through their own arrangement. Such token should comply with Information
Technology Act Standards and guidelines issued by CCA.
5) In order to minimize the manual key-in errors, it is recommended that the account holders
information retained by banks are made available to DSC application form which is to be signed
and submitted to CA by a Bank RA through automated software programs.
6) In the case of account holder having accounts in multiple banks and obtained DSC through one
bank channel or CA directly, the same DSC should be accepted by all banks through a registration
process. Prior to acceptance of a DSC, issued another bank, the bank should satisfy themselves
through validation of information present in DSC against information kept in their database like
Name, address, PAN or Aadhaar Number etc to ascertain that the DSC belongs to the same
account holder only. Validity of certificate in respect of revocation and path validation should
be carried out prior to acceptance of DSC. To associate customers DSC to Customers bank
account, PAN or Aadhaar Number is mandatory in the DSC and the same should have been
registered in the Banks' account details also. The banks should reject the DSCs , if they are not
satisfied with the association of DSC with customer
7) The banks should direct customers to inform CA as well as all the banks (where DSC is registered
for authentication and signing) in the case of lost or stolen tokens or any other revocation
scenario. The banks should have a mechanism to remove association of DSC to the subscriber's
account immediately.

Bank RA Certificate Profile (Issued by IDRBT CA)

Issuer DN
Attribute Value
IDRBT CA {Generation Qualifier} {Re-issuance
Common Name (CN)
Number}
House Identifier Castle Hills
Street Address Road No. 1, Masab Tank,Hyderabad
State / Province Andhra Pradesh

28 / 42
Postal Code 500 057
Organizational Unit (OU) Certifying Authority
Institute for Development & Research in Banking
Organization (O)
Technology
Country I IN

Subject DN
Attribute Value
Common Name (CN) Joshi
House Identifier 6,CGO Complex
Street Address Lodhi Road
State / Province Delhi
Postal Code 110003
Organizational Unit (OU) BKID0006048
Organization (O) Bank of India
Country I IN

End User Certificate Profile (issued by CA)

End User Certificate –Subject Specifications

Max Length: 64 Characters

This attribute MUST either contain the name of the department or

sub-division of the organisation the person belongs to if the
certificate is being issued for official purposes OR must not be used.
6 Organisation Unit
The Organisational unit must not be present when the organisation
has been marked as “personal”

The Organisational unit must be bank IFSC Code when the

organisation has been marked as “Banking Personal”

Issuer DN
Attribute Value
(n)Code Solutions CA {Generation Qualifier} {Re-
Common Name (CN)
issuance Number}
House Identifier 301, GNFC Infotower
Street Address Bodakdev, S G Road, Ahmedabad
State / Province Gujarat
Postal Code 380054
Organizational Unit (OU) Certifying Authority
Organization (O) Gujarat Narmada Valley Fertilizers Company Ltd.
Country I IN

29 / 42
Subject DN
Attribute Value
Common Name
J Manohar
(CN)
Serial Number 794DBED34BEDD3659726F53E44B482B5FC30C76F44BAA328522047551C1A4FA4
State or
Delhi
Province Name
Postal Code 110003
Organizational
BKID0006048
Unit (OU)
Organization (O) Banking Personal
Country I IN

7 Key Generation
In the context of key pair generation by DSC applicant, if
1. DSC applicant generates key pair in hardware crypto graphic token as specified
in the section 6.1.1 of CP and
2. keys are generated in the physical presence of person authorized by CA as
witness who certifies the certificate signing request(CSR) to CA using Digital
Signature and encrypts the CSR with the public key provided by CA and
3. verification of authorized person's signature and prior to issuance of DSC by
CA.
OID 2.16.356.100.10.2 shall be asserted in the policy field of DSC.

30 / 42
Annexure 1 Attestation

Copy of supporting document should be attested by any one of the following:

 Group ‘A’ /Group ‘B’ Gazetted officers
 Bank Manager/Authorised executive of the Bank
 Post Master

Important note : The Name, designation, office address and contact number of the attesting
officer should be clearly visible. With this, CA should able to trace and contact the attesting
officer if required. Only the clear and complete attestation should be accepted by CAs.
Attestation is applicable for paper documents only. If seal is not visible, the self attested copy
of organisational Identity card of attesting officer should be enclosed.

Group ‘A’ Gazetted officers include

a) All India services though posted to states

b) Promotes from states to the cadre of Assistant commissioner and above
c) Police officers (Circle Inspector and above)
d) Additional District Civil surgeons
e) Executive Engineers and above
f) District Medical Officer and above
g) Lt. Col and above
h) Principals of Government Colleges and above
i) Readers and above of Universities
j) Patent Examiner etc.

Group ‘B’ Gazetted officers include

a) Section Officer
b) BDO(Block Development Officer)
c) Tahsildar
d) Junior Doctors in Government Hospitals
e) Assistant Executive Engineer
f) Lectures in Government colleges
g) Headmaster of Government high schools
h) 2nd Lieutenant to Major
i) Magistrate

Attestation in the case of applicant directly submitting to CAs. When DSC applicant
interacts directly (physically) with CA at CA premises, self attested documents can be
accepted. CA needs to certify the copies against the original. The proof in respect of
site visit by the DSC applicant should be preserved along with application form.

31 / 42
Attestation for existence of organization: The documents related to the existence of
organisation can also be attested by authorized signatory/proprietor on the
condition that Certified copy of proof of authorized signatory's affiliation to
organisation is produced for verification.

Attestation in the case of electronic verification: All electronic verification, such as

PAN, should be digitally signed by CA and evidence should be preserved.

32 / 42
Annexure 2 summary of verification

SUMMARY OF VERIFICATION
RA CERTIFICATE IDENTITY PROOF ADDRESS PROOF SIGNATURE TELPHONE/SM ATTESTATION PHYSICAL ARCHIEVE
TYPE VERIFICATION S VERIFICATION BY
BY VERIFICATION

PERSONAL PHOTO ID WITH eKYC or AS PER CA CA AS PER ANEXURE VIDEO CA

SIG OR eKYC 2.7 1 VERIFICATION

ORG. ORG. ID OR eKYC ORG LETTER CA CA AS PER ANEXURE VIDEO CA

PERSON(2.3) 1 VERIFICATION
RA of CA
GOVT/PSU/B ORG ID PROOF , ORGANISATIONAL CA AUTHORISED AUTHORISED AUTHORISED CA
ANKS ETC ORGANISATIONAL LETTER PERSON PERSON PERSON
(2.2) LETTER
ORG. RA ORG. ORG. ID OR eKYC ORG LETTER ORG RA ORG RA ORG RA ORG RA CA
PERSON
BANK RA BANK AS IN BANK’S AS IN BANK’S BANK RA AS IN BANK BANK BANK RA BANK RA
CUSTOMER DATABASE DATABASE DATABASE
AADHAR PERSONAL AADHAR eKYC AADHAR eKYC NA **AS IN UIDAI *AS PER ANEX1 VIDEO CA
OFFLINE DATABASE OR ORG RA OR VERIFICATION
eKYC CA
ORG. AADHAR eKYC ORG LETTER NA **AS IN UIDAI *AS PER ANEX1 NA CA
PERSON DATABASE OR ORG RA OR
CA
* For individual credentials other than that received through Aadhaar eKYC. In the case of online pan
verification, verification and the preservation of digitally signed proof by CA suffice attestation.
** the individuals demographic details information received directly through Aadhaar eKYC service need
not to be re-verified by CA..

33 / 42
Annexure 3 GST registration Verification
1. For GST verification, CA should be ASP/GSP of GST-GSP where GSP application expose GST
System functionalities to ASP/GSP
2. CA should use only the organisational GST details verification services provided by GST or their
approved GSPs through APIs
3. The organisational details include Organisation Name (Legal Name of the Organization), Address
& status (active/non-active) at the time of verification.
4. CA should ensure the “organization name” is matching with the certificate application, and also
ensure the organization is active with filings lesser than 3 months
5. CA should preserve the digitally signed proof of organisational GST details obtained from GST
services.
6. The proof of verification should be digitally signed by CA verification Officer.

34 / 42
Annexure 4 Change History
Change History
SL DATE SECTION MODIFICATION
1. 121.05.2015 2.1 (5) Removed (other than Banking and organisational).
2. 221.05.2015 2.1 (9), 2.4 (11) Modified one minutes to 20 seconds
, 3.3
3. 121.07.2015 Annexure 1 - In continuation to the text under important notice, the following
Attestation words to be added " The self attested copy of Id card of attesting
officer should be enclosed"
4. 221.07.2015 2.3, 2.4(9), A) Association of person (body of individuals)
. 4.1(e), B) Limited Liability Partnership
C)Non-Government Organisation /Trust
Modification
2.4(9), 4.1(e), "copy of PAN card (Front side page-1)" is replaced with “Business
Registration Certificate” (S&E / VAT / ST)"
5. 321.07.2015 Annexure 1 - "Existence of organization: The documents related …. Should be
. Attestation provided"
6. 421.07.2015 1 General In case of paper based application form , the applicant should affix
. guidelines to signature covering Photo and application form
CAs, xiv (new) A CA may ask for more supporting documents , if they are not
satisfied.
7. 521.07.2015 2.3, 2.4(9), Note: In case organization name is different from that in PAN card,
4.1(e), - the proof of name change should be submitted.
8. 621.07.2015 5. 5 Guidelines In continuation to
for e- "DSC applicants who have Aadhaar Number with the email-Id or
authentication mobile phone number registered in UIDAI Database"
using Aadhaar
e-KYC services In case email-Id and mobile phone number is not registered in
UIDAI Database, CA can provide a pass code to DSC applicant
through application interface after finger Print verification, which
can be used as challenge password for further authentication
process.
9. 721.07.2015 2.2 Banks
Identity verification requirements
10. 11.03.2016 Annexure 1 - If seal is not visible, the self attested copy of organisational Identity
Attestation card of attesting officer should be enclosed.
11. 11.03.2016 Definitions Definitions added: CA premises, CA Verification office, trusted person,
CA verification officers, subscriber identity verification method
12. 11.03.2016 1 General Deleted. 1.viii
guidelines to Modification : existing : …..Blue-ink only
CAs,viii, x, modified …… preferably with blue-ink.
xv-xxi(New) Modified ix(of earlier version). The application forms, supporting
documents and all other verification information including VC and
details of telephonic verification shall be preserved and archived by
CAsfor a period as mentioned in the IT CA rules, 27. Archival of
Digital Signature Certificate from the date of expiry of the Digital
Signature Certificate.
Clauses 1(xv)-1(xxi) are newly inserted
13. 11.03.2016 2.1 (1),2.3(1) 2.1 (1),: Modified: " Registration authority (RA) is an entity engaged by

35 / 42
 2.1 (5) CA to collect DSC Application Forms (along with supporting
2.1 (8) documents) and to facilitate verification of subscriber credentials. An
RA interacts with the CA and submits the subscriber's request for
certificate. A RA should have legally enforceable agreement with CA. "
(5)(i) Deleted : for two months.
(ii) Modified "the audit logs" to " verification information"
(8) Existing: CA premises. An officer appointed.....
Modified CA verification Office. A trusted person.....
14. 11.03.2016 2.2(a) 2.2 (a) & (e) Inserted “or proof of individuals association with
2.2(e) organization”
2.2(h) 2.2 (h) Added
15. 11.03.2016 2.3(1) Existing: An RA interacts with the CA and recommends ….
Modified: An RA interacts with the CA and submits……….
16. 11.03.2016 2.4(1) Modified: " Registration authority (RA) is an entity engaged by CA to
collect DSC Application Forms (along with supporting documents) and
to facilitate verification of subscriber credentials. An RA interacts with
the CA and submits the subscriber's request for certificate. A RA
should have legally enforceable agreement with CA. "
17. 11.03.2016 2.4(5)(i) Deleted : for two months.
18. 11.03.2016 2.4 (8) Inserted
19. 11.03.2016 2.4(9) Submission/Forwarding of organizational DSC Application-
Corporate Entities
Inserted other than DSC applicant at the end of " In the case of
authorised signatories’ self DSC application,….."
20. 11.03.2016 2.4(10) Individual/Proprietorship
Inserted Note
21. 11.03.2016 2.4(12) Existing: …….. CA premises.
Modified: ……….. CA premises/CA verification Office

Existing: An officer can be appointed by…...

Modified : The trusted person of each CA…….
22. 11.03.2016 3.1 a Inserted "Govt issued identity" along with passport in the
Documents
23. 11.03.2016 3.5 Inserted
24. 11.03.2016 4.1(d) Modified “clearly mentioned in the cps without any ambiguity” to “as
per this document only”.
25. 11.03.2016 4.1(h) Inserted
26. 11.03.2016 Annexure 1- 1. Under the heading " Attestation in the case of applicant directly
Attestation submitting to CA",inserted the following
"The proof in respect of site visit by the DSC applicant should be
preserved along with application form"
2. Under the heading "Attestation for existence of organization"
The existing text " …… provided with Certified copy of organizational
ID proof of authorized signatory should be provided " has been
replaced with " …… on the condition that Certified copy of proof of
authorized signatory's affiliation to organisation is produced for
verification"

3. Inserted " Attestation in the case of electronic verification "

27. 11.03.2016 FAQ, General Modified RA/CA to CA……
1(a)
28. 16.04.2016 5. Aadhaar e-KYC services for e-authentication Section I added

36 / 42
29. 25.07.2016 3.0 3 Nationals has been changed to applicant in 3
3.1 Definition of foreign applicant has been added
3.5 Attestation requirements (i) and (ii) added
30. 225.04.2017 1 General xxiii, xxiv added
5 guidelines to
. CAs
0
31. 25.04.2017 2.5 a new section 2.5 added
32. 25.04.2017 5(g) Modified
33. 29.06.2017 1 General Modified
guidelines to
CAs xxiii
34. 21.07.2017 5. Aadhaar e- Modification in this section in line with the omission of email and
KYC services for mobile number in Aadhar eKYC response
e-auth

35. 29.12.2017 1 General Physical verification of DSC applicant by CA prior to issuance of Class 2
guidelines to personal DSC from 01.03.2018 onwards.
CAs xxv
36. 25.05.2918 1 General Physical………… from 01.07.2018 onwards.
guidelines to For Organisational Person DSC, CA should follow the verification
CAs xxv procedure for Class 3 in the case of Class 2 DSC also

37. 29.11.2018 1 General III. The biometric authentication carried out using Aadhaar e-KYC
guidelines to service to establish identity of the applicant, shall be treated as
CAs physical verification of subscriber .The (signed) response from UIDAI
should be preserved as evidence. DSC application form can be
generated by CA based on the verified information held in eKYC
account maintained by CA as per section 5 after obtaining the two
factor authentication of the applicant. In the absence of the
electronic signature (eSign) on the electronic DSC application form
by applicant, ink signature of DSC applicant on a printed DSC
application form is required.

xi. Aadhaar eKYC service verification.

xxi. Verification (Class 3) will
xxii Aadhaar eKYC OTP and Biometric
xxv Physical verification of DSC applicant by CA is mandatory prior
to issuance of Class 2 & Class 3 personal DSC from 01.07.2018
onwards. For Organisational Person DSC, CA should follow the
verification procedure for Class 3 in the case of Class 2 DSC also
38. 29.11.2018 2.1 2 deleted
3. For issuing a Class 3 DSC, not only the physical verification of
original documents against the documents submitted is mandatory
but. The physical verification of person is also compulsory for Class
2 & Class 3 DSCs
7. under Attestation against original copy, added " Physical
verification of original documents against the copy of documents
submitted is mandatory before attestation"
9 "Class 3" word deleted

37 / 42
39. 29.11.2018 2.2 Under BANKS e. For Class 3 DSC
40. 29.11.2018 2.3 3 For Class 3 certificate Organization RA should can

41. 229.11.2018 2.4 2 and 3 deleted

. 13 Class 3" word deleted
4
42. 29.11.2018 5 The "5.Aadhaar e-KYC services for e-authentication replaced with
"5.Guidelines for maintaining e-KYC account by CA"
5.1 General Guidelines, 5.2 Aadhaar offline KYC - added
43. 26.12.2018 1.0, iii Removed -: Second sentence removed (In the absence of ...
required.
44. 26.12.2018 4.4 Added- (This section is .. hierarchy.)
45. 26.12.2018 5.0 5. heading - added "Only for empanelled ESPs"
46. 23.04.2019 2.3(7), Deleted the sections 2.3(7), Submission/Forwarding requirements
for the organizational DSC Application
47. 23.04.2019 2.3, 2.4 and 4.1 Modified the sections 2.3, 2.4 and 4.1 have been modified to
include GST requirements and also removed requirements ITR
filing statement and audit report
48. 23.04.2019 XIV of 5.1 deleted the section XIV of 5.1 General Guidelines
49. 23.04.2019 5.3 & 5.4 added Sections 5. 3 Organisational KYC for Organisational Person
Certificates , 5.4 Banking eKYC for Banking Customers
50. 23.04.2019 Annexure New - Annexure 3 GST registration Verification

38 / 42
Annexure 5 FAQ
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions on Identity Verification Guidelines Version 1.0

General
1. What is the technical validation to be made by CA to ensure uniqueness of email ID?
a. A minimum validation should happen during application submission that, the given
email ID should not have been issued to any other identifier (such as PAN or date of
birth). This validation needs to happen for all the historical DSCs issued by the CA for
minimum of last 12 months. This will provide reasonable assurance of uniqueness of
the email ID provided by the applicant.
2. It is indicated that, in case of Government Applicants, CA should verify the Organizational and
authorised signatory's identity. Is this applicable for Class 3 alone, or even for other classes of
certificate?
a. All classes of certificates.
3. In case of Individual applicant, it is said that “any government issued photo ID card bearing
signature of the applicant”. Are government employee ID card acceptable?
a. The Government Employee ID card is acceptable, only in the cases where it is
carrying the central or state emblem. Thus it satisfies as the official card issued by
central or state government.
4. In case of Organizational DSC applicant, is there need for Individual address proof?
a. No.

Mobile Verification
1. Which category of applicants is this applicable?
a. Unless and otherwise not exempted, all applications received through “Normal RA”,
2. Is the mobile number mandatory for DSC Application?
a. Yes.
3. Should the mobile number be unique for the given certifying Authority?
a. Yes.
4. How the uniqueness of Mobile Number should be validated?
a. The CA should ensure that, they satisfactorily verify with the applicant, that the
Mobile Number provided in the application form belongs to them.
5. What is the technical validation to be made by CA to ensure uniqueness of Mobile Number?
a. A minimum validation should happen during application submission that, the given
Mobile Number should not have been issued to any other identifier (such as PAN or
date of birth). This validation needs to happen for all the historical DSCs issued by
the CA for minimum of last 12 months. This will provide reasonable assurance of
uniqueness of the Mobile Number provided by the applicant.
6. Can Landline number be provided instead of mobile number?
a. No.
7. What are the basic KYC questions to be verified in Mobile Verification?
a. Questions of KYC should validate the Applicants Identity, Applicants consent for
obtaining DSC, the information provided in application, and the RA information
through whom the application was submitted.
8. What details should be logged for Mobile Verification?
a. For successful mobile verification, CA should log the information as part of audit logs,
which shall include, CA Officer Identity (Name / ID) who made the mobile
verification, date and time of verification, and other information which were part of

39 / 42
 application (like applicant name who completed the verification, the mobile number,
etc)
Video Recording/Verification
1. Who has to perform the video recording?
a. The video recording should be done by CA, which can be facilitated by RA. The
recording of the video should be real-time and directly in the CA system. There
should not be any room for tampering the video or submitting already recorded
videos.
2. Is it necessary to make the video recording with applicant to physically be present in CA
Premise?
a. No. It can happen from anywhere.
3. Who has to verify the video recording?
a. CA has to verify the video recording including the cross verification against the
photograph provided in application, the KYC answers stated, etc
4. Can applicant record a video and send it to CA over email, etc?
a. No.
5. Can the video be recorded in mobile, etc?
a. The recoding can be facilitated through mobile, only in case where CA has his own
mobile application, which can do a real-time streaming to CA System.
6. Can video conferencing solution be used for video recording?
a. Yes, provided, it satisfies the real-time recording to CA’s application.
7. What should be the minimum duration of video recording?
a. Minimum of 20 Seconds
8. When there is a physical verification through Video recording, what is the need for
Attestation of documents?
a. Attestation is a separate procedure for authenticity of supporting documents. So, it is
required irrespective of video verification.
9. In some of the government offices and corporate offices, video recording is not allowed. How
to get this Video recording in such case?
Video recording can be facilitated from anywhere. The applicant can either visit CA / any
other location, or fulfil video recording for CA
10. In case of video recording whether mobile phone/SMS verification is required.
a. Mobile phone/SMS verification is required.

Foreign Applicants
1. Why both “Public Notary” and “Apostillization” is required for foreign national in their native
country?
a. Public Notary is a prerequisite process for Apostillization (or Consularization). This is
a common procedure. These are defined in International Law and are governed by
various conventions and treaties.
2. How to perform the interactive video recording for foreign nationals, as they are not
physically accessible to CA?
a. CA should facilitate the tamper proof video recording of the applicant. . The video
recording with applicant can happen from anywhere
3. What is the allowed address proof, in case the passport of that country does not contain the
address?
a. For the countries, where the address is not the part of passport, the applicant has to
produce additional proof of address issued by the government of respective country.
Such address proof shall also be certified as applicable.

40 / 42
 4. What if the proof of address belongs to some other country? Should that be still attested by
respective local embassy?
a. The ‘Address Proof’ should be attested by the embassy of the country to which the
address belongs.
5. Should the original copy of attested (notarized + appostilled / consularized) document to be
submitted?
a. All certified copies should be with original certification. The photocopy of attested /
certified documents shall not be taken.
6. How to verify the notarized + appostilled / consularized procedure?
a. Appostilled copy will contain the stamp of respective country with clear indication.
Consularized copy will bear a stamp and also contain the red tape as per the
Consularization process.
Organizational RA
1. Who can be Organizational RA?
a. As defined in the guidelines, the Corporate Entities or Government Organizations can
become “Organizational RA”
2. For whom, an Organizational RA can process a DSC application (issue the certificate)?
a. They can process the DSC application, only for the employees / directors / etc of
their own organization. They cannot issue the DSC to external entities / individuals.
3. What should be the Organizational Name (O Value) in the DSC, for certificates issued through
Organizational RA?
a. The O value in the DSC should be ‘fixed’ to the Legal name of Organizational RA. All
the applications processed through Organizational RA should be an Organizational
Personal Certificate, where Organization name cannot be modified.
4. Can an organization procure the DSC through a Normal RA, or is it mandatory for each
organization to become an Organizational RA?
a. Any organization can still procure the DSC through a Normal RA. There is no
restriction.
5. In cases of applications through Organizational RA, whether video and mobile verification
process is applicable?
a. No. The Authorized person as defined under Organizational RA Agreement should
perform the physical verification, and confirm the data provided in application form.
6. Can an Organizational RA facilitate an Individual Certificate?
a. No.
7. Can an Organizational RA issue certificate to some other Organizational representative?
a. No.
8. What kind of agreement should be in place for an organizational RA?
a. The agreement should mandatorily cover the undertaking of process to be followed
as per Organizational RA guidelines. CA or the organization can add additional
content on commercials and others.
9. It is said that the KYC of the Organizational RA should happen at least once in a year. What
happens in case of 2 / 3 year validity DSC issuance?
a. This has no relation to the KYC validity of DSC applicant. The DSC once issue will
remain valid for the period issued, irrespective of Organizational RA’s existence.
10. Can the ‘Authorized representative’ of Organizational RA, be an external person, who is duly
authorized by the Organization?
a. No.
11. Can a “Normal RA” who is a non-individual and functioning as organization, be treated as an
organizational RA?
a. No.

41 / 42
*************************

42 / 42