What is a Passport Verification API?
A Passport Verification API confirms that passport details submitted by an individual correspond to a genuine record held by the issuing authority, and returns the associated particulars.
How it works
In the Indian context, verification typically requires the passport file number and the applicant’s date of birth rather than the passport number alone. The API checks these against Passport Seva records and returns the application or issuance status along with holder details. Veriqos provides this through its passport verification API.
The file number requirement surprises businesses expecting to verify from the passport number printed on the document, and it is worth designing the collection step around, because asking a customer for a number they do not have to hand causes drop-off.
What it establishes
That a passport record exists matching the details provided, and its current status. For identity purposes this is a strong signal, because passport issuance involves substantial documentary verification at source.
What it does not establish
That the person presenting the passport is its holder, which requires a face match against the passport photograph. Nor does it validate a physical document’s security features — verification checks the record, not the booklet.
Where it is used
Address and identity verification where Aadhaar is unavailable or inappropriate, onboarding of non-resident customers, employment screening for roles requiring international travel, and as a secondary identity document in higher-value onboarding where a single check is judged insufficient.
A note on document choice
Passport is one of several officially valid documents for KYC in India. Businesses generally accept a range rather than mandating one, because insisting on a document a customer does not hold is a common and avoidable cause of abandoned onboarding.
Related terms: Address Proof Verification · KYC · Face Match · CKYC