A Life Certificate is an essential document for pensioners receiving payments from the Central Government, State Government or other government organisations.
It serves as proof that the pension recipient is alive and is required by authorised pension disbursing agencies, including banks and post offices, to continue crediting pension payments to their accounts.
The certificate must be submitted once a year, with November 30 usually being the last date for submission. Pension payments may be stopped from the following month if the required certificate is not submitted within the prescribed period. Payments resume after the pensioner submits the certificate.
Earlier, pensioners had to visit their pension disbursing authority or obtain a Life Certificate from their former employer and submit it to the agency responsible for disbursing their pension. This could be inconvenient, particularly for elderly pensioners and those with health or mobility-related difficulties.
To make the process easier, the Department of Pension and Pensioners’ Welfare introduced the Digital Life Certificate (DLC) facility in 2014.
Also known as Jeevan Pramaan, the platform uses Aadhaar-based biometric authentication to generate a digital certificate.
Once authentication is completed successfully, the certificate is generated and stored in the Life Certificate repository, allowing pension disbursing agencies to access it online.
How to submit Life Certificate through UMANG app
Pensioners can use the UMANG mobile application to generate and submit their Digital Life Certificate without
having to visit a pension disbursing authority.
Here is the step-by-step process to complete the submission through the app:
- Open the UMANG app: Download and launch the UMANG mobile application on your smartphone. Log in using your credentials.
- Navigate to Jeevan Pramaan: Search for and select the Jeevan Pramaan service within the app.
- Select Generate Life Certificate: Click on the ‘Generate Life Certificate’ option to begin the process.
- Enter Aadhaar details: Provide your Aadhaar number and registered mobile number.
- Validate OTP: Select ‘Generate OTP’ and enter the one-time password received on your registered mobile number. Click on ‘Validate OTP’ to establish the connection.
- Select a biometric device: Choose a mobile device equipped with a biometric fingerprint scanner to proceed with authentication.
- Enter pensioner details: Select ‘Enter Pensioner Details’ and provide the required information, including the Pension Payment Order (PPO) number, name as per Aadhaar, type of pension and sanctioning authority, along with other relevant details.
- Complete biometric authentication: Select the authorisation option and proceed by choosing ‘Scan Finger’. Complete the fingerprint authentication process.
- Confirm submission: Once the biometric authentication is successful, the pensioner’s Life Certificate will be registered and displayed on the screen.
- Save the certificate: Click on ‘OK’ to exit. The submitted Digital Life Certificate can also be downloaded by selecting the ‘Save as PDF’ option.
Also read: How to check EPF balance via online portal, SMS, Umang App
What are the other ways to submit a Digital Life Certificate?
Apart from the UMANG app, pensioners can submit their Digital Life Certificate through several other channels.
- Pension Disbursing Authority (PDA): Pensioners can submit the certificate at their pension disbursing authority. This includes a branch of a nominated public sector bank, a treasury or sub-treasury, or an Accounts Officer.
- Jeevan Pramaan Centre: Pensioners can visit their nearest Jeevan Pramaan Centre to complete the submission. The list of centres is available on the official website: https://jeevanpramaan.gov.in/locatecentre/locate.
- Jeevan Pramaan app: Pensioners can log in using their Pramaan ID and OTP, select ‘Generate Jeevan Pramaan’, enter their Aadhaar and mobile numbers, provide their PPO and pension-related details, and complete fingerprint or iris authentication.
- Doorstep banking: Pensioners can download the Doorstep Banking app, select their bank and choose the service for Life Certificate submission. After entering their pension account details and paying the applicable service charge, they receive an SMS containing the visiting agent’s details. A bank representative then visits their home to complete the process.
- India Post doorstep facility: Pensioners can contact their nearest post office or request a doorstep visit through a postman or Grameen Dak Sevak. Requests can also be scheduled through the Post Info app or the India Post website.
- Video-based customer identification (V-CIP): Pensioners can apply for video authentication through their pension-receiving bank’s website or mobile application. The process and application links are available on the respective bank websites.
- Face authentication: Introduced in November 2021, Aadhaar-based face authentication allows pensioners or their family members to generate a Digital Life Certificate using an Android smartphone. The process uses the Aadhaar Face RD application and the Jeevan Pramaan app, enabling pensioners to complete authentication without visiting an external centre. Also read: EPFO services on UMANG: How to generate and authenticate your UAN