Regional Passport Office

I visited the Passport Seva Kendra today for my new passport application. Most of the staff were polite and helpful, and I appreciate their support. However, one lady officer at the counter was very rude and unhelpful while rejecting my application due to a door number change. She did not explain the issue properly or guide me on how to correct it. Except for this one person, the rest of the staff treated applicants well. I hope the authorities improve staff behavior so applicants are treated with more respect.

The Regional Passport Office (RPO) at Rayala Towers, Chennai, was one of the most disappointing government office experiences I have ever had. The staff at the entrance, particularly those wearing safari suits, behaved extremely rudely and showed no basic courtesy or respect toward the public. Instead of assisting people who come with genuine concerns, they spoke harshly and treated visitors in an unacceptable manner. People travel long distances from different cities and towns hoping to resolve important passport-related issues, but the way they are treated here is very discouraging. Even attendants or accompanying persons are not allowed to stand inside the premises, and the overall attitude of the staff makes the experience unnecessarily stressful. Public service offices exist to serve citizens, and basic professionalism, politeness, and respect should be the minimum expectation. The state authorities should seriously look into this matter and ensure that the staff working here are trained in proper public interaction and manners. No one working in a public office is above the law, and citizens deserve to be treated with dignity.

Genuine review about the RPO head office located at Chennai Rayala towers - I am an Australian citizen who visited this RPO to apply for an Indian passport surrender certificate. I had an absolute bad experience and worrst service from almost all the officials at the RPO including the security and reception staffs. I will detail the incident below: I reached the aforementioned office at 10 AM IST Monday exactly when they opened the office and took a token number 79 to submit my application. The security staff had no idea how to manage the crowd and they were shouting at everyone for no reason. There were many customers leaving angrily and some were arguing with the security staffs. Everyone looked frustrated and clueless. After 2 hours of waiting the security staff asked me to see a document checkong officer. He checked all my documents and started asking sarcastic and personal questions regarding my wealth and earnings at Australia and irritating me with his superiority complex as a government official. Finally, I managed to get a sign from him around 1pm IST to go to the next queue waiting outside room number 34 where another officer was in-charge of biometrics. The officer mentioned it is lunch break and he left. At 2pm he returned and around 3pm I hady chance to enter his room. When the biometrics officer entered my application number, the system did not recognise the application number and I was asked to start the application from scratch. When I finished the new application, it was end of business hours for the day and I was asked to return the next business day. Next day when I visited the office, the security staff asked me to leave as the biometrics officer was on leave to attend his sick wife. He also mentioned the next two days Wednesday and Thursday are public holidays and to come back on Friday. Today I visited the office again Friday 10:30 AM IST and thankfully I completed my biometrics and I was asked to report to the same document checking officer I visited on Monday. I asked this officer when I will get my surrender certificate and he asked to come back next Friday as there was a process to follow. I politely asked him that I need to return to Australia this Sunday and requested to assign my dad as an authorised person to collect it. He rejected and request and asked me to withdraw the application. I requested for another option to send my surrender certificate to the present address mentioned in the application but he asked his superior officer and the superior officer started pushing me to apply from Australia and pay more in AUD. I lost my cool this time and I asked him if VFS global from Australia can do this same surrender certificate on my behalf as an authorised representative, why can't my dad be appointed as the authorised recipient from my request. He just got up and left the office. I had to cancel my application and they insisted me to apply from Australia which I will do and this is why India is loosing it's talents and the way we are treated in this RPO is a live example for anyone to witness and they expect us to tolerate these guys. I am so sorry to say this but all the staffs in this RPO needs training on workplace etiquette, customer service and timely support.

I had a very disappointing experience at the Regional Passport Office in Chennai. There are not enough employees to handle the crowd efficiently. Even with a confirmed appointment at 10 AM, there is no guarantee that your issue will be resolved on the same day -- it can take 2 to 3 days in some cases. Many people, especially those coming from other districts, are forced to wait for days just to get basic issues sorted. The enquiry counter is not easily approachable, and the staff often display an unhelpful and arrogant attitude. When you ask for clarification or help, it only seems to delay your process further. Overall, it's a very poorly managed system that causes unnecessary stress and inconvenience to the public. I really hope the authorities take this feedback seriously and increase staff strength, improve customer handling, and streamline the process for faster service.

I had one of the most frustrating experiences at the Regional Passport Office, Chennai. There is absolutely no proper management and not enough staff to handle the public. Even with an appointment at 10 AM, I had to wait for nearly 8 hours just to meet the Head Passport Officer. After all that waiting, the officer barely looked into my issue and simply said it had been issued in Trichy, asking me to visit that office instead. If that was the case, why make me wait 8 hours just to be told this at the end of the day? There's no proper enquiry system, poor communication, and many people -- especially those coming from other districts -- are made to wait for 2-3 days without any clear guidance. The staff show no empathy or accountability, and some even display arrogant behavior when asked simple questions. This is a serious failure in public service. I truly hope the authorities take action to improve staff efficiency, implement a better queue and enquiry system, and ensure timely resolution of issues.

very hectic.no proper organisation for maintaining the crowd.the person who was handling my case has no knowledge of whats problem is going on in my applications.she doesnt want to accept what im saying. I don't why this people like this. getting good salary as a central govt staff but not ready to do work.better it should handover to private organisation who can handle perfectly with the minimum salary of 20k. first of all i didnt give any any name change for myself while applying for passport.for this alone they put my passport on hold even after police verification was done.

Very disappointing experience with Chennai RPO for my mother's Tatkaal passport (File No: MA4065612136725). The passport has been stuck at "Printed" status since 16/09/2025. Despite applying under Tatkaal and completing all verifications (including NOC and genuinity certificate), there has been no dispatch for over 10 days. Even after repeated calls, emails, and requests, there was no proper response. Finally, we were asked to come to the office in person, but shockingly, they refused to hand over the passport directly -- defeating the whole purpose of Tatkaal service. My mother is physically challenged and has urgent travel on 01/10/2025, yet the staff showed no empathy or urgency. This is highly negligent and causes unnecessary stress to families who trust the system and defeats the purpose of #TATKAL The passport process is supposed to be citizen-friendly, but the lack of timely updates, poor communication, and refusal to support genuine urgent cases reflects very poorly on the service quality.

Worst experience with staffs who's working as a security guards annoying characters, this is what I got by paying for extra amount to get my passport, Waiting time is too much with limited staffs inside the office. Worst chennai Rpo office(Anna Salai).