Explainer · Pensions

Pension life certificate: file it from your phone, and skip the scam

Swami GuruPublished 4 min read
30 Nov
last day of this year's campaign window for filing
Rs 70
IPPB's fee for a doorstep certificate. The visit is free
1930
cybercrime helpline if a fake bank caller got your details
Last checked
Next check
Read from10 sources

In one line

Pensioners have to file a life certificate every November, and you can do it from an Android phone or an iPhone with a face scan. Anyone who calls or messages offering to "update" it for you is running a scam.1295

Does this apply to you?

Find yourself in the list.

You draw a government pension through a bank
Act now

File your life certificate between 1 and 30 November. The government's own words are that it's needed "for continuation of pension".17

You're 80 or older
Check

Your window is already open. This year's order from the Department of Pension lets pensioners aged 80 and above file from 1 October, and you can still file through November.10

You're helping a parent
Act now

You can run the face app on your own phone as the "operator". The face that gets scanned is your parent's, and the certificate is theirs.2

Someone calls or messages to "update" your life certificate
Act now

Hang up. That's the scam doing the rounds right now. Kerala Police say fraudsters are sending APK files over WhatsApp from profiles that carry bank logos.5

What the rule actually says

The plain version first, then the line from the primary document.

In plain words
It's a yearly job, and November is the month. This year's campaign runs from 1 to 30 November 2026, with camps at banks, post offices and railway offices.78
The document saysDepartment of Pension and Pensioners' Welfare, 13 August 2025: "Pensioners have to submit Life Certificate every year in the month of November for continuation of pension."
In plain words
The phone doesn't have to belong to the pensioner. Your son, daughter or neighbor can set it up once and use it for you. Your Aadhaar does have to be registered with the bank or office that pays your pension.2
The document saysJeevan Pramaan Face App guide: "Any Person can act as an operator."
In plain words
A postman can come home and do it, even if you don't bank with IPPB. You pay Rs 70 only when the certificate is actually generated.3
The document saysIndia Post Payments Bank: "There will be no doorstep charges levied for IPPB or non-IPPB customers for issuance of DLC."

What to do

  1. Check the phone first. On Android you need version 9.0 or later, 4 GB of RAM, a 5 MP camera and an internet connection. Install two apps from the Play Store only: AadhaarFaceRD and Jeevan Pramaan Face App.2 On an iPhone, install the same two apps from the App Store only.9
  2. Keep the pensioner's Aadhaar number, mobile number and PPO number handy. Register the operator once with an OTP and a face scan, then enter the pensioner's details, pick the PPO and tap Scan. Sit facing even light, take off dark glasses, and blink when the app asks.2
  3. Wait for the SMS. It carries a Pramaan ID and a link to download the certificate. Save both, since that ID is your proof that you filed.2
  4. If the phone route won't work, book a postman through your nearest post office or IPPB's online request form, and keep Rs 70 ready. Your bank branch is the other fallback.3
  5. If anyone calls, messages or sends an app file about your life certificate, cut the call and ring your bank's official number. If money has already gone, call 1930 or file at cybercrime.gov.in straight away.5

The fine print

  • AadhaarFaceRD doesn't put an icon on your home screen. It shows up only under Settings, then Apps, so don't reinstall it thinking it failed.2
  • Each PPO gets its own Pramaan ID. If you draw two pensions, say your own and a family pension, select both PPOs during the scan.2
  • Copy the PPO details exactly from your pension papers. The guide warns that wrong details can get the certificate rejected by the paying bank.2
  • Screen sharing is the newer trick. A retired employee in Hyderabad lost nearly Rs 11.69 lakh after "bank officials" got him to share his screen on a WhatsApp video call, supposedly to update his life certificate.6

What we don't know yet

  • What exactly happens if you miss 30 November. Banks usually hold the pension until you file and then pay the arrears, but we found no official 2026 statement on timing.
  • State government and EPFO pensioners can run on different schedules. If your pension isn't from the central government, check the month with whoever pays it.

Our take

Face authentication is one of the better things India's digital ID setup has done for older people. No bank queue, no fingerprint reader that can't read worn-out fingers, and a family member can do the whole thing from their own phone. The catch is that the real process looks a lot like the fraud: install an app, enter an OTP, scan your face. So here's the rule I'd give my own parents. The real one starts with you opening the Play Store or App Store. It never starts with someone calling you. No bank needs to phone you to "update" a life certificate, and no genuine process sends an app over WhatsApp. If a parent of yours draws a pension, sit with them this weekend and do it together on your phone. It's a short job, and next November they'll know what the real thing looks like.

Change log

10 Nov 2026Corrected the Android requirement to 9.0 or later, as the Face App guide states. Added the iPhone route, since there is now an official iOS Face App. Answered two open questions: PIB confirmed the 1 to 30 November campaign on 30 October, and the Department of Pension's 13 August order lets pensioners aged 80 and above file from 1 October. Added four sources.
29 Oct 2026First draft. Checked against the Department of Pension's DLC campaign release and the Jeevan Pramaan Face App guide.
Next check10 Dec 2026, or sooner if the rules change.

Sources

  1. Press Information Bureau, Department of Pension and Pensioners' Welfare, 13 Aug 2025
  2. Jeevan Pramaan, Face App installation guide (v3.6)
  3. India Post Payments Bank, Digital Life Certificate for pensioners
  4. Hindusthan Samachar, 27 Oct 2026, on DLC Campaign 5.0
  5. ThePrint (PTI), 15 Oct 2026, Kerala Police advisory
  6. Telangana Today, 23 Oct 2026
  7. Press Information Bureau, DLC Campaign 5 from 1 to 30 November 2026 (30 Oct 2026)
  8. Press Information Bureau, launch of DLC Campaign 5 (5 Nov 2026)
  9. Jeevan Pramaan, Face App user manual for iOS
  10. Department of Pension O.M. of 13 Aug 2026 on DLC Campaign 5.0, in a Southern Railway circular (via StaffNews)
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