According to officials of Regional Passport Office, Proof of Address card (POA), cannot be accepted as a valid identity for getting a passport, unless orders are issued by Ministry of External Affairs. This announcement had dampened the spirits of many passport applicants. As of now, the officials in the passport office are considering only ration card, gas connection or telephone or electricity bills, income tax assessment order, Voter ID card, bank statement of running account are considered as address proofs.
The officials of Postal Department had said that POA card has all the necessary details such as person’s address, date of birth, signature, blood group and photo identity. Hence, it can be used to get driving license, bank account, voter ID, PAN card and also passport. Its validity was also extended to 3 years recently. However, the Postal Department had written a letter to the MEA, to accept POA as valid address proof.
Source: Times of India