IRCTC Booking Rule Change: More Time to Book Tickets for Aadhaar-Linked Accounts

India

oi-Gaurav Sharma

Indian
Railways
is
changing
online
ticket
booking
rules
for
Aadhaar-authenticated
IRCTC
users
from
January
5,
2026,
on
the
day
the
Advance
Reservation
Period
opens.
The
move
follows
an
earlier
tweak
on
December
29,
2025,
and
is
aimed
at
ensuring
that
reserved
tickets
reach
genuine
passengers
instead
of
touts
or
other
misuse.

From
January
5,
2026,
passengers
who
have
completed
Aadhaar
authentication
on
their
IRCTC
accounts
will
be
able
to
book
tickets
between
08:00
hrs
and
16:00
hrs
on
the
first
day
of
general
reservation.
This
is
a
major
extension
of
the
dedicated
window,
which
currently
runs
only
from
08:00
hrs
to
12:00
hrs.

Indian
Railways
IRCTC
ticket
booking
window
changes
and
Aadhaar
rules

Before
these
fresh
timings,
Indian
Railways
had
gradually
widened
Aadhaar-linked
access
during
the
opening
hours
of
booking.
Initially,
Aadhaar
verification
was
compulsory
only
in
the
first
15
minutes
after
general
reservations
opened
on
the
IRCTC
website
or
app.
That
condition
was
then
stretched
to
a
two-hour
block
between
08:00
hrs
and
10:00
hrs.

The
December
29
revision
pushed
this
Aadhaar-only
slot
further,
allowing
authenticated
users
to
book
until
12:00
hrs
on
the
first
day
of
the
reservation
window.
With
the
latest
decision
effective
January
5,
2026,
this
same
group
will
get
an
eight-hour
window.
The
Railways
states
that
this
supports
fair
use
of
the
reservation
system.

Indian
Railways
IRCTC
ticket
booking
and
offline
counter
process

Indian
Railways
has
clarified
that
these
changes
apply
only
to
IRCTC
online
platforms,
including
both
the
website
and
app.
The
process
for
buying
reserved
tickets
at
computerised
Passenger
Reservation
System
counters
remains
unchanged,
so
passengers
who
prefer
offline
booking
can
continue
using
existing
timings
and
methods
without
any
new
Aadhaar-linked
conditions.

Alongside
ticket
booking
rules,
Indian
Railways
has
also
refreshed
its
guidelines
on
when
reservation
charts
are
prepared.
The
timing
of
the
first
chart
now
depends
on
the
scheduled
departure
of
each
train,
with
separate
slots
for
early
morning,
daytime,
evening
and
late-night
departures,
to
streamline
seat
allocation
and
waitlist
updates.

Indian
Railways
IRCTC
ticket
booking
timings
and
chart
preparation
table

Passengers
can
refer
to
the
following
table
to
understand
the
new
chart
preparation
schedule
linked
to
train
departure
timings:

These
chart
preparation
rules
are
important
for
passengers
tracking
waitlisted
or
RAC
status,
as
seat
confirmations
often
depend
on
the
first
chart.
Knowing
whether
a
train
falls
into
the
previous-night
or
ten-hours-ahead
category
helps
travellers
plan
boarding,
connecting
journeys,
and
last-minute
changes
with
more
clarity.

The
report
on
these
Indian
Railways
and
IRCTC
ticket
booking
changes
is
authored
by
Anish
Mondal,
a
journalist
with
more
than
nine
years
of
experience
covering
railways
and
roadways.
Anish
is
part
of
the
Indianexpress.com
editorial
team
and
focuses
on
high-impact
sectors,
including
transport
connectivity
and
key
infrastructure
corridors.

Anish
began
a
professional
career
at
public
broadcaster
Rajya
Sabha
Television,
now
known
as
Sansad
TV,
gaining
deep
exposure
to
legislative
work
and
national
policy.
In
2018,
Anish
moved
to
FinancialExpress.com,
spending
nearly
six
years
tracking
markets
and
corporate
developments,
before
contributing
to
ETNowNews.com
and
finally
joining
The
Indian
Express
in
2025.

Anish
holds
a
Master
of
Journalism
and
Mass
Communication
from
Apeejay
Stya
University,
along
with
a
Post
Graduate
Diploma
in
Journalism
and
Production
from
Apeejay
Institute
of
Mass
Communication,
and
a
Bachelor
of
Arts
(English
Honours)
from
the
University
of
Calcutta.
Current
areas
of
coverage
include
the
expansion
of
Indian
Railways
and
National
Highway
networks
across
India.