If you have ever wondered what happens to someone’s Aadhaar number after they pass away, you are not alone. Recently a RTI report revealed that only a small percentage of Aadhaar numbers have been deactivated in the last fourteen years, i.e., since the inception of this identity card programme.
However, in a new update, the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has now introduced a facility that allows family members to report a death online through the myAadhaar portal, so the Aadhaar number can be deactivated. This was officially announced on July 16, 2025, but the service itself went live a few weeks earlier, on June 9.
This move has been in the works for some time. UIDAI has already disabled over 1.17 crore Aadhaar numbers since the system launched in 2010. But until recently, there was no straightforward way for family members to initiate this process themselves, especially after collecting the death certificate.
How to Report a Death for Aadhaar Deactivation
UIDAI’s new service is live on myAadhaar Portal specifically for reporting the death of a family member. Here’s how one can deactivate the Aadhaar of a deceased person:
The first step (and necessary requirement) is to acquire the death certificate of the deceased from your municipal authorities.
Once you have this form, head to the myAadhaar Portal.
Here, go to the ‘Reporting of Death of a Family Member’ option/service. This is available for deaths registered in 24 States/UTs currently using the Civil Registration System. More states and UTs are being integrated, so if your state is not listed yet, it should be soon.
Next, you need to authenticate yourself as a family member. For this, you will have to authenticate your own identity on the portal as a standard security measure.
Following this step, you will then be asked to provide the Aadhaar number of the deceased along with their Death Registration Number from the certificate and demographic details.
After you submit this information, UIDAI will validate the request by verifying details you have provided and once everything is checked out, they will take the necessary action to deactivate the deceased person’s aadhaar number.
The UIDAI typically takes about 90 days to deactivate or delist the Aadhaar number.
How will you know it has been deactivated?
You can later visit the same portal (myaadhaar.uidai.gov.in) and go to ‘Check Aadhaar Status’ section. Put in the aadhaar number and if it has been deactivated, the system will show it as either inactive or ‘deactivated due to death’.
