IRCTC Agent ID Provider: 8 Checks Before You Pay

Say you’ve got a quote on your phone. Someone is offering you an IRCTC agent ID, the joining fee looks fair, and they want payment today. That’s the moment most people skip the questions that matter.

Being on IRCTC’s list is the minimum a provider should clear. It isn’t a rating, and the register doesn’t rank anyone. This article doesn’t either. SiOnline is on that register too (Internet Cafe Scheme, page 6, row 27), so its published terms appear below as a worked example, not as a recommendation.

If you’re trying to trace an agent who already booked a ticket for you, this guide on finding a reliable agent or provider fits better. What follows is for someone who hasn’t paid yet.

Who actually registers you?

Not IRCTC. IRCTC doesn’t register a new retail e-ticketing agent directly. It appoints companies, and those companies take on agents. In its Revised Agent Policy, effective 29 November 2019, IRCTC calls the company a Principal Service Provider (PSP) and the agent a Retail Service Provider (RSP). The PSP registers you. IRCTC issues the RSP ID. When this article says “your provider”, it means the PSP that would register you.

The PDF at that address is the 2019 version, as of 18 October 2026. If a rule matters to you, ask the provider to confirm it in writing.

What IRCTC expects from the provider

Think of these as the floor. A provider offering less isn’t meeting the policy.

Source: IRCTC, Revised Agent Policy, Annexure A, sections I and V, retrieved 18 October 2026.

Check 1: Find the provider on the register

IRCTC publishes a PDF called “IRCTC Authorized Service Providers (Agents)”. The copy retrieved on 18 October 2026 has March 2026 in its file details but no printed date. Open IRCTC’s PDF register and do this.

1. The file has separate tables for B2C, e-Governance, B2B and ICS providers. Find the right one.
2. Find the company name in it, then compare it letter by letter with the name on the invoice and agreement you’re being offered.
3. Write down the page and row number, and ask the provider to tell you both. SiOnline’s entry sits under ICS, row 27, page 6.
4. Don’t trust the phone numbers in the table. The register tells you who is appointed. It can’t tell you whether a number still rings.

A match means the company is appointed. It doesn’t tell you anything about its support or its terms, and that’s what the other seven checks are for. If you want a closer look at how to read the register, there’s a separate guide to the Principal Service Provider list.

Check 2: Whose name will the ID be in?

IRCTC’s policy says RSPs “should book tickets using only IRCTC provided agent ids”. It bans sharing or transferring an RSP ID, and it bans booking through a personal user ID for commercial gain (Annexure A, prohibitions, items 4 and 5).

The penalty table treats sharing an RSP ID as an unauthorised-access case. That means ₹20,000 plus taxes on the PSP, and permanent deactivation of that outlet’s RSP ID (Annexure A, Major Irregularities, item ii).

So ask one plain question: “Will IRCTC issue the ID in my own business name?” And never book on another agent’s ID or a shared provider login.

Check 3: What gets verified, and when your money is taken

Ask the provider to list every document it needs before you send any, and whether it checks your eligibility before taking money.

SiOnline’s published order, as of 26 October 2026, is one example you can ask any provider to match. Registration can be paid in two instalments. The first is due at signup. The second is due when document verification completes. The agent ID is created only after full payment. The Standard registration fee is non-refundable.

Why does this matter? If a provider takes your first payment before looking at your case, a rejected application can cost you money. So ask what happens to your payment if IRCTC doesn’t activate the ID.

Also ask what happens if the provider’s own contract with IRCTC lapses. The policy says a PSP’s services are suspended automatically if its renewal isn’t approved by the expiry date, until the formalities are complete (Annexure A, section V, item xiii).

Check 4: Get every cost on one page

The joining fee is just one line. Ask for a single document that names the one-off charge, every charge that repeats, anything optional, and what the wallet holds. SiOnline’s published figures show what a complete list looks like.

Source: SiOnline’s agent registration fees page, checked on 18 October 2026.

Don’t add the rows up yet. They cover different things, and some won’t apply to you.

The agent charge on each booking is separate. SiOnline’s published rate as of 18 October 2026 is ₹40 per PNR for AC classes and ₹20 per PNR for non-AC classes. It’s charged per PNR, not per passenger, and you collect it from the customer. Indian Railways sets these charges, IRCTC’s norms call them the maximum, and they can change (IRCTC Norms for Internet Cafe Scheme, retrieved 18 October 2026). More on it is on the IRCTC agent charge page.

Check 5: Which login are you actually buying?

Ask the provider to name the login its quote covers. If something else is proposed separately, ask for it to be listed as its own item, with the renewal period next to it.

Don’t assume a login is included because an advert hinted at it. If a later invoice doesn’t match what you were told, ask for a corrected quote before you pay again. The standard vs premium guide covers the two registration types.

Check 6: Wallet terms

Each provider’s agreement sets its own wallet rules. Ask for four answers in writing:

1. The minimum balance you have to keep.
2. What a top-up costs.
3. How the balance shows up after each booking.
4. What happens to unused money if you stop.

SiOnline’s wallet figures are in the table above. What any provider does with unused money when you leave isn’t covered here, so that last answer has to come from them.

Check 7: The certificate, and the records you have to keep

The policy says the PSP issues a Certificate of Authorisation to each RSP, displayed prominently at the outlet. Only the provider can issue it (Annexure A, section I, item xi), so a paper from some other company isn’t that certificate. Ask to see yours and check which business name is on it. For how SiOnline handles its own letter, see the agent certificate page.

You also have records to keep. Each RSP must hold on to the customer’s written or electronic request, plus a copy of the ID proof, for booking and for cancellation, for six months. If either is missing, the policy states a penalty of ₹5,000 plus taxes per case (IRCTC Revised Agent Policy, Annexure A, section II, item iii).

Start the habit on day one: a folder on your phone, or a register at the counter, with one entry per customer. It takes seconds as you go and hours to rebuild later.

Check 8: Who picks up when a booking fails?

Bookings fail when a customer is standing at your counter, so test the support route before you pay.

SiOnline’s published support is phone and WhatsApp, 24 hours, 7 days, as of 18 October 2026. Ask every provider for its hours, its channel, and the exact route for a failed booking.

IRCTC decides refund and Ticket Deposit Receipt (TDR) assessments, and SiOnline can’t overturn a railway decision. The policy does set timings for the money, though. The PSP should pay the TDR claim amount to the RSP within 3 working days of getting it from IRCTC. The RSP should then pay the customer within 5 working days of getting it from the PSP (Annexure A, section IV, items vii and viii). Ask how the provider handles its part of that chain. SiOnline’s own sign-in help is on the IRCTC agent login page.

Proceed, clarify or stop

Write the eight checks down with one column per offer and fill them in as answers arrive. Then use this table to decide.

If the provider says it works through a registered company, run all eight checks against that company. And remember the agent charge is per PNR. It’s a charge on a booking, not a forecast of what you’ll earn.

A simple message you can send

Instead of a long call, send this on WhatsApp and wait for written answers:

“Please confirm in writing: your IRCTC register page and row number; the name the ID will be issued in; every one-off and repeating cost; which login type my payment covers; wallet minimum, top-up cost and what happens to unused balance; when each payment is due; and who I call when a booking fails.”

A provider that dodges has told you something too.

Questions agents ask

Can I register as an IRCTC agent directly with IRCTC?

A new retail e-ticketing agent has no direct application route to IRCTC. IRCTC appoints providers, and providers onboard agents. Other categories named in IRCTC’s register, such as Rail Travel Services Agents, follow their own norms.

What if a provider isn’t on the register?

Ask which registered provider it works through. If it names one, find that company’s row and run the checks against it. If it can’t, stop.

To see how SiOnline answers several of these checks, start with the IRCTC agent registration page. SiOnline checks your eligibility at signup before taking the first instalment. The second is due when document verification completes.

Sources

• IRCTC, Revised Agent Policy for E-Ticketing Principal Service Providers, Internet Cafe and B2B Schemes (w.e.f. 29 November 2019), policy PDF, retrieved 18 October 2026.
• IRCTC, IRCTC Authorized Service Providers (Agents), register PDF, retrieved 18 October 2026.
• IRCTC, Norms for Internet Cafe Scheme (PDF created 14 June 2021), norms PDF, retrieved 18 October 2026.

Facts on this page were last checked on 18 October 2026. Fees, timings and policies change; confirm them at the source before you act.