IRCTC 'Use Agent Login Hyperlink': What to Check

You type your agent ID, press login, and IRCTC answers: “Please use Agent Login hyperlink available on login page.” You were sure you were logged in the right way. Now there’s a queue at your counter and a customer asking what’s taking so long.

Don’t panic and don’t keep hitting the button. This post is for agents who hold an IRCTC agent ID from any Principal Service Provider (PSP), a company that IRCTC authorises to onboard agents. We can’t tell you for certain what’s wrong with your particular ID. What we can do is give you checks in a sensible order, starting with the quickest ones that change nothing on your account, and ending with the ones that need your provider.

An agent ID is not a personal IRCTC account. IRCTC’s Revised Agent Policy (effective 29 November 2019, Agent_Policy.pdf) says a Retail Service Provider, which is the policy’s word for an agent, is registered by the PSP, and that IRCTC issues the agent ID for booking e-tickets. It also tells agents to book using only IRCTC-provided agent IDs, not a personal user ID.

So if you type an agent ID into the personal form, a message pointing you to the agent route makes sense. That’s our reading of the wording, though. IRCTC hasn’t published an explanation of this message.

Check 1: are you on the agent login, not the personal form?

This check changes nothing on your account, so do it first. Close the tab, open the login page again, and look for the agent option before you type into the first form you see.

IRCTC’s user guide for its Rail Connect app (PDF created 18 September 2025) describes a web page where the agent “will be required to login from top left menu to AGENT LOGIN >> AGENT OTP LOGIN section.” Menu labels can change, so treat that as a pointer to where to look, not a fixed path. SiOnline’s agent login page says agents cannot log in through an app, so use the browser links in Check 2.

Sign in with the agent ID, not a personal username. It sounds obvious, but a counter with both a personal login and an agent login is exactly where the two get mixed up. If you want to see what the agent screens look like, the IRCTC agent login interface explained walks through them.

Check 2: are you using the link for your login type?

An agent ID signs in with OTP login, DSC login, or both. DSC means Class 3 digital signature certificate, the USB token some agents use. The two login types use different links. As of 17 October 2026, SiOnline’s IRCTC agent login page lists:

• OTP login: ics.irctc.co.in
• DSC login: irctc.co.in

Bookmark the one for your type, and use the bookmark every time. Searching for it fresh each morning is how people end up on the wrong page.

Be careful where you type your credentials. Don’t enter agent details on any site that isn’t IRCTC’s own. IRCTC’s Agent Policy lists sharing access credentials, and engaging any third party to sell e-tickets, as prohibited. A site that asks for your agent password puts the ID itself at risk.

Not sure which login type you have? Ask your provider. If your ID came from another PSP, ask that PSP, and the PSP list page shows how to check any provider on IRCTC’s own list. If you’re still weighing the two options, OTP vs DSC: costs and validity explains the difference.

If you use DSC login, SiOnline’s agent login page says the Class 3 DSC driver has to be installed and the token plugged in before you open the browser. SiOnline’s DSC dongle guide covers the setup.

Check 3: is OTP login activated on the ID?

On SiOnline’s current FAQ page, the entry for this exact message gives a different cause: “Your IRCTC ALAC OTP login is not activated yet.” It asks the agent to confirm three verifications to SiOnline: Aadhaar KYC, the email address on IRCTC, and the mobile number on IRCTC. This is SiOnline’s own support guidance for agent IDs registered through it. It isn’t an IRCTC rule.

In IRCTC’s integration policy for Principal Service Providers (2 September 2020), ALAC stands for Agent Login Authentication Charge, the amount a PSP pays each year for OTP-based agent login. So read the FAQ entry as “OTP login is not activated yet”.

Treat the three items as a checklist for any ID, whichever provider you used.

1. Aadhaar KYC. IRCTC’s Agent Policy makes Aadhaar verification mandatory when an agent is registered. SiOnline’s FAQ page describes the check through the IRCTC Operations portal: log in, open Update Profile of the agent, click Aadhaar Based KYC, enter the Aadhaar number, then enter the OTP sent to the Aadhaar-linked mobile and submit.
2. Email on IRCTC. The same FAQ page describes one step for email and mobile together: open the email from ticketadmin@irctc.co.in in the registered inbox, copy the SMS code in it, click the “Click Here” link, then enter the code and submit. If you never opened that email, ask your PSP whether the email shows as verified.
3. Mobile number on IRCTC. The Agent Policy says every agent login is authenticated by an OTP sent to the registered mobile number. SiOnline’s agent login page adds that the OTP goes to the number registered against the agent ID, not to a personal IRCTC account, and that a changed number has to be updated first. For agent IDs registered through SiOnline, the guide to changing the mobile number used for OTP login covers the process. If your ID came from another PSP, ask that PSP.

Then ask your provider for the current position on activation. Portal screens change, so if yours looks different from the steps above, ask support rather than guessing.

Could a new ID simply not be live yet?

SiOnline’s agent login page lists one more reason a login fails: a newly issued agent ID is not live until KYC completes at IRCTC’s end. It advises checking status rather than retrying the login.

Treat that as a possible cause, not a diagnosis. Ask your PSP where the ID stands. If SiOnline registered you, the application status page explains how to reach the team with your registered mobile number.

Common mistakes that waste a morning

None of these needs special knowledge. They’re just easy to do when you’re busy.

• Typing the agent ID into the personal form. Go back to Check 1.
• Using the OTP link when your ID is a DSC login, or the other way round. Check 2 has both links.
• Following a link from a forwarded message. Type the address or use your bookmark.
• Giving your password to someone “helping” you. The Agent Policy lists sharing access credentials as prohibited.
• Ignoring an email from IRCTC. If one asked you to click a link and enter a code, and you never did, that may be the missing step. Ask your PSP.
• Switching to a new mobile number before it’s updated on the agent ID. SiOnline’s agent login page says a changed number has to be updated first, because the OTP goes to the number registered against the agent ID.

A worked example, with made-up details

Say an agent runs a small cyber cafe. One morning the message appears. Here’s how the checks might go, in order.

First, she closes the tab and opens the login page again. She sees the agent option and uses it. Same message. That rules out the personal form.

Second, she checks her bookmark. It’s the DSC link, but her ID uses OTP login. She opens the OTP link instead. Still the message.

Third, she thinks about the activation. She isn’t sure whether she ever opened the email from IRCTC. She asks her provider whether the email shows as verified, and whether the mobile and Aadhaar KYC are done.

She hasn’t fixed anything by herself yet, but she now has a clear question for support instead of “it doesn’t work”. That’s the aim.

What do you tell the customer while you wait?

Be straight with them. Say the login is giving an error, you’re checking it, and you’ll tell them as soon as you know. Don’t promise a time, because you don’t control IRCTC’s side.

And don’t try to rescue the booking another way. Don’t borrow another agent’s login. Don’t book on a personal ID for a customer who’s paying you. IRCTC’s Agent Policy prohibits selling e-tickets booked through personal IDs for commercial purpose, and it also lists sharing credentials as prohibited. A late booking is a small problem. A deactivated ID is a big one.

What should you send support if it still fails?

Contact your PSP. For an agent ID registered through SiOnline, call or WhatsApp +91 91091 35959 (24 hours, 7 days) or use the support page. Send:

• your agent ID
• which login type you use, OTP or DSC
• which link you opened, copied from the address bar
• the exact message text and the time you saw it
• what you already checked from this list

A good message might read: “Agent ID [your ID]. OTP login. I opened the OTP link from my bookmark this morning. IRCTC says to use the Agent Login hyperlink. I’ve checked the agent option and the link. Please tell me whether OTP login is activated and whether my email and mobile show as verified.”

Never send your password or an OTP to anyone, including support. SiOnline asks for the agent ID only. It doesn’t issue or approve IRCTC IDs, because IRCTC issues them, and it can’t speed up IRCTC’s activation. If you’re locked out for another reason, IRCTC agent forgot password or locked out covers that case.

Questions agents ask

Why is my agent OTP login not activated?

SiOnline’s FAQ page says OTP login is not activated yet, and asks the agent to confirm that Aadhaar KYC, the email on IRCTC and the mobile number on IRCTC are all verified. For agent IDs registered through SiOnline, that’s SiOnline guidance, not an IRCTC rule. Confirm all three with your PSP.

Can my provider speed up OTP activation?

No. IRCTC issues the agent ID, and for an agent ID registered through SiOnline the team can’t speed up IRCTC’s own activation. Send support the agent ID, and never send a password or OTP.

I use an app on my phone. Why can’t I log in there?

SiOnline’s agent login page says agents cannot log in through an app. Use the browser links in Check 2.

Sources

• IRCTC, Revised Agent Policy for E-Ticketing Principal Service Providers, Internet Cafe and B2B Schemes, effective 29 November 2019: Agent_Policy.pdf.
• IRCTC, Policy for Integration of B2B and Internet Cafe Principal Service Providers, 2 September 2020: policy PDF.
• IRCTC, Rail Connect Android Mobile App user guide, PDF created 18 September 2025: UserGuideIRCTC.pdf.

Facts on this page were last checked on 17 October 2026. Login links, menu names and verification steps change; confirm them with IRCTC or your PSP before you act.