IRCTC (Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation) offers the facility of online TDR (Ticket Deposit Receipt) filing for cancellation of e-tickets after the preparation of Indian Railways reservation charts. According to the official website of IRCTC- irctc.co.in, users can use the online TDR filing for such cases and also track status of the refund case through tracking service provided by IRCTC. TDR filing is basically for the people who did not travel by train they booked the ticket. Indian Railways has mentioned few directions for TDR filing and the refund is processed only if those directions are applicable, mentioned IRCTC.
1. TDR filing can be processed only if the customer was not able to perform the journey due to any /or the following reason: train canceled by Indian Railways, train running late by more than three hours and passenger not traveled, difference of fare in case proper coach not attached, AC failure, traveled without proper ID proof, wrongly charged by TTE and if party partially traveled.
2. No refund of fare shall be admissible on the tickets having confirmed reservation in case the ticket is not cancelled or TDR not filed online up to four hours before the scheduled departure of the train, said IRCTC.
3. No refund of fare shall be admissible on RAC e-tickets is case the ticket is not cancelled or TDR not filed online up to thirty minutes before the scheduled departure of the train, IRCTC further said.
4. In case, on a party e-ticket or a family e-ticket issued for travel of more than one passenger, some passengers have confirmed reservation and others are on RAC or waiting list, full refund of fare, less clerk age, shall be admissible for confirmed passengers also subject to the condition that the ticket shall be cancelled online or online TDR shall be filed for all the passengers u pto thirty minutes before the scheduled departure of the train.
5. After online filing of TDR, IRCTC will forward the claim to concerned railways to process the refund and money of refund amount will be credited back to same account through which payment was made after receiving the same from the concerned railways, IRCTC mentioned on its website.
General QnAs regarding IRCTC
What does RLWL13 / WL10 and GNWL20 / WL15 in Indian Railway Reservation mean?
If the status is RLWL13 / WL10, then this means that you have a current remote location waiting list of 10 (the latter number). The difference between the two (13 - 10 = 3 in this case) means that 3 passengers who booked before you have already cancelled their ticket. Your ticket will get confirmed only if 10 passengers who have booked before you for the same journey happen to cancel their journey. Same is the case with GNWL20/15 except that it is general waiting list. Similarly, GNWL/AVAILABLE means that current status of your ticket is CONFIRMED because some passengers who booked before you have cancelled their tickets. To get more details about the waiting list status
One passenger gets a confirmed ticket and other passengers on the same ticket remain waitlisted (WL 1) after chart preparation. Are we allowed to board the train?
If at least one passenger’s status is confirmed (full berth) or RAC (half berth), then all passengers on this ticket are allowed to board the train even if some of them are in waitlisted status. So you can board the train in this case.
If the ticket booked online on IRCTC has a WL (waiting list) status, does it get automatically cancelled if it doesn't get confirmed?
Yes, the tickets booked online by irctc website get cancelled automatically if all passengers on the ticket remain waitlisted even after preparation of chart. This is applicable for both general and tatkal quota.
In Indian Railways, can I board trains like rajdhani even if my status is not confirmed?
One should not board the train if the ticket is in waiting list status for all passengers on the ticket. Normally, the TTE allows passengers with PRS waiting ticket (counter ticket in waiting list status). But in premium trains like rajdhani, shatabdi and duronto, the TTE takes strict actions against those having waitlisted ticket. If found they may be penalized and are made to deboard the train at the next station
The current reservation status of my ticket is in waiting list (WL 3, WL 4, WL 5, WL 6). What are the chances of confirmation of my ticket?
You can check your current PNR status along with confirmation chances of your ticket on trainman. The historical trends gives you more insight on the same.
My PNR status is showing booking status WL18, PQWL, and current status is showing 'confirmed,' but berth details are missing. Did my ticket get confirm?
Yes your ticket is confirmed as is mentioned in the current status field. Berth details will be provided to you upon chart preparation which is usually done a few hours before train depart time.
Which waiting list is cleared first GNWL, TQWL, RLWL, RSWL, RQWL or PQWL? Can RLWL status tickets get confirmed easily?
GNWL stands for General Waiting List and has the highest chances of confirmation. RLWL and RSWL are given for remote stations so very few seats are allotted under them. Due to lesser seats they have lesser chances of confirmation than GNWL. PQWL is Pooled Quota Waiting List and covers those stations not covered under general or remote location quotas. PQWL and RQWL have the least chances of confirmation. TQWL or tatkal waiting list has lesser chances of confirmation than GNWL for same origin-dest pair.
RAC:
If my reservation status is RAC, does it mean the seat has been confirmed? Does an RAC ticket get cleared when the chart is prepared?
RAC status means that you are entitled to a seat (half-berth) in the train. But mostly RAC tickets get confirmed on chart preparation wherein a full-berth is allotted to passenger.
I have booked a ticket for Rajdhani / Duronto express which is RAC 25. Am I entitled to get any seat just like other trains, if the ticket is not confirmed?
If your ticket remains in RAC status on chart preparation, even then you can board the train. You will be allotted a half side-lower berth just like other trains.
Is irctc e-ticket with RAC status considered a valid ticket or not? Are people allowed to travel on RAC tickets on Indian Railways?
Passengers having ticket in RAC status are considered having valid tickets. This is applicable to both tickets booked online (e-ticket) and tickets booked over the counter (PRS ticket). They are allowed to travel in train in such cases.
What is the seat arrangement of a RAC ticket for a female passenger travelling alone?
The indian railway seat allocation systems tries to allocate seats together to two female passengers travelling alone and both having ticket in RAC status. But there it is not guaranteed and there have been instances when a female RAC passenger is allotted a seat with a male RAC passenger. In such cases, one can search for other female passenger having similar scenario and then they can exchange their seats so that both the female passengers share same berth. If such arrangement is not possible, the one should ask TTE to solve the problem. The TTE can either confirm the seat or can pair with female RAC ticket holder in other coaches having same problem.
Chart preparation:
What does chart preparation in indian railways mean?
During chart preparation final seat allotment is done for all the passengers. Some waiting list tickets are confirmed. Berth and coach number is assigned to all passengers having final status as confirmed or RAC while fully waiting list e-tickets are automatically cancelled. Some passengers also get upgraded which means they get accommodation in higher class without paying any extra charge. Fully confirmed tickets cannot be canceled after chart preparation.
When is charting done for a train in indian railways?
With effect from 12th November 2015, chart preparation will take place twice - once 4 hours before scheduled departure time of train while second and final chart will be prepared 30 minutes before the departure time. According to the revised rules, booking will be allowed on internet as well as at reservation counters for a particular train, subject to availability of berths, even after the preparation of first reservation chart. For trains originating early morning, charting can also be done at night. In case train is delayed, the chart may be prepared after the train’s scheduled departure time but before the actual depart time of the train.
What to do if my name does not appear in chart?
If a passenger’s name does not appear in chart he or she should not board the train. This can happen if the passenger’s ticket did not get confirm. If your ticket is confirmed and still cannot find your name in the chart, then you might have done some mistake on your part such as looking at chart of wrong coach or while booking putting wrong train code or wrong date etc. One should consult the train TTE before boarding the train in such cases.
Tatkal & Premium tatkal:
What does TQWL mean?
TQWL stands for Tatkal Quota waiting list. Indian railways used to issue CKWL for tatkal quota waiting list which it recently changed to TQWL. If tatkal ticket goes up, it directly gets confirmed and doesn’t go through RAC status unlike GNWL. During chart preparation, general waiting list (GNWL) is preferred over tatkal waiting list (TQWL) therefore tatkal waitlisted tickets are less likely to get confirmed. Follow these tatkal booking tips to get a confirmed tatkal ticket.
What is the fastest payment option on IRCTC to buy Tatkal tickets?
Booking tatkal ticket in indian railways is not an easy task. It is a race against time and a couple of seconds can make a difference between confirmed tatkal ticket and waiting one. Payment is a portion where many ticket bookings fail. If one is able to make fast and successful payments, then he or she has more chances of booking confirmed tatkal ticket. Now-a-days OTP verification has been made mandatory by IRCTC for ticket booking therefore one should keep his/her phone nearby to get the OTP sent to phone. The fastest mode of payment in such cases is using internet banking (preferable by HDFC or ICICI bank). Credit cards can be equally fast if one has already saved the credit card details.
What are some tips for booking tatkal ticket on IRCTC website?
IRCTC Tatkal ticket booking tips
The reservation under tatkal scheme will open at 10am on the previous day of journey from train originating station for AC classes whereas that for non-AC classes will start at 11am on the previous day of journey from train originating station. Indian railways changed the tatkal quota code from CK and CKWL to TQ and TQWL respectively.
General waiting list (GNWL) is favoured over tatkal waiting list (TQWL) at the time of chart preparation as per this indian railway circular. Therefore, booking of confirmed tatkal ticket is of utmost importance as waiting list tatkal ticket has very less chances of confirmation and tatkal tickets do not go through RAC. Following tips will help you in booking confirm ticket in tatkal quota through irctc website:
- Create more than one credentials for logging on to irctc website. If you have only one login details, borrow one from your friend or family. Trying to book ticket parallely using multiple browser/computer always increases chances of getting a tatkal ticket. DO NOT use same irctc login details on multiple browsers simultaneously as irctc can detect it and log you out from all sessions.
- Make sure tatkal quota for your journey opens one day in advance. It might open two or more days in advance, if the train reaches your boarding station on second or more days of its running. For example, if you want to book tatkal ticket from Nagpur to chennai in Chennai Rajdhani Express (12434), the tatkal booking opens 2 days in advance in this case from your journey date as the train reaches Nagpur on 2nd day of running.
- Keep Id card details such as PAN card or driving license of one of the passengers handy. This way you do not have to search for it after you have started the booking process.
- Save some time by entering passenger details beforehand. Fill passenger details before 10am for ac class and before 11am for non-ac class, you need not fill them again and save a couple of minutes this way which increases your probability of getting confirmed tatkal ticket. This is how you should do so:
- Login into the irctc website 5-10 minutes ago and do these before 10am for ac ticket and 11am for non-ac ticket.
- Select origin destination, choose date as today’s date and enter ticket type and click on ‘Find Trains’. Now select quota as TATKAL and click on BOOK NOW for today’s date for any train.
- Enter passenger details including id card details and mobile number. Now instead of clicking on ‘Next’ which will take you to payment, click on ‘Replan’ which takes to back to the ‘Plan My Journey’ page.
- Exactly at 10am (or at 11am for FC, SL and 2S) put your correct journey date and try booking. When you come on Passenger Details page, you will see that all the details which you entered before are still there. So just enter the captcha and click on ‘Next’ for payment.
- For AC classes, try booking in 2A (second ac) first. For most of the routes, 2A gets filled less quickly than 3A inspite of lesser berths.
- Avoid trying to book ticket on trains for which tatkal tickets have already exhausted. Keep checking parallely current berth availability for tatkal quota on trainman.
- Make payment using netbanking (preferable by HDFC or ICICI bank) as this is the fastest mode of payment. If you choose to pay by cards you need to enter long card numbers and lot of other details which takes time. Since irctc has made OTP verification mandatory so one should keep their phone nearby to get OTP details from phone.
- If you are not able to book tatkal ticket for ac classes, you can try your luck for non-ac classes at 11am again.
- Even after following all these if you get a waiting tatkal ticket, you can always check the chances of ticket confirmation on Trainman
I have a ticket in general quota which is in waitlisted status. Should I book tatkal ticket or wait for waiting list ticket to get confirmed?
You should check the confirmation chances of your waiting ticket at https://www.trainman.in/. If the chances are pretty low, go for tatkal ticket.
Is it allowed to travel in Indian Railways if we have a waiting list tatkal ticket?
Ideally, you should not travel in train on waiting list tickets. In premium trains such as rajdhani, shatabdi and duronto, the passengers having PRS waiting list ticket (ticket booked over-the-counter), if found, are fined and asked to deboard at the train’s next halt. In other trains, the TTE does not interfere and let you travel but still it is not advisable as it causes inconvenience to other passengers who have confirmed berths. Please do not board the train under any circumstances if you have a fully waitlisted e-ticket. It gets automatically cancelled on chart preparation and passenger is treated as traveling without ticket in such cases.
Can my waiting list tatkal ticket get confirmed?
Tatkal waiting list ticket (TQWL) have least chances of confirmation. Therefore it is best not to rely upon tatkal waiting list tickets. Still, if you want to travel you should first check you ticket confirmation chances at to get an idea beforehand.
Can we cancel a "Tatkal waiting list" ticket?
Yes, waiting list and RAC tickets of both general and tatkal quota can always be cancelled. A nominal clerkage fee of Rs.60 per passenger is deducted by railways and the remaining amount is returned back to the customer.
What should I do if I have booked a confirmed tatkal ticket but I have to cancel my trip?
There are no refunds on cancellation of confirmed tatkal ticket i.e. where reservation of all passengers is confirmed. But, for some reason if you don’t want to undertake your journey in this case, you should still cancel your tickets. This ensures that some passengers in waitlisted status are confirmed and they are saved from the anxiety of waiting till the last moment for getting the final fate of their ticket. If you don’t cancel your ticket, then there's a chance that TTE will not take an impartial decision and allot your berth to someone undeserving but paying more money.
Is there any possible way that I can get a tatkal ticket for sure online?
The procedure is same for everyone. Login to irctc website at 10am for booking in ac classes or at 11am for non-ac classes, a day before journey and fill in all the details as quickly as possible. There is no guarantee that you will be able to book a confirmed tatkal ticket. However, you can use some tips and tricks which increase your chances of getting confirmed ticket in tatkal quota. You can find a few such tricks at
What is premium tatkal quota?
IRCTC introduced premium tatkal quota (PT) on October 1, 2014 on an experimental basis on 80 trains including Mumbai-Delhi Rajdhani, August Kranti express, Vaishali express and Sapt Kranti express. Half of total tatkal berths will be sold under premium tatkal quota for such trains. It follows dynamic pricing which means that ticket price increases with demand. It can only be booked online. No waiting list and RAC tickets are issued under premium tatkal quota. Other rules for this quota are similar to tatkal quota such as no refund on cancellation of confirmed ticket.
Can I get waiting list ticket in premium tatkal quota?
Neither waiting list nor RAC tickets are issued in premium tatkal quota. You can only book confirmed ticket.
How much fare is charged for ticket booked under premium tatkal quota?
After booking of the first 50% of tatkal tickets under tatkal quota, the subsequent 50% tatkal tickets are sold on dynamic pricing under premium tatkal quota. Fares will increase by 20% after each slab of 10% berths are sold subject to the existing cap (maximum fare chargeable) on dynamic fare. So the premium tatkal fare is greater than tatkal fare but lesser than twice the tatkal fare.
Can I cancel premium tatkal ticket?
No refunds are given on cancellation of tickets booked under premium tatkal quota. How ever, if for any reason you don’t undertake your journey it is better to cancel it.
Cancellation & Refund:
How much cancellation charge is levied if I cancel my confirmed ticket?
W.e.f 12th November 2015, if a fully confirmed ticket is cancelled 48 hours before the train departure time, the cancellation charges per passenger are - Rs.240 for First AC (1A)/ Executive Class (EC), Rs.200 for Second AC (2A)/ First Class (FC), Rs.180 for Third AC (3A)/ AC Economy (3E)/ AC Chair car (CC), Rs.120 for Sleeper (SL) and Rs.60 for Second sitting (2S). Between 48 hours and 12 hours before depart time, 25% of the total fare is deducted whereas between 12 hours and 4 hours before train departure 50% of the total fare is deducted. If less than 4 hours is remaining in train departure, then no refund is given on cancellation of confirmed tickets.
How much cancellation charge is levied if I cancel my waiting list / RAC ticket?
W.e.f 12th November 2015, if a ticket having all passengers as waiting list or RAC or some passengers having waiting list while some as RAC is surrendered for cancellation at least 30 minutes before the train departure, entire amount is refunded after deducting clerkage charge which is Rs.60 per passenger. This remains same across all travel classes. No refund is given if less than 30 minutes is remaining in train departure. However, if an e-ticket has all passengers as waiting list, it gets automatically canceled and amount is refunded to passengers account.
How much cancellation charge is levied if I cancel my paritally confirmed ticket i.e. some passengers are having confirmed status while others have RAC or waiting-list status?
W.e.f 12th November 2015, on cancellation of a partially confirmed ticket, full refund of fare less clerkage (Rs.60) shall be admissible for confirmed passengers also, subject to the condition that the entire ticket is surrendered for cancellation upto thirty minutes before the scheduled departure of the train.
How can I cancel counter (PRS) ticket for night trains? The reservation counter usually closes at 8 p.m. and chart might not get prepared by that time.
In case no facility of cancellation of RAC or waitlisted ticket issued through PRS is available at the station originating the journey for night trains leaving between 2100 hours and 0600 hours (actual departure), the refund of fare shall be admissible at the station within first two hours after the opening of reservation office.
Will I get refund if I cancel a tatkal waiting list e-ticket before chart preparation?
On cancellation of tatkal waiting list same rules apply which apply for cancellation of general waiting list. So, if you cancel a waiting tatkal ticket before the second and final chart preparation (i.e. at least 30 minutes before scheduled departure time) you will be refunded the entire amount less clerkage which is Rs.60 per passenger.
Can we cancel only one passenger in irctc train ticket?
Yes you can cancel only one passenger or only some passengers on irctc train ticket. But, special care has to be taken in cancellation of tatkal tickets. If you cancel all the master passengers i.e. passengers for whom the identity details are mentioned on tatkal ticket, then complete ticket gets cancelled.
Can I get a refund if my train is running late?
If your train is running late by more than three hours at the station where your journey begins and you do not want to undertake the journey, you can cancel the ticket. No cancellation charges or clerkage fee is charged and full amount is refunded even for confirmed tatkal tickets. For e-tickets, the TDR should be filed before the actual departure of the train for availing full refund. For PRS tickets, the ticket should be surrendered before the actual departure of the train.
I missed my connecting train because my current train arrived 5 hours late. Can I get a refund on my onward journey ticket?
There is no provision of refund in indian railways if you missed your connecting trains because your current train got delayed. However, if you are able to cancel your ticket (or file TDR for e-tickets) within 2 hour of actual departure of connecting train you might get 50% refund on your onward journey ticket.
How to cancel the ticket after chart has been prepared?
For PRS tickets, you can always goto ticket counters. For e-tickets, one needs to file TDR at least 30 minutes before the train departure. After this time, no refund is given for any ticket.
How much time does it take to get refund after filing TDR in indian railways?
Usually it takes 4-8 business days to get the refund amount back into your account after filing TDR.
Others:
I have a proper confirmed ticket which I booked over the counter. Do I still need to carry any identity proof?
For all the tickets, including tickets booked over the counter, where a reserved seat/berth is given to the passengers at least one passenger per ticket needs to carry his/her ID proof IN ORIGINAL. Photo copies of id proof are NOT accepted. This is applicable for all air-conditioned classes, sleeper and reserved second seating class. For tatkal quota, ID proof on which the ticket was booked needs to be carried. Passengers failing to produce the original ID will be treated as ticketless passengers and charged accordingly.
I somehow deleted the irctc sms received on my mobile. I don’t even have ticket printout but I know my coach and berth number. Will I be allowed to travel in indian railways?
There is an option of “resend sms” in irctc website. The same sms will be sent to the mobile number initially provided while booking the ticket. This option can be exercised a maximum of 3 times. In worst case scenario, if you neither have sms nor the print-out but you know your coach and berth, then you can still board the train with valid id proof. Rs.50/- shall be collected as penalty provided original ID is produced - in the absence of ID you will be treated ticket less traveler. But, practically TTE does not even impose fine in such cases.
Which is the best berth to choose in the 3A/SL class on Indian trains?
For single youths upper berth is the best. You can sleep whenever you want and you can always sit on the lower berth if you want. But for short journey or day journey, side-lower berth is also good which allows you to enjoy the view. For elders lower berth is best because for them climbing on middle and upper berths is cumbersome. If you are a family, ensure you get all berths inside the same bay with at least one lower berth.
How can we change the passenger name on the ticket? Can any relative of passenger travel on the same ticket on his behalf?
Yes it is possible to change the passenger name of a reserved ticket in indian railways.. For this, the passenger has to put a request in writing to the Chief Reservation Supervisor of the train boarding station, 24 hours before the scheduled departure of the train, that the reservation made in his name may be transferred to another member of his family, meaning, Father, Mother, Brother, Sister, Son, Daughter, Husband and Wife.
How do I identify whether a PNR number is actually true or not?
You can always check the current status of any irctc PNR on trainman. Either you will get valid passenger and train details like train number, berths allotted etc. or if the PNR is invalid you will get an error message saying “PNR Flushed / Not yet generated.”
Is PNR number on indian railways tickets unique? Is it ever reused?
Once the journey date passes for a PNR, it is flushed after 1-2 weeks to be reused later.
Can I know whether a IRCTC ticket is booked on my name if I don’t have any details like PNR status?
For security purposes, Indian railways does not divulge passenger details such as name, sex, age etc. when PNR status is checked on indian railways website. The only way to confirm that the PNR exists in your name is to check in the chart which is pasted on the respective coaches on the journey date.
In how much advance can I book ticket of any train?
The advance reservation period aka ARP for booking tickets in indian railways is 120 days.
Can I file a case against indian railways if my train got delayed?
You can request information from railways as to what caused the delay by filing an RTI. As railway comes under central government, they have to give an answer within 30 days of your application submission. The website for filing RTI is: https://rtionline.gov.in/ . But you cannot file a case as railways has nowhere written that they are responsible if the train gets delayed. For important events such as examinations/interviews, medical treatment, catching flight etc. one should always take a buffer of at least a day while booking tickets. And also check the delay history of train on trainman before booking. A lot of trains get delayed in the kanpur-allahabad-mughalsarai section.
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