RBI’s 2025 KYC Direction pushes the financial industry towards complete digital compliance. And acceptance of DigiLocker-issued Officially Valid Documents has made this push much more practical.
DigiLocker now holds government-backed credentials for 57 crore Indians. That’s half the adult population walking around with verified Aadhaar and PAN in their pockets, ready to share on demand.
Banks can now authenticate documents in real-time, match faces against official records, and approve accounts while customers are still on the line—all because RBI’s KYC Directions treat VCIP as a valid alternate to face-to-face KYC.
Access to Aadhaar and PAN instantly via DigiLocker has reduced weeks-long KYC wait times to minutes.
Dive in to understand how Video KYC DigiLocker India, powered by RBI 2025 guidelines, streamlines customer onboarding.
What is DigiLocker KYC and Why It Matters in 2025
DigiLocker is a cloud-based platform launched by India’s Ministry of Electronics and IT that lets citizens store and share their verified documents digitally. It’s like a government-backed digital wallet for all your official documents.
DigiLocker documents are recognized as “equivalent e-documents,” holding the same legal validity as original physical documents under the Information Technology Act, 2000.
According to RBI’s 2025 KYC Direction guidelines, regulated entities (RE) are legally authorized to accept DigiLocker OVDs as part of the customer identification process.
DigiLocker works as a bridge between three critical identity systems:
- Aadhaar: Users link their Aadhaar with DigiLocker, enabling instant verification using OTP and optionally biometrics for enhanced security
- PAN: PAN cards issued by NSDL or the Income Tax Department are fetched and verified as OVDs through DigiLocker
- C-KYC Registry: DigiLocker supports integration with the Central KYC Records Registry, letting REs reuse KYC records and reduce document redundancy
What does this mean?
Banks can instantly pull verified Aadhaar and PAN from DigiLocker, cross-check against C-KYC records, and complete verification in one flow. This three-way integration turns what used to be a multi-day process into a few minutes of automated checks.
The Evolution of Video KYC and RBI’s Latest Guidelines
RBI’s master guidelines issued on 9th Jan 2020 officially recognized the Video-based Customer Identification Process (V-CIP) as a method to verify customer identity remotely through secure live video calls.
This same notification also permitted the use of DigiLocker-issued Officially Valid Documents, positioning DigiLocker as a cornerstone of compliant digital onboarding by 2025.
Here are the key V-CIP updates between 2023 and 2025:
Authorizing DigiLocker-issued OVDs in video KYC
The April-May 2023 issue mandated the use and acceptance of DigiLocker-issued OVD as legally valid proof for identity and address verification during video KYC. The authorized official performing V-CIP can now fetch verified documents through DigiLocker APIs in real-time, streamlining both onboarding and KYC updates.
Expanding V-CIP scope for KYB (know your business)
RBI expanded the scope of the Video-based Customer Identification Process (V-CIP) KYC in 2025 to include sole proprietors, authorized signatories, and beneficial owners. Meaning, DigiLocker OVDs can now be used for KYB for legal entities and proprietorship firms.
RE can capture identity information of sole proprietors and beneficial owners from Digilocker through documents like:
- Aadhaar Card (including offline verification or e-KYC authentication)
- PAN Card (or equivalent e-document)
- Passport
- Voter ID Card
- Driving License
- Job Card issued under NREGA
V-CIP can also be used to convert half KYC accounts to full accounts and for periodic KYC updation.
Mandating robust V-CIP infrastructure requirements
Between 2023 and 2025, RBI Video KYC guidelines were introduced, outlining key infrastructure and regulatory enhancements requirements. This includes:
- The video recordings should contain the live GPS coordinates (geo-tagging) of the customer undertaking the V-CIP and a date-time stamp
- The application shall have components with face liveness/spoof detection as well as face matching technology with a high degree of accuracy. An AI technology can be used to detect liveness
- The V-CIP infrastructure shall undergo necessary tests such as Vulnerability Assessment, Penetration testing, and a Security Audit to ensure its robustness and end-to-end encryption capabilities
- The V-CIP infrastructure/application should be capable of preventing connections from IP addresses outside India or from spoofed IP addresses
- The RE shall ensure end-to-end encryption of data between the customer device and the hosting point of the V-CIP application, as per appropriate encryption standards
Here’s a quick timeline glance at how RBI guidelines have been updated over the years:
January 2020: Legal acceptance of Video KYC (V-CIP) and authorization of DigiLocker OVDs
April 28, 2023: Mandated secure data handling, geo-tagging, and introduced single-session rules
May 4, 2023: Reduced BO threshold (10%), extended Aadhaar XML validity to three working days, and excluded third-party video platforms
June 12, 2025: Authorized Business Correspondents for KYC updation, emphasized AI-powered liveness detection, multilingual support, and low-bandwidth optimization
August 14, 2025: Expanded V-CIP scope, reinforced Indian server storage
How C-KYC and DigiLocker Streamline Video KYC
C-KYC, coupled with DigiLocker, digitizes the verification of OVDs during V-KYC. Think of C-KYC, DigiLocker, and Video KYC as three pillars that together create a seamless digital verification experience.
How exactly do they fit in the process?
- C-KYC acts as India’s centralized identity vault. Once the customer completes KYC with any financial institution, their verified data gets stored in the Central KYC records. Regulated entities can fetch and reuse these financial details without requiring customers to repeatedly produce their KYC details.
- DigiLocker serves as the customer’s government-backed digital document wallet. Their Aadhaar, PAN, and other official documents live here in authenticated form. During video KYC, banks can pull these documents directly with customer consent.
- Video KYC brings real-time human verification into the mix. An authorized official verifies the customer’s identity through a live video call, checking both their face and documents.
How does this interoperability help banks and regulated entities?
RBI has mandated the integration of Video KYC data with the Central KYC Registry. According to the 2025 Master Direction and recent amendments, regulated entities must upload and update customer KYC data obtained through the V-CIP to the CKYCR in real-time.
This creates a feedback loop where every new verification strengthens the system.
When a bank completes your video KYC, that verified data gets uploaded to C-KYC. The next bank you approach can download this record using your KIN. They still need to verify you’re the same person (through video KYC), but the heavy lifting is done.
Regulated entities must obtain customer consent to download KYC records for Customer Due Diligence.
Here’s a quick visual workflow in action:
Integration Blueprint for Banks and NBFCs
Banks and NBFCs are required to integrate Video KYC (V-CIP) as part of their digital onboarding processes. But how exactly do they orchestrate a balance between security, fraud detection, and identity verification without causing friction?
Step-by-step implementation workflow
Customer consent and Digilocker authentication
The process starts with the user verifying their Aadhaar via DigiLocker. Once the Aadhar is verified, they are added to the queue or offered an option to schedule a live video call.
Video call verification
Authorized officials of the RE conduct a live video call and record the entire session. During the call, the official performs identity authentication and liveness verification by:
- Requesting the customer to display their PAN card and capturing a clear image for verification
- Asking the customer to verbally confirm details such as name, address, and other information from their PAN and Aadhaar
- Conducting liveness checks through randomized prompts (blinking, nodding, or head movements) to confirm physical presence
- Matching the customer’s live facial image with photographs on Aadhaar and PAN documents
- Obtaining the customer’s live signature for record-keeping purposes
Central KYC (C-KYC) check & unique KYC identifier creation
After video KYC, user details are cross-verified with the CKYC Registry to ensure no duplicate or inconsistent KYC exists.
Final approval and onboarding
Once the above steps are validated and completed, the financial institution grants customer onboarding approval.
| Did you know? The Wealth management platform IndMoney integrated HyperVerge’s Video KYC into their onboarding stack in a record time of 9 days, and since then, has grown their business almost 4X. |
Technical requirements for video KYC
API stack
- Implementation of secure, scalable APIs to connect with DigiLocker for fetching verified digital documents.
- Video KYC APIs handle the live call infrastructure, face matching, and liveness detection.
Remember, APIs must support real-time data exchange, retry, and error handling (with fallback mechanisms) to ensure smooth customer onboarding. Everything that HyperVerge video KYC API offers.
Encryption
End-to-end encryption of all video streams, document transfers, and personal data, compliant with RBI and IT Act data security standards.
Audit trails
Maintenance of immutable logs recording every step of the Video KYC process, including:
- Customer consent
- Document fetch timestamps
- Video verification records
- Liveness and geo-validation results
- Approval actions
Secure storage
Secured and tamper-proof storage of KYC data and video call recordings for a minimum retention period of 7 years as per RBI norms.
Need an all-in-one solution?
HyperVerge provides ready-to-deploy SDKs and APIs that handle the entire technical complexity, including liveness detection, face matching, OCR, and geo-validation.
With its HyperVerge ONE VKYC, you can build end-to-end customizable workflows with fallback options to reduce drop-offs during onboarding. With an average call duration of 70 seconds, HyperVerge offers 88-95% conversion rates.
Trusted by over 400 banks, insurance companies, securities firms, digital lenders, and financial services, HyperVerge is recognized for its exceptionally low false positive rate (99.5%). Book a demo now.
Future of KYC — From Video to Agentic AI
RBI’s 2025 Master Direction update takes video KYC a step closer to being frictionless. While DigiLocker OVDs are making identity verification instant, CKYC integration is removing the need for repeated KYC documentation process.
Regulated entities can now onboard new customers and update existing KYC records in minutes, at a fraction of traditional costs.
What’s next on the horizon?
- Multilingual V-CIP catering to India’s diverse linguistic landscape and ensuring regulatory compliance for underserved populations
- Evolved AI models that could analyze micro-expressions and catch sophisticated spoofing attempts during liveness detection
- Dynamic risk profiling to streamline verification for trusted customers but stopping anomalies in real-time
That said, RBI’s encouragement to reuse CKYCR IDs and DigiLocker credentials signals a clear direction: toward a truly interoperable financial ecosystem where verification happens once and trust travels with the customer.
HyperVerge comprehensive solution meets this vision at every touchpoint—from AI-powered liveness detection to seamless API integration with DigiLocker and C-KYC. It brings frictionless onboarding without compromising on the tech or the security.
Discover how HyperVerge enables 4-hour go-live for digital KYC workflows.
