Driving LicenceSarathi help: test slots, fee payments and application status
The application itself is simple. What trips people up is the slot that will not book, the payment that hangs, and a status line they cannot read. These answers are from Parivahan's own help pages.
Finding your way on Sarathi
Open sarathi.parivahan.gov.in and choose your state first; every menu after that belongs to that state, and states switch some services on or off. The menus you will use most:
- Learner Licence: new application, sample questions, print the learner's licence, issue again after expiry.
- Driving Licence: new driving licence, and "Services on Driving Licence" for renewal, duplicate, address change, added class and the international permit.
- Appointments: book, cancel or move a slot.
- Fee Payments: pay, check a payment, pay a re-test fee, print a receipt.
- Upload Document: papers, photo and signature.
- Application Status: where things stand, plus your forms and slips to print.
- Others: find a lost application number, update the mobile number, withdraw a service, cancel an application.
Booking a test slot
- Appointments, then choose the service: learner's test or driving test.
- Enter the application number and date of birth.
- Pick the RTO and a date that shows free slots, and confirm.
Not every RTO offers online slots; where it does not, the appointment is given at the office. You can book before paying, since Parivahan says the fee can be paid any time before the test date. Adding a class to an existing licence needs no appointment at the learner stage.
Changing or cancelling a slot
To move a slot you cancel it and book again from the same Appointments menu. Parivahan's help page gives limits of two cancellations and three reschedules, and adds "or as per state policy", so treat each change as precious. If you simply miss a learner's test, you rebook; if you fail it, you pay the Rs 50 re-test fee first.
When no slots are free
Sarathi only shows what the RTO has opened. Try another date range, or another RTO in your state if your state allows that choice before the fee is paid. If your learner's licence is about to run out and nothing is free, Parivahan's advice is to go to the RTO with your papers. A fee already paid is not refunded just because slots were short; that too is for the RTO to settle.
Fee payments that go wrong
| What you see | What Parivahan says to do |
|---|---|
| Payment shows pending | Fee Payments, then EPayment, then verify the payment status. Wait before paying again. |
| "Try after 15 minutes" | Verify the status first, then retry after a few minutes. |
| Pending for over 3 days, money not taken | Verify the status again; if the bank shows it as still being checked, ask your bank branch. |
| Money taken, status says failed | Contact the RTO with your papers and the bank record. |
| Paid twice | The website does not refund by itself. The RTO handles it. |
| Receipt printed, status still pending | Contact the RTO or the Sarathi helpdesk. |
Two points save money. First, verify before you pay a second time; most double payments come from impatience with a slow bank page. Second, Parivahan states plainly that the fee of a cancelled application is not refunded, so do not cancel an application just to correct a detail.
Reading the status line
- Photo and signature pending after you uploaded them: press Refresh on the status page.
- Under scrutiny and processing at RTO level: Parivahan explains this as a call to visit the RTO for checking of original documents and for your biometrics.
- Driving licence approved but nothing has arrived: ask the RTO for the dispatch tracking number. Whether the card is posted or handed over depends on the state.
- Licence shown as expired though the card in your hand is valid: the record needs correcting at the RTO.
Fixing your details
- Mobile number: "Mobile Number Update" under Others.
- Lost application number: "Find Application Number" under Others.
- Wrong class chosen: "Services Withdrawn by an Applicant" removes a class; "Add Class of Vehicles" adds one, in the states that allow it.
- Wrong RTO: it can be changed before the fee is paid.
- Name too long for the box: Parivahan suggests putting the middle name with the first or last name.
- Session expired midway: nothing is saved; start the form again.
Getting help
The Sarathi helpdesk given on Parivahan is helpdesk-sarathi@gov.in and +91-120-2459169, from 6 am to 10 pm. For anything about your own record, the RTO is the only office that can change it. Nobody from Sarathi will ever phone you for an OTP or a payment; use only the website you typed yourself.
Questions people ask
How many times can I cancel or reschedule a licence test slot?
Parivahan's help page says an appointment can be cancelled at most two times and rescheduled three times, or as the state's policy says.
Is the fee refunded if I cancel my application?
No. Parivahan states that the fee of a cancelled application is not refunded.
My payment is pending. Should I pay again?
First verify it: Fee Payments, then EPayment, then check the pay status. Pay again only if it has clearly failed.
Can I book the slot first and pay later?
Yes. Parivahan says you can pay any time before the date of your test.
What does "application under scrutiny at RTO level" mean?
You are expected at the RTO for checking of original documents and to give your biometrics.
Check before you go. These facts were read on the official Parivahan website and the Delhi Transport Department website on 11 November 2026. Rules and fees change, and states add their own charges and steps. Your state's page on sarathi.parivahan.gov.in is the final word. This is not a government site.