Steps
For everyone
1.
Ask the Panchayat Secretary (in a village) or the municipal Bill Collector (in a town) whether widows' and single women's pension applications are being taken now.
🏛️ Gram panchayat office or municipal office
Not confirmed: In August 2026 SERP put a new application form on the Cheyutha website, with boxes for widows and single women. But no order or guidelines saying until when, and from whom, applications are taken in this round are published on the SERP website or the government orders site, and nothing official says what to do when no round is open. Ask at the office or the district pension officer (APO).
Only if
Which of these describes you? My husband has died (widow)
2.
If you do not have your husband's death certificate, tell the Panchayat Secretary or VRO (in GHMC areas, the municipal officials). They make a local enquiry and give you a certificate. The death certificate itself must still be obtained and given within three months.
🏛️ Gram panchayat office or municipal office
3.
Give the filled form, your photo and photocopies of the documents to the Panchayat Secretary or VRO (in a village) or the Bill Collector (in a town). Widows must be 18 or older. A widow's pension is given even if someone else in the household already gets a pension.
🏛️ Gram panchayat office or municipal office
📎 Cheyutha pension application form, Your photograph (stuck on the form), Aadhaar card, Your husband's death certificate and his Aadhaar card, Ration card or income certificate, First page of your bank or post office passbook
Not confirmed: The officials named here are from the 2014 order. In 2026 officials enter applications on the Cheyutha website. Ask at the office whom to give the application to in this round.
Only if
Which of these describes you? I am married but live apart from my husband, or he has deserted me: I am over 18 and we have lived apart for more than a year / I have never married, and I am over 30 (in a village) or over 35 (in a town or city)
4.
Give the filled form, your photo and photocopies of the documents to the Panchayat Secretary (in a village), the Bill Collector (in a town) or the VRO (in GHMC areas). If you are over 65, you are covered under the old-age pension instead of the single women's pension.
🏛️ Gram panchayat office or municipal office
📎 Cheyutha pension application form, Your photograph (stuck on the form), Aadhaar card, Proof that you live apart or have never married, Proof of age, Ration card or income certificate, First page of your bank or post office passbook
Not confirmed: The officials named here are from the 2017 order. In 2026 officials enter applications on the Cheyutha website. Ask at the office whom to give the application to in this round.
Only if
Which of these describes you? My husband has died (widow)
5.
Wait for the check and the decision. The Panchayat Secretary or Bill Collector checks your details. The MPDO (in a village) or the Municipal Commissioner (in a town) reviews it and sends it on, and the District Collector gives final approval.
Only if
Which of these describes you? I am married but live apart from my husband, or he has deserted me: I am over 18 and we have lived apart for more than a year / I have never married, and I am over 30 (in a village) or over 35 (in a town or city)
6.
Wait for the check and the decision. The official who took your application checks your details. A Gram Sabha or Ward Sabha is held to identify those eligible. The Tahsildar (in a village) or the Municipal Commissioner (in a town) scrutinises it; where there are no documents, the Tahsildar makes an enquiry to settle how long you have lived apart. The District Collector gives approval.
For everyone
7.
On the Cheyutha website, open 'New Sanctions Applicants Search' and look up your application by its application ID or Aadhaar number.
💻 Cheyutha website (SERP)
8.
After the Collector's approval, collect your pension card with your photo on it. The MPDO arranges for it to be given out.
🏛️ MPDO office
Not confirmed: The pension card is in the 2014 order; the 2017 single women order does not mention a card. Ask at the office whether cards are given now.
9.
Collect the pension each month. It is paid into your bank or post office account; at the pay point you confirm with your fingerprint or iris. Under the 2019 order the widow's pension and the single women's pension are ₹2,016 a month each.
🏦 At the bank
Not confirmed: ₹2,016 is the amount in G.O.Ms.No.34 of 2019, the latest order we could read on an official site; we did not check whether it has changed since. Under the 2014 order the pension is paid between the 1st and 7th of each month. Ask the MPDO office for the current amount and dates.
Only if
Which of these describes you? My husband has died (widow)
10.
The pension stops if you remarry. For widows up to 45, the Panchayat Secretary must confirm every year that you have not remarried.
Only if
Which of these describes you? I am married but live apart from my husband, or he has deserted me: I am over 18 and we have lived apart for more than a year / I have never married, and I am over 30 (in a village) or over 35 (in a town or city)
11.
The pension is stopped if you marry or remarry, get permanent employment or become financially stable. The MPDO, Municipal Commissioner or Tahsildar checks this every three months.
You cannot get this
The Aasara/Cheyutha pension orders (G.O.Ms.No.17 of 2014 and its amendments) and the application form do not mention foreign nationals. Before applying, ask the Panchayat Secretary (in a village), the municipal Bill Collector (in a town) or the district pension officer (APO) whether you can get this pension.
Not confirmed: We found no official rule that says whether this applies to foreign nationals; only that office can tell you.
You cannot get this
The Aasara/Cheyutha pension orders (G.O.Ms.No.17 of 2014 and its amendments) and the application form do not mention OCI cardholders. Under the Ministry of Home Affairs notification S.O. 1050(E) of 4 March 2021, an OCI cardholder is a foreign national, not an Indian citizen, and in economic, financial and educational fields the notification does not name has the same rights as a foreigner. Before applying, ask the Panchayat Secretary (in a village), the municipal Bill Collector (in a town) or the district pension officer (APO) whether you can get this pension.
Not confirmed: We found no official rule that says whether this applies to OCI cardholders; only that office can tell you.
You cannot get this
The Aasara/Cheyutha pension orders (G.O.Ms.No.17 of 2014 and its amendments) and the application form do not say whether an Indian citizen living abroad can get it. Under those orders the pension is collected each month at the pay point, confirmed with your fingerprint or iris. Before applying, ask the Panchayat Secretary (in a village), the municipal Bill Collector (in a town) or the district pension officer (APO) whether you can get this pension.
Not confirmed: We found no official rule that says whether this applies to Indian citizens living abroad; only that office can tell you.
You cannot get this
A married woman living apart from her husband can get the single women's pension only if she is over 18 and has lived apart for more than one year (G.O.Ms.No.27 of 2017).
You cannot get this
An unmarried woman can get the single women's pension only if she is over 30 in a village, or over 35 in a town (G.O.Ms.No.27 of 2017).
You cannot get this
This pension is not given if the household's yearly income is over ₹1,50,000 in a village or ₹2,00,000 in a town (G.O.Ms.No.23 of 2014; for single women, G.O.Ms.No.27 of 2017).
You cannot get this
People from a family that has any of these cannot get this pension (G.O.Ms.No.17 of 2014; for single women, G.O.Ms.No.27 of 2017). The application form also makes you declare that your family has none of them.