NADRA Juvenile Card: Age Limit, Fee and How to Apply (2026 Guide)

NADRA

Last Updated: October 2026

The Juvenile Card is NADRA’s identity card for citizens under 18. NADRA’s Registration Policy describes it as a certificate “in the form of a card, carrying same value as of CRC”, which makes it the card version of the paper B-Form. The difference that matters in practice: the child has to be there in person, and the card expires at 10 and again at 18.

The one thing to know before you pay: NADRA’s fee structure has no line for a Juvenile Card. The PKR 750, 1,500 and 2,500 that most guides quote for it is NADRA’s fee for an adult Smart NIC. What NADRA does publish for children is the CRC fee, and that is PKR 50. The details are below.

What the Juvenile Card is, and how it differs from a CRC

NADRA issues two identity documents to under-18s, both under Rule 18 of the NADRA (NIC) Rules, 2002: the Child Registration Certificate (CRC), and the Juvenile Card. Neither replaces the other. NADRA confirms that a child can apply for a Juvenile Card without ever having held a CRC. Here is how they compare, from NADRA’s juvenile card page, its fee structure and its Registration Policy (RP-6.0.2):

Feature	CRC (B-Form)	Juvenile Card
Format	Paper certificate	Card
Must the child attend?	Over 3 years old. Under 3 only if the CRC is for a passport	Yes. NADRA says the minor “has to be present as a primary applicant”
Expires	At 3, 10 and 18	At 10 and 18
Captured at the counter	Nothing under 3 (a photo for a passport). Photo and iris at 3 to 10. Photo, fingerprints and iris at 10 to 18	Photo and iris up to 10. Photo, fingerprints and iris at 10 to 18
Fee NADRA publishes	PKR 50 (7 days) or PKR 500 (1 day)	None listed
Accepted for a minor’s passport	Yes, either one: NADRA says “a valid CRC with picture (B-Form) / Juvenile is required”

Our B-Form guide covers the CRC in full. This page is about the card.

Age limit

Every Pakistani citizen who has not reached 18 is eligible. NADRA cites Rule 18(1) of the NADRA (NIC) Rules, 2002, and Section 9 of the NADRA Ordinance, which it says requires every child to be registered. The Registration Policy puts the deadline on the parent or guardian: they are “bound to register the minor within one month of his/her birth”.

NADRA publishes no minimum age for the card itself. Its biometric table begins with the row “up to 10 years”, and the only rule is that the child must attend. If you are registering a baby, the practical first step is the Union Council birth certificate, covered in our birth certificate guide, because NADRA will not register a child without one.

Fee: what NADRA publishes and what other pages say

These are the relevant lines of NADRA’s fee structure (site version V3.1.3, 17 September 2026):

NADRA fee line	Normal	Urgent	Executive
CRC (all categories)	PKR 50 (7 days)	Not offered	PKR 500 (1 day)
New Smart NIC (an adult card)	PKR 750 (31 days)	PKR 1,500 (23 days)	PKR 2,500 (9 days)
Juvenile Card	No line in the fee structure

The Smart NIC row is where the familiar numbers come from. ProPakistani’s July 2026 article on the Juvenile Card says the normal fee “has been set at Rs. 750, with delivery in 31 days”, with Rs. 1,500 and Rs. 2,500 for urgent and executive, but it names no NADRA notice. A 2025 Pakistan Observer article gives the same three amounts, also without a source. Punjab’s e-Khidmat page for the Juvenile Card lists them too, as the “Smart” category of a table that also has a “Simple” category at 0, 1,150 and 2,150, with delivery times of up to 45, 30 and 12 days. Those are the amounts in NADRA’s adult CNIC table, and the timelines are not the ones NADRA now publishes (31, 23 and 9 days for Smart, 15, 12 and 6 for the plain card).

Whether the card counts as a “Smart” card is the open question. The Pakistan Observer calls it “a chip-based identity document”. NADRA’s page does not say so, and labels its picture of the card “Juvenile with QR-Code”. So the amounts may well be what a centre charges for a Juvenile Card. They are not something NADRA states for it. Two other lines in NADRA’s fee structure are worth knowing: its Pak ID notice says the timeline for every category “will start after fee payment”, and delivery of an ID card within Pakistan costs a separate PKR 165.

Documents and who must attend

For a new Juvenile Card, NADRA’s page and policy list:

• The child, in person. Presence is mandatory for a Juvenile Card.
• A birth certificate. A computerised birth registration certificate from the Union Council, Municipal Committee or Cantonment for a birth in Pakistan, or a detailed foreign birth certificate or Form S-1 for a birth abroad. Asked whether a CRC can be issued when the birth is not registered with the Union Council, NADRA’s FAQ answers “No”.
• A parent’s or guardian’s ID card number and their biometric verification. One parent or a legal guardian is enough.

NADRA’s FAQ, which covers both documents, settles the situations parents ask about. Where an answer is worded for the CRC only, it says so below:

• Only one parent is available. NADRA’s answer, worded for the CRC, is yes: either parent, or a legal guardian with a guardianship certificate, can apply. The policy’s Juvenile Card requirement is biometric verification by “one of the parents / guardians”.
• Both parents live abroad and the child is in Pakistan. No. At least one parent or legal guardian must be present at the centre.
• The parents’ marriage is not updated in NADRA’s record. They must update it first. Our guide to adding a spouse to NADRA records covers it.
• Adoptive parents. NADRA’s answer, again worded for the CRC, is that they need a guardianship certificate from the guardian court, not an informal arrangement.
• The child has no CRC. That is fine, as above.

How to apply

Through the Pak ID app

NADRA’s juvenile page lists the app steps, and its policy shows the application made “by / on behalf of minor (Through Mobile App)”:

1. Download the Pak ID app and create an account or sign in.
2. Select “New Juvenile Card”.
3. Fill in the personal details and upload the documents.
4. Visit a NADRA Registration Centre if required.
5. Track the application in the app.

Plan for step 4. NADRA’s own line under these steps reads “Biometric verification and photograph may require a visit to a NADRA Registration Centre”. Our Pak ID app guide explains how that caution sits beside the “without visiting a centre” wording elsewhere on NADRA’s site.

At a NADRA centre

1. Take a token at the nearest Registration Centre and wait for the One Window Counter.
2. Complete biometric verification of one parent or the guardian.
3. Have the child’s photograph and fingerprints captured, where they apply for the child’s age.
4. The data is entered and reviewed.
5. A parent or guardian attests the application.
6. The officer in charge interviews and approves the application.
7. Pay the fee, then collect the card when the processing period ends.

To avoid a wasted trip, our guide to booking a NADRA appointment explains what can and cannot be booked, and the office locations guide covers finding a centre.

At home

NADRA’s MRV Services page lists “CRC / Juvenile Card” among the services covered by its Mobile Registration Vans and by its Special Assistance Service, which is the doorstep service for people who cannot travel. Our senior citizens guide explains who qualifies and how to request it.

Converting a CRC to a Juvenile Card

If your child already holds a CRC and you want the card, the Registration Policy lists what to bring:

• An application by or on behalf of the holder, with the CRC or Juvenile Card number.
• Biometric verification by a parent, a sibling over 18, or a guardian, or attestation of the application form as the policy allows.
• The old document. It is punched or defaced on the photo and returned to you. If you no longer have it, you sign a system-generated undertaking.

The conversion is also the moment to fix mistakes. NADRA’s FAQ says the child’s name and the father’s name can both be corrected during the conversion, with supporting documents, and that a date of birth which differs from the Union Council certificate is resolved by correcting the birth certificate first. If the child has duplicate CRC records, one must be cancelled before the card can be processed. Our name change guide covers the wider rules.

Validity, renewal and a lost card

NADRA’s fee structure gives the validity of a Juvenile Card as “upon attaining the age of 10 and 18 years”. Several ranking pages say it is valid until 18. It is not: it expires at 10 and has to be renewed then.

• Renewal. NADRA lists one requirement, the Juvenile Card number. The child attends and photographs and fingerprints are captured again. The policy says to apply no later than one month after the card expires.
• Reprint or lost card. Again the card number is all NADRA lists, with no attestation and no change to the data allowed. The child’s photograph and fingerprints are captured.
• Correcting details. NADRA sends you to the “Change / Correction in Identity Documents” chapter of its Registration Policy. Its app steps name the three services “Renew Juvenile Card”, “Update Juvenile Card” and “Reprint Juvenile Card”.

NADRA lists no separate fee for renewal, reprint or correction of a Juvenile Card either, so the advice above about confirming the amount applies to each.

What the card is used for

NADRA does not publish a list of benefits, and the long lists on other sites (school admission, banking, hospitals) are not sourced to it. What NADRA does state:

• Passports. A child under 18 needs “a valid CRC with picture (B-Form) / Juvenile” to get a Pakistani passport.
• The family record. A child appears in the parents’ Family Registration Certificate only after having a CRC, Juvenile Card or NICOP in NADRA’s system. See our FRC guide.
• The road to a CNIC. The registration is what NADRA converts into a CNIC at 18.

If a school or bank asks for a specific document, ask them which one they accept. NADRA treats the two as carrying the same value.

When the child turns 18

The child must apply for a CNIC. NADRA lists 18 as the card’s expiry and says it “becomes invalid upon issuance of the CNIC”, so there is no overlap period to rely on. The Registration Policy says every citizen is “bound to get registration with NADRA within three months after attaining the age of 18 years”. The conversion uses the card number, so it is a conversion, not a fresh registration. Our guide to applying for a new CNIC lists the requirements, and the steps NADRA publishes for converting a CRC in the Pak ID app.

Parents abroad, or a child born abroad

NADRA’s FAQ says that where the parents live abroad, a CRC application can be submitted at any NADRA Registration Centre abroad, at a Pakistani mission, or through the Pak ID app. A child born abroad can get a CRC with a Form S-1 or a foreign birth certificate. For the Juvenile Card the rule is stricter: a child who is in Pakistan cannot be processed while both parents are abroad. For a child who will live overseas, NADRA also issues a minor’s NICOP. See applying for NADRA documents from abroad and our Smart NICOP guide.

Tracking an application

NADRA’s app steps end with “Track your application status in the app”. The SMS route many guides quote, 8400, is not documented for application tracking on NADRA’s current website, and our tracking guide explains what we could and could not confirm.

Common mistakes

• Paying an amount you cannot verify. NADRA publishes no Juvenile Card fee. Ask what the charge covers and keep the receipt.
• Going without the Union Council birth certificate. It is a mandatory prerequisite.
• Leaving the child at home. Presence is mandatory for a Juvenile Card, and photographs and fingerprints are taken at the counter.
• Sending a relative in place of a parent. At least one parent or a legal guardian must attend.
• Assuming the card lasts until 18. It expires at 10 and has to be renewed.
• Waiting past expiry. The policy says to renew no later than one month afterwards.
• Ignoring a duplicate CRC record. One has to be cancelled before the card is processed.

Sources: the definitions, eligibility, requirements, application steps, validity, biometric table and FAQ answers are from NADRA’s Child Registration Certificate (CRC) / Juvenile Card page; the fees, the delivery charge and the validity periods from its fee structure; the definition of the card, the requirement tables, the conversion, renewal and reprint rules and the 18-year rule from Registration Policy RP-6.0.2 (issued 18 September 2026), pages 9, 10 and 18 (all site version V3.1.3). The published amounts NADRA does not itself state were read on ProPakistani (7 July 2026) and on the Punjab e-Khidmat Juvenile Card page. All read on 29 September 2026.

Frequently Asked Questions

Quick answers to common questions about this topic.