Mutual fund KYC: how to complete it, check your status and fix it
KYC (know your customer) is the identity verification every mutual fund investor completes before the first investment. SEBI calls it Know Your Client. A SEBI-registered agency called a KYC registration agency (KRA) keeps your record. Once it is validated, other fund houses can use it without asking you to do KYC again. Your KYC status, whether Validated, Registered or On-Hold, decides whether you can invest anywhere, only where you already invest, or nowhere until you fix it.
What is KYC for mutual funds, and is it compulsory?
Yes. Every SEBI-registered intermediary must collect and verify your proof of identity and proof of address when it starts a relationship with you. That includes a fund house, its registrar (the firm that records your units in your name), a broker or a depository participant. This follows from the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, which makes securities-market intermediaries run due diligence on their clients.
PAN is the unique identification number for everyone transacting in the securities market. SEBI makes it mandatory, with a few listed exemptions, and those exempted still do KYC. Fund houses verify PAN online, so you do not need to send a copy of the card.
KYC involves the following:
- You give your PAN, a proof of identity and address, a photo and your signature.
- Every holder, including each joint holder, needs KYC. So does the guardian of a child investor.
- SBI Mutual Fund's scheme document says purchases, redemptions, switches and systematic plans are not processed until KYC is done.
A validated record is portable: a new fund house, broker or depository participant downloads it from the KRA rather than repeating KYC. SEBI's own example is an investor who completed KYC with a depository participant and now wants to buy mutual funds. If your units sit in a demat account, the KYC done by that depository participant counts too. Our guide on whether you need a demat account for mutual funds explains the two ways of holding units.
A folio is your account number with a fund house. A child's folio and an NRI's KYC have extra document requirements. Those are covered in investing in a minor's name and how NRIs can invest in mutual funds.
How do you complete mutual fund KYC?
The quickest route is online, with Aadhaar. SEBI allows KYC in physical mode or in digital mode, whether online or through an app.
There are three routes:
- Online with Aadhaar. You give your PAN and verify through an Aadhaar OTP (a one-time password sent to your phone) or a DigiLocker document. That is a document issued into DigiLocker by the authority that issued it. You add a photo and your signature, and your mobile and email are verified by OTP. SEBI says no separate in-person check is needed when KYC is done with Aadhaar authentication. The same holds when documents come through DigiLocker or another source that can be checked online.
- Online with a video check. If the documents cannot be verified online, an in-person verification (IPV) can be done by video.
- On paper. You submit an officially valid document, such as a passport, driving licence or voter ID, and complete an in-person check.
Whichever route you take, you need your PAN, one officially valid document for identity and address, a photograph and a signature. Using Aadhaar is optional and voluntary. But the choice affects your status. A KYC on a document the KRA cannot check at source tends to end up Registered rather than Validated, as the next sections show. CAMS KRA advises completing KYC online with Aadhaar, a valid email and a mobile number. That way you can invest with any fund house later.
Download the Koshex app and complete KYC once; it takes a few minutes with your PAN and Aadhaar.
How do you check your KYC status?
Check it with your PAN on any KRA's website, or on your fund house's or registrar's website. Five KRAs are registered with SEBI: CVL KRA, CAMS KRA, KFin KRA, NDML and Karvy KRA. Karvy KRA and KFin KRA are two separate agencies.
CVL KRA's site describes the steps. Visit the website of a mutual fund or registrar where you already invest and look for a "KYC Status" link. If there is none, go to the KRA's own site, open its KYC enquiry page, and enter your 10-digit PAN and the captcha. CAMS KRA, KFin KRA, NDML and Karvy KRA each have a similar status page. The registrar CAMS also has a "Check KYC Status" page that works by PAN.
The result shows KYC Validated, KYC Registered or KYC On-Hold. SEBI's investor charter for KRAs gives you the right to view your KYC status online.
Customers can check their KYC status and update their KYC details in the Koshex app.
What do the KYC statuses mean?
The status tells you whether your record can be reused at a new fund house and whether you can keep transacting. SEBI's KRA investor charter and the KRAs' own notes describe the three.
| Status | What it means | What you can do | How to fix it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Validated | The KRA has checked your PAN, name and address against official records. Your PAN is linked to Aadhaar or exempt, and your mobile and email are verified. | Invest with any fund house without doing KYC again. | Nothing to fix. |
| Registered | KYC is accepted, but something could not be checked. For example, only one of mobile and email is verified, or PAN is not linked to Aadhaar. Or name and address could not be validated against source data. | Keep investing, redeeming and running SIPs where you already hold units. A new fund house asks for KYC again. | A modification using Aadhaar can turn it into Validated. Verify both contacts and link PAN with Aadhaar. |
| On-Hold or Rejected | A check failed, for example your PAN is invalid, or neither your mobile nor your email is verified. | CAMS KRA's FAQ says financial transactions are restricted, and SIP instalments stop, until the status is fixed. | File a modification with a valid email or mobile number, or fresh KYC documents, through any intermediary. |
The KRAs have assigned these statuses this way since 1 June 2024, as a CAMS KRA circular sets out. One verified contact is enough for Registered but not for Validated. A PAN that is not linked to Aadhaar also gives Registered, not On-Hold.
Take Farhan. He did his KYC on paper with his passport in 2019, and he has a SIP running with one fund house. In 2026 he wants to start a SIP with a second fund house. He checks his status by PAN on a KRA's site and sees KYC Registered. His first SIP carries on. The second fund house will ask for KYC again, unless he first files a modification using Aadhaar, which can turn the record Validated.
When do you need to redo your KYC?
You update it when your details change or your status is On-Hold. You also redo it when your status is Registered and you want a new fund house. SEBI says clients must update their KYC records whenever the information they submitted changes.
A Registered record needs fresh KYC each time you approach a new intermediary. CVL KRA says a KYC update or modification using your PAN and Aadhaar moves a record from Registered to Validated.
If you have just linked your PAN with Aadhaar, tell your fund house or other intermediary. You can also update this on the KRA's portal. If Aadhaar is your identity document and your current address is different, you may give a self-declaration saying so.
How do you update your KYC details?
File a KYC modification through any fund house, registrar or broker. SEBI's investor charter says you can update your KYC information with any SEBI-registered intermediary. The KRA then passes the updated details on to the intermediaries linked to your record.
The registrars' own pages add a few details:
- CAMS takes KYC modifications online for resident individuals. Its page says a second modification request can be placed only after 7 to 15 business days, depending on the KRA.
- KFintech's online form for individual investors starts with an OTP on your email or mobile. It then asks for images of your PAN, proof of address, signature and photo.
- A change of name needs the modification form and a self-attested copy of a document in the new name.
Mutual funds also have MF Central, the registrars' common platform. There, one service request can change your email, phone or bank details across all your folios. Update the KYC record as well, then check that your folios show the new details. Our guide to the consolidated account statement shows how to see all your folios in one place.
Once your KYC is in order, the next step is picking and buying a fund. Our guide to how to invest in mutual funds walks through it, and the mutual funds page lists the fund categories you can browse.
FAQs
Is KYC mandatory for mutual funds?
KYC (know your customer) is the identity verification every mutual fund investor completes before the first investment. SEBI requires every registered intermediary to collect and verify proof of identity and address. SBI Mutual Fund's scheme document says transactions are not processed until every holder, and a minor's guardian, has completed KYC.
Do I need to do KYC again for every fund house or app?
Only if your status is Registered. SEBI's investor charter says a Validated record can be reused when you approach a new intermediary. A Registered record needs fresh KYC each time you approach a new one.
Can I invest while my KYC is being processed?
You can invest as soon as your KYC is complete. The fund house uploads it to a KRA within three working days, and the KRA checks your PAN, name and address within two days. If a check fails, you cannot make new transactions until it is fixed.
What is CKYC, and is it different from KRA KYC?
Central KYC (CKYC) is a registry of KYC records across banks, insurers and the stock market, run by CERSAI. When you complete KYC for mutual funds, the KRA also uploads your record to CKYC. You get a CKYC number (KYC Identifier) by SMS or email. Mutual fund houses still check your status with the KRA.
How does KYC work for a child, and what happens at 18?
A child's folio runs on the guardian's KYC and PAN, plus a document proving the child's age and the relationship. At 18 the investor must give their own KYC details and bank account. No transactions go through until the folio is changed from minor to major. Our guide on investing in a minor's name covers the steps.
Can NRIs complete mutual fund KYC?
SEBI's rules say non-residents and foreign nationals must give a passport, PIO card or OCI card, and overseas address proof. An NRI can complete KYC in the Koshex app. Our guide on how NRIs can invest in mutual funds covers the rest.
What happens to my KYC if my PAN is not linked to Aadhaar?
If your PAN is not linked to Aadhaar, your KYC shows as Registered. You can keep investing where you already invest, but a new fund house will ask for KYC again. NRIs without Aadhaar are exempt from linking, but only after they mark themselves non-resident on the income-tax portal.