---
title: "NHCX Biometric Verification"
description: "How to capture fingerprint, iris, or face biometrics for admission and discharge during NHCX workflows."
date: 2026-08-21
lastModified: 2026-08-23
category: "nhcx"
author: "Dr. Umesh Bilagi"
beta: true
---

## Overview

Many NHCX schemes (including PMJAY) require **biometric verification** of the beneficiary at admission and discharge. The system supports two capture methods:

- **Device biometric** — fingerprint or iris, captured using a registered ABDM RD device.
- **Face authentication** — the patient scans a QR code with the ABHA app and completes a face scan.

The process can be for **Admission** (pre-auth) or **Discharge** (claim), and a status badge shows whether the capture is still valid.

For **cyclical procedures** (benefits with multiple treatment cycles, e.g. chronic haemodialysis), biometric authentication is **discharge-type and captured once per cycle** — see [Cyclical procedures](#cyclical-procedures).

## Where to find it

Biometric capture appears inside the pre-auth and claim workflows. The relevant form section shows the process type ("Admission biometric" or "Discharge biometric") and a status badge:

- **Captured · valid until …** — capture is valid and not yet expired.
- **Expired — re-capture** — the capture has lapsed.
- **Not captured** — no capture yet for this patient + payer + process.

## Device biometric (fingerprint / iris)

1. Select the **Authentication Method**: `Fingerprint` or `Iris`.
2. Click **Discover Biometric** to find the RD device (it searches the local ports used by the ABDM RD service).
3. Click **Capture Fingerprint** (or **Capture Iris**) and present the patient's finger/eye.
4. Click **Send PID** to submit the capture.

The RD device must be installed, registered, and running the RD service on the workstation for capture to work.

## Face authentication

1. Enter the patient's **Aadhaar Number** and **Aadhaar-Linked Mobile Number**.
2. Click **Initiate Face Auth**.
3. A **QR code** appears. Have the patient open the ABHA app, tap the QR icon, and scan the code to complete the face scan.
4. Click **I've Scanned — Check Status**. The system polls for the face-scan result and verifies it.

## Cyclical procedures

For a cyclical procedure (e.g. chronic haemodialysis), biometric authentication works differently:

- It uses the **discharge-type** process, captured **once per cycle** at the start of each treatment cycle.
- In the workflow's **Treatment Cycle Biometric** section, capture the biometric with **Record Cycle**, then record the cycle's closing information with **Add Discharge Details**.

### Record Cycle

Click **Record Cycle** and, for each cycle:

- Set the **Cycle Number** (auto-increments to the next cycle).
- Choose the **Authentication Method** — fingerprint, iris, or face — and complete the capture (discharge-type).

The admission timestamp is the biometric capture time. The modal's **Existing cycles** readout lists previously captured cycles.

### Add Discharge Details

After the cycle's biometric is captured, click **Add Discharge Details** to attach the closing information:

- Select the **Cycle** from the completed cycles.
- Set the **Discharge / End Time**.
- Upload a **Clinical document** (PDF/image) and add an optional **Remark**.

Each cycle's clinical document and remark are carried into the claim bundle, and the discharge/end time is used as the cycle's end timestamp in the claim.

## Common Issues

- **"Device not discovered"** — the RD service is not reachable. Ensure the device is connected and the RD service is running.
- **"Capture Failed"** — the device did not return a valid capture; try again.
- **Face scan times out** — the patient has ~60 seconds to complete the scan; restart and try again.

## FAQ

**Q: Which methods does my setup support?**
A: Fingerprint/iris requires a registered RD device on the workstation. Face auth requires the patient's Aadhaar and linked mobile, plus the ABHA app.

**Q: Is biometric capture required for every claim?**
A: It depends on the scheme/payer requirements. When required, the capture must be valid at the point of submission.