Tatkal berths are held back from general booking and released one day before the journey date, at 10:00 IST for AC classes and 11:00 for Sleeper and other non-AC classes. The charge is 10% of the basic fare in Sleeper and 30% in AC classes, within class-wise minimum and maximum amounts. A Tatkal ticket can carry up to four passengers and needs an ID to be entered at booking.
Since July 2025 online Tatkal can be booked only from an Aadhaar-authenticated IRCTC account with an OTP, and agents are barred for the first 30 minutes of the window. A confirmed Tatkal ticket gets no refund on cancellation; a waitlisted one that never confirms is refunded minus clerkage.
Also written or searched as: tatkal ticket · tatkal booking · tatkal time · tatkal quota · TQ
Related terms
- Premium Tatkal
- TQWL — Tatkal Waitlist
- ARP — Advance Reservation Period
- Quota