What Is CO in Aadhaar Card

Ever noticed “CO” in your Aadhaar card and felt confused? Don’t worry — many people do. This quick guide explains what CO means, why it appears in your address, and how it helps identify the right family link clearly.

What does “CO” mean?

On your Aadhaar card, “CO” really stands for “Care Of”. It shows the name of another person (like parent, spouse or guardian) through whom your address or mail may be handled.  

Why do you see it?

It’s part of the address section. When someone lives at another person’s place or uses their address, the “CO” field helps specify that connection. It’s optional for adults but helps in certain cases.  

Quick bullet list – when to use CO

• If you’re staying with a guardian/family member instead of owning your own address
   
• If your mail is delivered via someone else’s name
   
• If you want to show your parent’s or spouse’s name along with your address
   
• If you have moved but still use old family address with someone else
   
• If you have no separate house; you share someone else’s address
   

Here’s an example

Ravi spent his college years in a hostel at his aunt’s place. His Aadhaar shows: “CO Mrs Meena Kumar, 12 Hill Road, Mumbai-400001”. That means mail or official address goes via his aunt. Later when he got his own flat, he removed the CO field in his address update request.

Can you leave it blank or change it?

Yes — for adults, the CO field is not mandatory. If you want to remove or change it, you can update your address in Aadhaar and leave the CO field blank or fill the new person’s name. The process is similar to any address correction.