Pursuant to the power conferred upon the Central Government, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs recently notified the Investor Education and Protection Fund Authority (Accounting, Audit, Transfer and Refund) Rules, 2016 (hereinafter referred to as "the Rules") which came into effect from September 7, 2016.

The Rules provided for a detailed procedure for transferring all shares, in respect of the dividends which have remained unclaimed since the last 07 years continuously, to the IEPF suspense account within a period of 3 months from the date of the Rules coming into force. However, there were clarifications sought by various companies in respect of the due date for effecting transfer.

Hence, on December 07, 2016 the Ministry of Corporate Affairs released a Clarification vide General Circular No. 15/2016 , in view of the representations it received from various companies. Vide the said Circular, it has been informed by the Ministry that matters including simplification of transfer process and extension of date for such transfer, are under consideration and the rules are likely to be revised. The revised rules will be notified in due course.

We endeavor to keep you updated in regards to the revised Rules as and when they come into effect.

For highlights of the IEPF Rules, 2016 refer to our Article here

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.