Home Ministry warns associations against Last-Minute FCRA Renewals
Under the Section 16(1) of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010 (“FCRA”), every organization granted registration under the Act is required to apply for renewal within six (6) months before the expiry of its validity.
Every organisation which is receiving foreign contributions must be registered under the Foreign Contribution Act. Such registration is valid for a period of five (5) years, after which it can be renewed by filing a fresh application. As per Section 16(3), the Central Government is expected to process and ordinarily renew the registration within ninety (90) days of receiving the renewal application. Further, Rule 12(2) of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Rules, 2011 mandates that the renewal application must be filed online in Form FC-3C, along with affidavits in the prescribed Proforma ‘AA’.
The Ministry of Home Affairs (“MHA”) in its public notice dated 30th September 2025 notice titled ‘Clarification regarding timely submission of application for renewal of registration certificate under the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010)’ has clarified that many organisations tend to apply for renewal less than ninety (90) days before their FCRA certificate expires. Such late submissions leave inadequate time for thorough review and for obtaining mandatory security clearances before the certificate’s validity ends. Consequently, once the certificate expires, it is treated as invalid even though the renewal request may still be pending. During this period, the organisations are barred from receiving or using foreign contributions, which directly hampers their ongoing plan of action. Therefore, MHA has advised organisation to file their renewal applications well in advance in any case, not later than four (4) months before expiry. Doing so, will allow the organisation sufficient time for processing and ensure that the work continues without disruption.
Source:
Ministry of Home Affairs, ‘Clarification regarding timely submission of application for renewal of registration certificate under the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010’ F. No.l l/2 1 022/23(221t2020-FCRA-l dated 30th September 2025. The original notice can be accessed at below link:
https://fcraonline.nic.in/home/PDF_Doc/fc_notice_30092025.pdf