Rules 100 explained: this guide covers what it means, who it applies to, the step-by-step process, documents required, fees, due dates and penalties in India — so you can stay compliant with confidence and avoid costly mistakes.
A creditor of a company ordered to be wound up by the Tribunal does not simply wait to be paid: it must prove its debt. Rules 100 to 104 set out how the Company Liquidator calls creditors to prove their debts, who has to prove, how the proof is made and verified, what it must contain, and how workmen's wages claims can be proved together. This article reflects the rules as amended up to the date of the MCA e-book text (consulted 3 October 2026): as notified on 24 January 2020, in force from 1 April 2020, with no amendment listed by MCA, per the MCA e-book. Check later amendments before relying on it.
Within thirty days of the winding-up order, the Company Liquidator fixes a day and gives fourteen days' notice by advertisement in Form WIN 43 and by direct notice to listed creditors. Every creditor proves its debt, unless the Tribunal directs otherwise, by an affidavit in Form WIN 44 with a statement of account and vouchers, stating whether it is secured or preferential. Workmen's wages claims can be made in one proof in Form WIN 45 with a schedule of names and amounts.
Rule 100: the notice for proving debts
100(1): who, when and how
Subject to the Act and the Tribunal's directions, the Company Liquidator, within thirty days from the date of the winding-up order, fixes a day and gives fourteen days' notice of it in two ways.
- Advertisement (100(1)(i)). By advertisement in Form WIN 43, in one issue of an English daily and one issue of a regional-language daily widely circulating in the State or Union territory of the registered office. The advertisement calls on creditors to prove their debts or claims and establish any title to priority under section 326 or 327, or be excluded from the benefit of any distribution made before the debts or claims are proved, or from objecting to such distribution.
- Direct notice (100(1)(ii)). By a mode of communication permitted under section 20 to every person shown in the statement of affairs as a creditor who has not proved, and to every person shown as a preferential creditor whose claim to priority has not been established or admitted. Where there is no statement of affairs, the notice goes to creditors as ascertained from the books of the company, and to each person who, to the liquidator's knowledge, claims to be a creditor or preferential creditor and has not been admitted, at the last known address or residence.
100(2): preferential claims
The rules on admitting or rejecting proofs apply, with necessary variations, to a claim for priority as a preferential creditor. The Act's provisions on preferential payments are explained in section 327: preferential payments in winding up.
Rule 101: who must prove
101(1): every creditor
In a winding up by the Tribunal, every creditor must prove its debt, unless the Tribunal in a particular case directs that any creditors or class of creditors be admitted without proof.
101(2): certain employee dues
Formal proof is not required for the debts mentioned in section 327(1)(d), unless the Company Liquidator in a special case directs otherwise. If you are unsure whether your claim needs a formal proof, our legal dispute resolution team can help you check the rule and the notice you received.
Rule 102: mode of proof and verification
A debt is proved by delivering or sending to the Company Liquidator, by a mode set out in section 20, an affidavit verifying the debt, made by the creditor or by a person authorised by the creditor. If a person authorised by the creditor makes the affidavit, it states the authority and the deponent's means of knowledge. The creditor need not attend the examination unless the Company Liquidator requires it.
Rule 103: contents of the proof
An affidavit proving a debt must:
- contain or refer to a statement of account showing the particulars of the debt;
- specify the vouchers, if any, by which the debt can be substantiated;
- state whether the creditor is a secured creditor or a preferential creditor and, if so, set out the particulars of the security or the preferential claims; and
- be in Form WIN 44.
How a secured creditor's security affects voting is explained in rules 58 to 65, and the debts which can be proved are covered in section 324.
Rule 104: workmen's dues
Where there are numerous claims for wages or accrued remuneration by workmen and others employed by the company, it is sufficient for one proof in Form WIN 45 to be made for all of them, by a foreman or another person on behalf of all such creditors. The proof sets out in a schedule in the form the names of the workmen and others and the amounts due to each. A proof made under this rule has the same effect as separate proofs by each of them.
Timeline and requirements
| Step | Rule | Who | Period, form or content as printed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fix a day for proofs | 100(1) | Company Liquidator | Within thirty days of the winding-up order |
| Advertisement | 100(1)(i) | Company Liquidator | Form WIN 43; one issue each of an English and a regional daily; fourteen days' notice |
| Direct notice | 100(1)(ii) | Company Liquidator | To listed and known creditors and preferential creditors, by a section 20 mode |
| Proof by every creditor | 101(1) | Creditor | Unless the Tribunal directs admission without proof |
| Affidavit of proof | 102, 103 | Creditor or authorised person | Form WIN 44; statement of account; vouchers; secured or preferential status |
| Workmen's collective proof | 104 | Foreman or other person | Form WIN 45 with a schedule of names and amounts |
Example
Two weeks after the winding-up order against Sagar Steel Limited, the Company Liquidator fixes a day, advertises it in WIN 43 in an English and a regional daily, and sends direct notice by speed post to each creditor in the statement of affairs who has not proved. A supplier, Dutta Metals, files a WIN 44 affidavit with its statement of account, lists its delivery challans as vouchers and states that it is unsecured. The company's foreman files one WIN 45 proof for forty workmen's wage claims, with a schedule showing each name and the amount due.
Need help proving a debt?
A late or incomplete proof can leave a creditor outside a distribution. Our team can help creditors prepare WIN 44 proofs and respond to the liquidator's examination through legal dispute resolution.
Key takeaways
- The liquidator fixes a day within thirty days of the winding-up order and gives fourteen days' notice by WIN 43 advertisement and direct notice.
- Every creditor proves its debt unless the Tribunal directs admission without proof.
- A proof is an affidavit in WIN 44 with a statement of account, vouchers and a statement of secured or preferential status.
- A person authorised by the creditor may make the affidavit, stating the authority and means of knowledge.
- Workmen's wage claims can be proved together in one WIN 45 proof with a schedule.
Read next
- Rules 91–99: liquidator accounts and audit
- Rules 105–114: valuing debts, interest and examination of proofs
- Section 324: debts admissible to proof
- Section 327: preferential payments in winding up
Disclaimer: Based on the Companies Act, 2013 rules named above as consolidated in the MCA e-book (consulted on 3 October 2026), with the later notifications the article names. Later amendments, fees, forms and the Companies Act, 2013 provisions referred to should be checked. This article is general information, not legal advice; check the official text before acting.