Section 1 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.
Section 1 gives the Act its name, says where it reaches and to whom it applies, and leaves the date of coming into force to a notification. It is short, but it decides a question that trips up many boards: the Act does not stop at the Indian border.
This article reads the section as per the Act as enacted, read with the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Act, 2020 (33 of 2020). Later amendments, notifications and orders should be checked before you act.
Section 1(2) says the Act extends to the whole of India and also applies to citizens of India outside India and to associate branches or subsidiaries, outside India, of companies or bodies corporate registered or incorporated in India. Section 1(3) lets the Central Government appoint the date of commencement by notification, and different dates for different provisions. The Amendment Act, 2020 did not touch section 1, but it changed twelve other places in the Act, listed below.
What the long title says
Before section 1 the Act carries a long title. It describes the Act as one "to consolidate the law to regulate the acceptance and utilisation of foreign contribution or foreign hospitality by certain individuals or associations or companies" and "to prohibit acceptance and utilisation of foreign contribution or foreign hospitality for any activities detrimental to the national interest", with matters connected or incidental to these.
Two things follow from those words. The Act regulates both acceptance and utilisation, so receiving money lawfully is only half of compliance: the use of it is regulated too. And it covers foreign hospitality as well as money, a topic taken up in section 6 and prior permission for foreign hospitality.
Section 1(1): the short title
Section 1(1) says the Act may be called the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010. In practice it is called the FCRA, and the later articles in this series use that short form after the full name has been given once.
Section 1(2): extent and application
Section 1(2) has two limbs. The first is territorial: the Act "extends to the whole of India". The second widens the reach with the words "it shall also apply to" two classes:
- (a) citizens of India outside India; and
- (b) associate branches or subsidiaries, outside India, of companies or bodies corporate, registered or incorporated in India.
So a citizen of India who lives abroad is within the Act. The Act itself shows why this matters. Sections 3(2)(a) and 3(2)(c) speak of a "citizen of India resident outside India" who is not to accept or deliver currency in certain situations; those provisions are explained in section 3 on who cannot accept foreign contribution. Section 1(2)(a) is the general rule that makes such provisions workable. Where an overseas member or donor relationship is involved, it is worth a quick legal consultation before any remittance is arranged.
Clause (b) reaches the overseas arms of Indian corporate groups: an associate branch or a subsidiary outside India of a company or body corporate that is registered or incorporated in India. The text does not define "associate" or "subsidiary" in section 1; section 2(1)(t) gives them the meanings they have in the Companies Act, 1956 as the Act is printed, and the reader should check the current law for the corresponding provision. The definitions are collected in the article on the remaining definitions in section 2.
Section 1(3): commencement by notification
Section 1(3) says the Act "shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint". The proviso adds that different dates may be appointed for different provisions, and that any reference in a provision to the commencement of the Act is to be read as a reference to the coming into force of that provision.
The date of commencement is not stated in the texts consulted for this series, and this article gives none. If a document or advice you hold depends on a particular date, confirm it from the notification itself.
The Act in nine chapters
The Act as enacted is divided into nine Chapters. The table is a map for the rest of the series.
| Chapter | Heading | Sections |
|---|---|---|
| I | Preliminary | 1 to 2 |
| II | Regulation of foreign contribution and foreign hospitality | 3 to 10 |
| III | Registration | 11 to 16 (plus 12A and 14A inserted in 2020) |
| IV | Accounts, intimation, audit and disposal of assets, etc. | 17 to 22 |
| V | Inspection, search and seizure | 23 to 27 |
| VI | Adjudication | 28 to 30 |
| VII | Appeal and revision | 31 to 32 |
| VIII | Offences and penalties | 33 to 41 |
| IX | Miscellaneous | 42 to 54 |
The Act has fifty-four numbered sections as enacted. The Amendment Act, 2020 added two lettered ones, sections 12A and 14A, so fifty-six section heads are in use.
What the Amendment Act, 2020 changed
The Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Act, 2020 (33 of 2020) received assent on the 28th September 2020. Its section 1(2) left the date of coming into force to a notification, and S.O. 3395(E) dated the 29th September 2020 appointed the 29th day of September, 2020 as the date on which its provisions come into force. It made twelve changes, which are the ones the later articles apply:
| Paragraph of the Amendment Act | What it does |
|---|---|
| 1 | Short title and commencement of the Amendment Act |
| 2 | Section 3(1): substitutes clause (c) (it now begins "public servant, Judge, Government servant ...") and replaces the Explanation with two Explanations |
| 3 | Substitutes a new section 7: no transfer of foreign contribution "to any other person" |
| 4 | Section 8(1): "fifty per cent." becomes "twenty per cent." at both places |
| 5 | Section 11(2): the opening of the proviso is replaced by two provisos |
| 6 | Inserts section 12(1A): an "FCRA Account" to be opened and mentioned in the application |
| 7 | Inserts section 12A: Aadhaar number or passport or Overseas Citizen of India Card as identification |
| 8 | Section 13(1): the suspension period is reworded to one hundred and eighty days, or a further period not exceeding one hundred and eighty days |
| 9 | Inserts section 14A: surrender of certificate |
| 10 | Section 15: heading and sub-section (1) extended to a certificate surrendered under section 14A |
| 11 | Section 16(1): a proviso is added |
| 12 | Substitutes a new section 17: the "FCRA Account" |
Each of these is explained in the article for that section, with the text as enacted beside the text as amended. Sections 7 and 17 are read from the Amendment Act, because the enacted text of those two sections no longer applies.
Need help with FCRA compliance?
If you are not sure whether your overseas branch, your members abroad or your own organisation fall within the Act, a short advisory conversation usually settles the question before money moves. You can speak to us through our legal consultation service and bring the memorandum, the trust deed or the bye-laws with you.
Key takeaways
- The Act extends to the whole of India under section 1(2) and also applies to citizens of India outside India and to overseas associate branches or subsidiaries of Indian companies or bodies corporate.
- Section 1(3) leaves the date of coming into force to a notification, with power to appoint different dates for different provisions; this article states no date.
- The Act has nine Chapters; the Amendment Act, 2020 added sections 12A and 14A and changed sections 3, 7, 8, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16 and 17.
- The Amendment Act, 2020 itself came into force on the 29th September 2020 by S.O. 3395(E).
- Always check for amendments made after the texts consulted here.
Read next
- Section 2: definitions of foreign contribution and foreign hospitality
- Section 2: definitions of foreign source and foreign company
- Section 3: who cannot accept foreign contribution
- Rules 1 and 2: short title, commencement and definitions
Disclaimer: Based on the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010 as enacted, read with the Amendment Act, 2020 and the other amendments named in this article, and on the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Rules, 2011 as amended by the notifications named (latest consulted: S.O. 3272(E) dated 22 June 2026), as consulted on 2 October 2026. No consolidated official text was available; some provisions rest on a third-party copy and are identified as such. Later amendments, notifications and Ministry of Home Affairs orders should be checked. This article is general information, not legal advice; check the official text before acting.