Sections 206 and 207 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 206 says no person may render services as an insolvency professional under the Code unless he is both enrolled as a member of an insolvency professional agency and registered with the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (the Board). Section 207 explains the registration step: it follows membership, it must be done within a time, in a manner and with a fee as the regulations specify, and the Board may specify categories of eligible persons. Both are read here from the IBBI consolidated text of the Code amended up to 12 August 2021.
Two conditions, both required: enrolment as a member of an insolvency professional agency, and registration with the Board. Section 207(1) puts them in order: an insolvency professional first obtains agency membership and then registers with the Board within a time, in a manner and on payment of a fee that regulations specify. Section 207(2) lets the Board specify the categories of professionals or persons with qualifications and experience in finance, law, management, insolvency or another field it deems fit.
Section 206: who may act as an insolvency professional
The section reads: "No person shall render his services as insolvency professional under this Code without being enrolled as a member of an insolvency professional agency and registered with the Board."
The text has four working parts.
- "No person": the prohibition is not limited to a particular qualification.
- "render his services as insolvency professional under this Code": the bar applies to work done in that capacity under the Code, such as acting as an interim resolution professional, resolution professional, liquidator or bankruptcy trustee. Those offices are named in the definitions and in the operative sections of the Code; section 206 itself does not list them.
- "enrolled as a member of an insolvency professional agency": the agency is the one named in sections 199 to 205 (see article 121 and article 123). Section 204(a) gives the agency the function of granting membership to persons who meet its bye-laws and pay the membership fee.
- "and registered with the Board": membership is not enough. The word "and" makes registration a second, separate requirement.
The section prints no penalty. The consequence of acting without both is therefore found, if at all, in provisions outside section 206.
Example (invented). Meera Chandran, a chartered accountant, is named in a creditor's draft proposal as the person to act as resolution professional. She has never joined an insolvency professional agency. Section 206 says she cannot render her services as an insolvency professional under the Code unless she becomes a member of an agency and is registered with the Board. Membership alone, without registration, would leave her short of the second limb. Anyone weighing a proposed appointment against these sections can take a legal consultation to frame the questions before acting.
Section 207(1): registration with the Board
"Every insolvency professional shall, after obtaining the membership of any insolvency professional agency, register himself with the Board within such time, in such manner and on payment of such fee, as may be specified by regulations."
- Sequence. The words "after obtaining the membership of any insolvency professional agency" place registration after membership.
- "any insolvency professional agency". The text does not tie the professional to one named agency.
- Time, manner and fee. All three are left to regulations. The Code prints no number of days and no amount. Section 240(2)(zzh) is the matching power: "the time within which, the manner in which, and the fee for registration of insolvency professional under sub-section (1) of section 207". What the regulations in force say is not in the texts consulted.
Section 207(2): categories of professionals
"The Board may specify the categories of professionals or persons possessing such qualifications and experience in the field of finance, law, management, insolvency or such other field, as it deems fit."
This is a power, not a list. The Code names fields (finance, law, management, insolvency) and leaves the actual categories, qualifications and experience to what the Board specifies. Section 240(2)(zzi) repeats it among the Board's regulation-making matters: "the categories of professionals or persons, the qualifications and experience and the fields under sub-section (2) of section 207".
A reader checking whether a particular person can register should therefore read the Board's regulations, not section 207 alone. The section only tells you who decides and in which fields.
| Step | Provision | Who acts | Left to regulations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enrol as a member | Section 206 and section 204(a) | Agency | Requirements are in the agency's bye-laws |
| Register with the Board | Section 207(1) | Insolvency professional | Time, manner and fee |
| Categories of persons | Section 207(2) | Board | Categories, qualifications and experience |
How the sections fit with the rest of Chapter IV
Chapter IV of Part IV, which holds sections 206 to 208, is about the insolvency professional as a person. Section 206 is the bar, section 207 is the registration, and section 208 states the functions and code of conduct once a process has been initiated. Our post on section 208 and the statutory code of conduct covers section 208; this article does not explain it. For a plain overview of registration and role, see our post on insolvency professional registration under sections 206 to 208.
Rules and regulations
The set that implements these sections is the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (Insolvency Professionals) Regulations, 2016; the copy consulted is amended up to 20-11-2025. The date of that copy does not show that any provision of the Amendment Act, 2026 is in force.
The Amendment Act, 2026
The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Act, 2026 (No. 6 of 2026) does not amend sections 206 or 207. It inserts a definition of "service provider" in section 3 that names an insolvency professional among the persons it covers, and it amends section 208, which this article does not explain. The Amendment Act, 2026 comes into force on the date or dates the Central Government notifies; the notification is not in the texts consulted, so check whether this change has been notified.
Amendments and notifications made after 12 August 2021, other than the Amendment Act, 2026, are not in the texts consulted and should be checked.
Need help with an appointment or a registration question?
Creditors, corporate applicants and professionals sometimes need to confirm that the person named for an office has both the membership and the registration that section 206 requires. We can go through the documents with you; start with a legal consultation and bring the proposed appointment papers.
Key takeaways
- Section 206 requires both agency membership and Board registration before anyone renders services as an insolvency professional under the Code.
- Section 207(1) places registration after membership of "any insolvency professional agency".
- The time, manner and fee for registration are left to regulations.
- Section 207(2) lets the Board specify categories of professionals or persons, with fields named as finance, law, management, insolvency or another field the Board deems fit.
- Section 206 prints no penalty of its own.
Read next
- Sections 199 and 200: certificate of registration and principles for registering agencies
- Sections 203 to 205: governing board, functions and bye-laws of an agency
- Section 208: the statutory code of conduct for every insolvency professional
- Insolvency professional registration under sections 206 to 208
Disclaimer: Based on the IBBI consolidated text of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 amended up to 12 August 2021 and on the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Act, 2026 (No. 6 of 2026), which comes into force on the date or dates notified by the Central Government, as consulted on 2 October 2026. It explains the words of the statute only; commencement notifications, other amendments made after 12 August 2021, notified thresholds, the rules and IBBI regulations, and the way tribunals and courts apply these sections should be checked. This article is general information, not legal advice; check the official text before acting.