Assam Society Registration

A society is a group of people coming together to promote charitable activities. Societies are registered under the Societies Registration Act that governs the operations of societies in India. Since societies are formed for common communal purposes, they must be registered to be eligible for

tax- exemption. In this article, we look at the process and procedure of Assam Society Registration in detail.

The Society Registration Act, 1860

The Society Registration Act governs the requirement and procedure for society registration and operation. Under this Act, a minimum of seven members requires to register a society. The Act does not prohibit the governing council or the managing committee to be the citizens of India, i.e. anyone can be a member of Society.

Need for Registration

Societies with seven or more members can register under the following reasons.

1. To promote science.
2. To promote literature.
3. To encourage fine arts.
4. To maintain libraries or reading rooms.
5. To maintain public museum or galleries.

Assam Society Registration

Who can apply?

1. Any person who desires to register a society for charitable purposes (as described in section 20) can apply for the registration.
2. Self-Help Groups do not come under the preview of Societies Registration Act 1860 as those organizations to help the group members start a business / an occupation/trade by lending money which is considered as business activities and not charitable activities.
3. The societies whose aims and objectives are confined to the welfare and interest of its members only such as Pensioners Association, Housing Societies etc. do not come under the scope of Societies Registration Act 1860.

Competent Authority

The State Government of Assam will appoint Registrar of Societies and Firms as the component authority to register a society. Additional Joint Deputy or Assistant Registrars will be the concerned officer to assist the Registrar if required. The Additional Deputy Commissioner who also functions as Joint Registrar of Societies is responsible for investigating all documents in the Memorandum of Association, Constitution indicating Bye-Laws of Societies, fees paid by treasury challan, Headman’s NOC and all documents under the Act.

Organization structure of Registrar of Firms and Societies:

Documents Required

The following documents are mandatory for the registration of a society:

1. A copy of clearly typed Memorandum of Association together with Rules and Regulation duly signed by the President and the Secretary with the Seal of the Society.
2. Copies of a resolution regarding the registration of the Society and election of the members of the executive body with the list of the members present in the General Meeting.
3. Documents regarding office accommodation of the Society.

Note: If the Society claims that its OfficeOffice is situated on land, owned by it, the Dag number, patta number and proof of its ownership of the land should be furnished. If the OfficeOffice is situated in a rented building, requires an affidavit from the house owner with proof of his ownership.

1. A copy of passport size photos of the President and the Secretary.
2. A copy of the specimen signature of all executive members of the Society (whose number should not be less than seven) on a plain paper.

Note: The members of the Society should sign in the presence of Deputy Commissioner/ Additional Deputy Commissioner / Sub Divisional Officer / Revenue Circle Officer of the concerned district/subdivision/revenue circle, who will sign on that paper mentioning his/her name, date and designation as a token of having witnessed the same.

1. If the Organization has been undertaking any activities during the preceding twelve-month from the date of its application for registration, it should attach a certificate in original from the Deputy Commissioner / Sub-divisional Officer of the concerned district / Sub-division of these activities.
2. Declaration from the President of the Secretary regarding the receipt of the fund (if any) from the Government or other agencies.

Registration of Societies

Society registration is by subscribing their names to a memorandum of association and filing the same with the Registrar of Firms and Societies, Assam under this Act. A copy of Rules and Regulations (varies from state to state) must be accompanied with the Memorandum of Associations (MoA) without which the Registrar will not accept the Registration of Societies.

Memorandum of Association

The

memorandum of association must be filed to the Registrar. Seven members of the Society or the individuals associated with the Society should sign the memorandum of association that should be dated. The memorandum of association should comprise the following particulars: (a) the Name of the association (b)  the object of the association (c) the address of the registered OfficeOffice of the association (d) the names of the first members of the Governing Body (e) the Name of addresses and occupations of the signatories to the memorandum.

Rules and Regulations

The copy of Rules and Regulations comprise matters or questions relevant to the following.

1. The manner in which the members of the Governing Body, the President, the Secretary and other officers are elected, appointed, removed or resigned.
2. The office term of the members of the Governing Body, the President, the Secretary and other officers.
3. The manner of admission of members and their resignation or removal.
4. The maintenance of the membership register and facilities for inspection of the same.
5. The custody of the property of the Society.
6. The procedure for holding the society meetings, the notice period for meetings and the manner of voting.
7. The maintenance and audit of accounts
8. The inspection of accounts and proceedings of meeting by the members of the Society
9. Any other matter related to the affairs of the Organization.

 Note: Three office-bearers of Society must sign the formulated rules and regulations. (Chairman, President and Vice-President or Secretary and the President, as applicable)

Name of the Society

While registering a society should select a unique name. The Societies Registration Act, 1860 does not allow a name that already exists to be registered for a Society. The Name of the Society should not resemble the Name of any country, state, local authority or that is prohibited under the Emblems and Names Act, 1950. A Society should not contain any of the following words: - “Indian”, “National” or the name of the “National Figures” as per the instructions issued by the India Government.

Annual General Meeting

Every Society should hold an annual general meeting at least once every year and not more than fifteen months between 2 such successive meetings.

Fees for Assam Society Registration

The applicant should remit the registration fee of Rs.50.00 (Rupees fifty) through Treasury Challan under the Head of Account - Fees under the Societies Registration Act. 1860, Act XXI of 1860. To obtain a  copy of the registration, a fee of Rs.50 requires from the applicant. Each duplicate copy costs Re. 1. Change in Name and address of the societies involves Rs. 50 as a fee. Depending on the districts, the fee for renewal of societies varies from Rs.25 to 200.

Timeline

There is no due date of submission of application for registration. Time for processing of the proposal will be within 30 days from the date of submission of application.

Application Procedure

The application for the registration of Societies is in detail:

Step 1: The applicant should make an application in form 1 along with the prescribed documents to the Registrar of Firms and Societies, Assam. Make necessary payment through treasury challan and then receive a unique acknowledgement number. The copy of the Application form for new registration of a society is provided below. Step 2: Upon applying, the Dealing Assistant will examine the document and forward report to the Registrar of Firms and Societies. Step 3: The Registrar, after studying all aspects of the matter, may dispose the same at his level and approve. The Registrar forwards the file to the Government for obtaining necessary approval same at his level when the subject is related to a policy decision or some other important matter required to be disposed of. Objection of Request: In case of improper documents or any objection matters, the information for objection is communicated to the applicant and submitted to the Dealing Assistant for re-examination. Then the Registrar will approve and issues the certificate. Step 4: The applicant should provide the acknowledgement number to obtain the certificate.

Obtaining Certified Copy of the Society Registered

A notice to hold a meeting on getting the certified copy of the Society must be issued 10 days before the proposed meeting to all members of the executive body. The necessary documents are below.

• Application for the issue of the certified copy of the documents of the Society.
• Two sets of Memorandum of Association and Rules and Regulation of the Society should be submitted along with the application.
• Photocopy of the registration certificate of the Society along with the original.
• Treasury challan of Rs. 30

Issue of Duplicate Registration Certificate of Societies

The applicant can apply for a duplicate issue of the registration certificate of Societies. The documents for the issue of the duplicate registration certificate of Societies are below.

• Application in plain paper from the President/Secretary (in case of Society) with signature (in full Name), date and seal are stating its relevant details.
• An affidavit in original (sworn before a magistrate) in non-judicial stamp paper by the President of the Secretary, explaining the circumstances of the loss of the original registration certificate of the Society.
• Police report (in original) regarding the loss of the original registration certificate.
• Fee for Rs 1/-(one rupee) only through Treasury Challan under the Head of Account “1475-other General Economic Service-fees under the Societies Registration Act XXI of 1860.”
• Particulars of other relevant documents (other than the registration certificate), in case their duplicates requires by the Society.

Change in Name or/and address of the Society

To change the Name or address of the Society, a notice in writing of the change of Name or/and address should be sent to the Registrar that is signed by the President, secretary and seven members. Not less than two-thirds of the total number of members should pass a consent (permission to change) by resolution at a general meeting held for changing the Name or/ and address of the Society. Also, the Registrar holds the copy of the same. The other documents required are the original Registration Certificate and an affidavit regarding the change of name / an affidavit regarding the change of address.

Change of Rules and Regulations of the Society

The Society can change the rules at any time by passing a resolution at a general meeting with at least three-fifths of the members voting in favour of the resolution. Changing of rules and regulations of the Society involves an application for approval of the amendment of Memorandum of Association and constitution of the Society.  A notice regarding the meeting for the proposed amendments is issued to all members before ten days of the meeting, and a copy of it should be sent to the Registrar. It is necessary to agree with amendments by the three-fifths of the members.

Renewal of the Society

The validity of the certificate of registration issued is for 3 years. Therefore, it essential to renew Society after 3 years.

Documents Required For Processing Renewal of a Society

• Application for renewal.
• A photocopy of the registration certificate along with the original registration certificate.
• A list of members of the Executive committee with their full name.
• Relevant resolution of the General Body meeting for the renewal.
• Certificate of confirmation by three members of the Executive Committee, whose signatures should be attested by a gazetted officer.
• Photocopy of the latest annual balance sheet.
• Photocopy of the latest audit report from a Chartered Accountant or a Government auditor.

Note: This document is to be submitted to the Registrar within 30 days from the date of the Annual General Meeting.

• Attested photocopy of the utilization certificate if any fund received during the period, before the date of the renewal application).
• Specimen signature of all-new Executive members on a plain paper, signed in the presence of the Deputy Commissioner who will sign on that paper in token of having witnessed the same.
• A brief report (in original) from the Deputy Commissioner / Sub-Divisional Officer of the concerned district / sub-division of the activities of the Society during the preceding three years from the date of the renewal application.
• Photocopies of all pages of the Bank Pass-Book of the Society.
• Cashbook of the Society, relating to the preceding three years, pending the date of the renewal application.
• Attested passport size photos of the President and Secretary (attested by a gazetted officer of the photo, below the face.
• Dag Number, Patta Number and Proof of ownership of the Society on the land of its Office.
• An affidavit from the house owner with the proof of his ownership.
• An annual report since the date of registration.