NGOSociety

Society Registration in India: Know the Entire Procedure and List of Documents Required

calendar18 Dec, 2019
timeReading Time: 4 Minutes
Society Registration

A society is a group of individuals who voluntarily come together to govern and act cooperatively for some communal and charitable purpose. The primary purpose of Society Registration is the advancement of charitable activities like music, culture, sports, art, education etc. The registration of a society is done under the Society Registration Act, which has been accepted by several state governments with or without further amendments. If you are looking to set up a Society, you must be aware of the procedure required for the Society Registration. This blog will guide you through the entire procedure and documents required for the Society Registration.

What are the Benefits of Society Registration?

As per Section 20 of the Society Act, 1860[1], a Society is registered for the following purpose:

  • For promoting fine arts
  • Dispersal of Political Education
  • For charitable assistance
  • For promoting Science and Literature
  • For the Creation of Orphan military funds
  • For the foundation and maintenance of Orphan Funds, reading rooms or libraries.
  • For the diffusion of useful knowledge.

Main features of Society Registration

  • A minimum of 7 persons or more is required to form a Society.
  • People, companies or societies registered outside India need to subscribe to the Memorandum of a Society in India.
  • After having the Society registration in India, society gets legal protection and becomes eligible for the advantages offered by the government.

What are the Documents required for the Society Registration

  • Pan Card

All the members of the proposed society needs to submit the Pan Card along with their application.

  • Resident proofs

Resident proofs such as  Bank Statement, Aadhar Card or Pan Card, utility bills, Driving License, passport etc. All the members of the society can submit this as evidence proof.

  • MOA (Memorandum of Association) of the Society containing the following clauses and information:
  1. Working and Objectives of the Society for which it is being established.
  2. Details of the members involved in the formation of society.
  3. Address of the registered office of the society.
  • AOA (Articles of Association) of the Society containing the following information:
  1. The after company incorporation procedures like the rules and regulations that the society needs to follow and the maintenance of day to day activities.
  2. If someone wants to take the membership of the society, then one can refer to the AOA of the society as it contains the rules for making the membership of the society.
  3. Details about the meetings that are to be held along with the frequency.
  4. Auditors information
  5. Information about the Forms of Arbitration in case there is any conflict among the members of the society.
  6. Ways for the dissolution of the society.

After the rules have been formed, any alteration in the existing set of rules needs to be signed by the President, Vice-President, Chairman and the secretary of the society.

  • Covering Letter

A covering letter containing the objective behind the formation of the society will be annexed at the beginning of the application. The founding members of the society will sign the covering letter.

  • Registered Office Address proof

A copy of the address proof where the registered office of the society is located along with the NOC (No Objection Certificate) from the landlord.

  • List of all the members

A list containing all the members of the governing body along with their signatures.

  • Declaration

A declaration by the President of the proposed society stating that he/she is willing to hold the said post.

All the documents are sent to the Registrar of the Societies with the prescribed fee along with the two copies. After receiving the application, the Registrar will sign both the two copies of the documents. 

After proper vetting of the documents, the Registrar of the society will issue an Incorporation certificate and allot a registration number to it.

Read our article:Society Registration for School: Know Everything about Educational Societies in India

What are the steps for registering a Society in India?

For the formation of society, an individual doesn’t need to be a citizen of India. An individual who wishes to be a part of society can be an Indian citizen or any foreign individual. Their respective state governments maintain the registration of the society.

For registering a Society, the existing members must agree with the name of the society.  After this, a Memorandum is created followed by the Rules and regulations of the society.

MOA (Memorandum of Association) of the Society

The Memorandum of Society must be signed by every member of society, witnessed by any of the gazette officers, notary Republic, Chartered accountant (CA), Oath Commissioner, Advocate, Magistrate first-class or CA with their official stamping and complete address. Also, the Memorandum of Society must contain the personal details of all its members. You need to furnish the following documents for registering an entity as a society:

  • A duplicate copy of MOA of the Society or the Memorandum of Society along with the certified copy.
  • A duplicate copy of rules and regulations of the society.
  • A duplicate copy of rules and regulation of the society duly signed by all the establishing members.
  • An Affidavit asserted by the President of the Society declaring relationship among subscribers.

What are the things that must be kept in mind while naming society?

According to the Society Act, 1860[2], the name of the society cannot be identical or similar to an already registered society. Also, the proposed name should not fascinate the provisions of Emblem and Names Act, 1950.

What are the advantages of registering an entity as a society?

The advantages of registering an entity as society is as follow:

  • A society after getting registered as society gets the legal status and they can legally open their current account.
  • A society can quickly get registration and approvals under the Income Tax Act.
  • A society after the registration enjoys a separate legal entity.
  • The registered society gets legal recognition in the eyes of all the Forums and the Government authorities.

Conclusion

Stepping ahead and helping others for a noble cause does not only make the society better, but it’s you who become the better version of yourself day by day. With a view you to give this an edge, people come forward and form a society for the betterment of everyone. If you are looking to form a Society and have the Society registration with ease, feel free to reach us at Corpbiz for any kind of assistance.

Read our article:By-Laws of Society Registration: A Comprehensive Guide

Request a Call Back

Are you human? : 3 + 7 =

Easy Payment Options Available No Spam. No Sharing. 100% Confidentiality