The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), on November 11, 2026, has issued revised reporting and due diligence requirements under the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) and Common Reporting Standard (CRS), in line with the Income-tax Act, 2025 and Income-tax Rules, 2026.
The revised requirements arise under Section 508 of the Income-tax Act, 2025, read with Rules 238 to 240 and Form 166 of the Income-tax Rules, 2026, which replaced the earlier framework under the Income-tax Act, 1961, with effect from April 1, 2026. All SEBI-registered intermediaries qualifying as Reporting Financial Institutions (RFIs) are required to ensure compliance with the revised reporting and due diligence procedures.
Intermediaries are required to incorporate Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI) requirements into their customer onboarding and KYC frameworks and update their systems to capture self-certification validity indicators, controlling person roles, account classifications and pre-existing/new account status. They must also update Form 166 XML generation software to include all mandatory fields to avoid validation errors on the Income Tax portal.
Further, intermediaries must upload FATCA and CRS certifications obtained from clients onto the systems of KYC Registration Agencies (KRAs). The responsibility for obtaining and reporting such certifications and ensuring related compliance rests solely with the respective intermediaries. SEBI has also advised intermediaries to refer to the CBDT Guidance Note on FATCA and CRS dated July 24, 2026.
[Circular No. HO/38/14/(18)2026-MIRSD-POD2/I/25560/2026]
