Form 1A is the Annual Self-Disclosure Report to be submitted by an eligible Not-for-Profit Organisation (NPO) registered on the Social Stock Exchange (SSE).

It primarily covers general and governance-related information that does not depend upon statutory audited financial statements. 

The purpose of Form 1A is to provide the SSE and stakeholders with an annual picture of the NPO's:

• Identity and organisational profile; 
• Vision and mission; 
• Activities and objectives; 
• Governance structure;
• Board/trustee composition; 
• Senior management; 
• Governance meetings; 
• Risk-management mechanisms; 
• Ethics and conflict-of-interest mechanisms; 
• Grievance-redressal mechanisms; 
• Registrations and certifications; and 
• Capacity-building activities. 

It is intended to improve transparency, accountability and governance of NPOs participating in the SSE ecosystem

An NPO registered on the Social Stock Exchange is required to make the applicable annual disclosures.

The NSE's prescribed Form 1A states that all NPOs participating on the SSE, whether or not they have currently listed securities, are required to self-report annually in Form 1A. 

No. Registration on the SSE itself is relevant to the annual disclosure obligation. The NSE's Form 1A instructions expressly cover NPOs registered on SSE irrespective of whether they have currently listed securities.Therefore:

SSE Registration + No funds raised ? annual disclosure obligations can still apply.

SSE Registration + Funds raised ? annual disclosure obligations apply, together with additional applicable impact/reporting requirements.

No.They are different disclosures.

Form                              Broad purpose

Form 1A                         General & governance self-disclosures

Form 1B                         General, governance & financial self-disclosures linked to audited financial information

Form 2.1                        Annual Social Impact Report for projects funded through securities listed on SSE

Form 3.1                        Annual Social Impact Assessment Report

BSE's prescribed framework confirms this distinction. 

The principal distinction is the nature of the information. Form 1A covers general and governance matters not dependent on statutory financial audit. Form 1B covers general, governance and financial matters that have a reference to:

• Audited financial statements; 
• Income-tax filings; 
• FCRA filings; 
• Charity Commissioner records; 
• Registrar of Societies; 
• Registrar of Companies; and 
• Other applicable regulatory filings. 

Thus, Form 1A should not be treated as a substitute for Form 1B.

Under the current framework, non-financial annual disclosures are required within 60 days from the end of the financial year, unless SEBI specifies another period. The current SEBI LODR text reflects the bifurcation of annual disclosures into:

Financial aspects – generally by 31 October or the applicable prescribed period; and 

Non-financial aspects – within 60 days from the end of the financial year, or such other period as specified by SEBI. 

Accordingly, for FY 2025-26, the ordinary 60-day period would fall in May 2026, subject to the applicable SSE/SEBI filing instructions.

The current regulatory framework distinguishes non-financial and financial disclosures. Form 1A principally covers the non-financial/general-governance component, while Form 1B contains financial and other information linked to audited statements and regulatory filings.

Therefore, an NPO should follow the current filing instructions of its respective SSE (NSE or BSE) rather than assuming that Form 1A and Form 1B always have identical deadlines. 

• Form 1A is broadly divided into:
• Form 1A.1 – General & Governance Disclosures
• Form 1A.2 – Capacity Building
• Form 1A.3 – Declaration

The current NSE format contains these sections. 

The NPO is required to provide information such as:

• Legal name; 
• Popular/common name, where applicable; 
• Headquarters; 
• Locations of operations; 
• Vision statement; 
• Purpose; 
• Mission; 
• Organisational goals;
• Activities; 
• Products/services, where applicable. 

Yes. The NPO is required to explain its:

• Vision; 
• Purpose; 
• Mission; and 
• Organisational goals.

These should be consistent with the NPO's constitutional documents and its actual activities. 

Yes. The NPO should describe its principal:

• Activities; 
• Programmes; 
• Services; 
• Areas of operation; and 
• Organisational objectives. 

The disclosure should provide a clear picture of what the organisation actually does.

The governance section includes information concerning:

• Ownership/legal form;
• Governance structure;
• Role of governing body; 
• Board/trustee members; 
• Chief functionary/senior-most decision-maker; 
• Key executives; 
• Meetings; 
• Risk management; 
• Ethics; 
• Conflict of interest;
• Remuneration policies; 
• Grievance mechanisms;
• Registration and certifications. 

Yes. The prescribed format requires details of current:

• Governing body members; 
• Board members; and/or
• Trustees. 

The NPO should ensure that the information agrees with its current statutory records.

Depending on the applicable Form 1A format, information may include:

• Name; 
• Designation; 
• Position; 
• Relevant role; 
• Other prescribed particulars. 

The NPO should maintain a current governance register so that the annual disclosure can be prepared accurately.

Yes. The NPO is required to disclose the name and designation of the senior-most decision maker/Chief Functionary, as applicable. 

The term generally refers to the person having overall executive/operational responsibility for the organisation.

Depending upon the NPO's structure, this could be, for example:

• CEO; 
• Executive Director; 
• Secretary; 
• Managing Trustee; 
• Director; or 
• Another person exercising the relevant executive responsibility. 

The actual designation should be reported accurately rather than creating a designation merely for Form 1A.

Yes. The prescribed format contains a section concerning executives with key responsibilities. The NPO should identify persons responsible for important functions such as:

• Finance; 
• Programmes; 
• Compliance; 
• Human resources; 
• Operations; 
• Fundraising; or 
• Other significant functions. 

Yes. The form requires information concerning the number of meetings of the governing body and other committees, as applicable.  The figures should be supported by:

• Minutes; 
• Attendance records; 
• Notices; 
• Board/trustee registers; and 
• Committee records. 

Yes. The prescribed form asks for information regarding organisation-level potential risks and mitigation plans. The NPO should consider risks such as:

• Financial risk; 
• Regulatory risk; 
• FCRA risk; 
• Cyber/data risk; 
• Operational risk; 
• Reputational risk; 
• Fraud risk; 
• Project-delivery risk; 
• Human-resource risk. 

Not every NPO necessarily needs a standalone policy merely because Form 1A asks for risk information. However, an NPO participating in SSE should have a documented process for identifying, assessing and mitigating material risks appropriate to its size and activities.

Yes. The prescribed form asks about mechanisms for:

• Ethical advice; 
• Raising concerns; 
• Conflict of interest; and 
• Communication of critical concerns. 

An NPO should maintain appropriate records concerning:

• Related-party relationships; 
• Trustee/director interests; 
• Potential conflicts; 
• Disclosure of interests; 
• Recusal from decisions, where appropriate; 
• Approvals. 

A conflict-of-interest policy/register can be useful evidence of the governance framework.

Yes. The prescribed format includes remuneration policies as a governance disclosure.  The NPO should maintain appropriate documentation regarding remuneration of:

• Senior management; 
• Employees; 
• Directors/trustees, where applicable; 
• Consultants/other key personnel. 

Yes. The form covers:

• Stakeholder grievance mechanisms; 
• Grievance-redressal process; 
• Number of grievances received; and 
• Number resolved. 

The NPO should maintain a grievance register and supporting records.

Yes. The prescribed format includes the organisation's registration certificates and other licences/certifications.

Depending on the NPO, this may include:

• Trust/Society/Section 8 registration; 
• PAN; 
• 12AB; 
• 80G; 
• FCRA; 
• CSR-1; 
• NGO DARPAN; 
• GST; 
• Other applicable registrations/licences. 

Only applicable registrations should be reported.

Form 1A.2 concerns capacity-building workshops/programmes attended by the organisation, including programmes supported through the Capacity Building Fund (CBF), where applicable.

Recent NSE-filed Form 1A reports demonstrate that organisations are reporting workshops under categories such as:

• Self-disclosures by NPO; 
• Social Impact Assessment; 
• External Social Assessment; and 
• Learning Loops. 

The organisation may need to provide:

• Category; 
• Workshop/programme name; 
• Organiser; 
• Date(s); 
• Names/designations of participants; 
• Certificates, where applicable; 
• Comments. 

The reporting form asks for relevant capacity-building activities; the NPO should follow the applicable SSE instructions concerning which activities are mandatory or reportable.

The organisation should preserve certificates, attendance records and other evidence where available.

The NPO's authorised person declares that the information provided is correct and complete and that the documents submitted are true copies. Recent NSE-filed Form 1A reports show certification by a trustee/authorised person, along with date, place and organisational seal.

The form should be signed/verified by the authorised person of the NPO, in accordance with the applicable SSE format and the NPO's governance arrangements.

For a trust, this may be an authorised trustee; for a Section 8 company, the appropriate authorised officer/director; and for a society, an appropriately authorised governing-body member.

Form 1A is designed primarily around general and governance disclosures that are not dependent upon statutory financial audit. 

Accordingly, it should not be confused with Form 1B, which contains disclosures linked to audited financial statements.

However, where the specific SSE format requests auditor details or other supporting information, the NPO should follow that format.

The SSE framework applies to NPOs participating through the recognised Social Stock Exchanges, including NSE SSE and BSE SSE.

Both exchanges have published the prescribed/revised reporting formats. BSE, for example, published the revised Form 1A/1B/2.1/3.1 formats in its July 2024 notice. 

The underlying SEBI framework is common, but the NPO should use the current prescribed format and filing instructions of the SSE on which it is registered/listed.

It is prudent to download the latest Form 1A from the relevant exchange before each annual filing.

A practical Form 1A documentation file should contain:

• Constitutional documents
• Trust Deed / MOA & AOA / Society Bye-laws 
• Registration certificate 
• Amendments 
• Governance records
• Current trustee/director list 
• Governing-body resolutions 
• Board/trustee minutes
• Committee minutes 
• Attendance records 
• Policies
• Conflict-of-interest policy 
• Ethics policy 
• Grievance policy 
• Risk-management policy/process 
• Remuneration policy 
• Whistle-blower/complaints mechanism, where applicable 
• Regulatory documents
• 12AB 
• 80G 
• FCRA 
• CSR-1 
• DARPAN 
• GST and other applicable registrations 
• Operational records
• Activity reports 
• Programme records 
• Beneficiary information 
• Geographic operations
• Organisational structure 
• Capacity-building records
• Workshop certificates
• Attendance records 
• Training details 

Yes. Although Form 1A and Form 1B have different scopes, information such as Organisation name, Legal status, Trustees/directors, Registrations, Activities;, Governance structure, Chief functionary  etc. should be consistent across the two forms and the organisation's statutory records.

Common issues include:

• Using an outdated Form 1A; 
• Incorrect legal name;
• Incorrect SSE registration details; 
• Outdated trustee/director information; 
• Inconsistent address;
• Inconsistent mission/objectives; 
• Failure to update registrations; 
• Inadequate risk disclosures; 
• Missing grievance information; 
• Incorrect number of meetings; 
• Failure to document conflict-of-interest mechanisms; 
• Incomplete capacity-building information; 
• Inadequate supporting documents. 

Yes. An NPO may engage a professional consultant/CS/CA/lawyer or other competent professional to assist in:

• Data collection; 
• Compliance review; 
• Drafting; 
• Form preparation; 
• Document compilation;
• Governance review; 
• Filing coordination. 

The NPO's authorised person remains responsible for the accuracy of the information submitted.

A useful approach is to conduct an SSE Annual Compliance Review:

Step 1: Confirm SSE registration/listing status

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Step 2: Obtain the latest NSE/BSE Form 1A

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Step 3: Review constitutional documents

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Step 4: Update trustee/director details

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Step 5: Review board/governing-body meetings

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Step 6: Review policies and governance mechanisms

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Step 7: Review registrations/licences

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Step 8: Compile risk and grievance information

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Step 9: Compile capacity-building information

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Step 10: Cross-check Form 1A against Form 1B and statutory records

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Step 11: Obtain authorised signatory's declaration

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Step 12: File within the applicable SSE timeline.

A professional consultancy can provide an end-to-end Form 1A compliance package, including:

1. SSE Compliance Review
2. Review of the NPO's current SSE obligations.
3. Information & Document Checklist
4. A customised list of documents required.
5. Governance Review
6. Review of Board/trustee structure;, Meetings, Committees, Policies, Conflict-of-interest mechanism, Grievance mechanism. 
7. Form 1A Preparation in the latest prescribed format
8. Supporting Document Compilation
9. Organising supporting records and attachments.
10. Consistency Check:- Cross-checking Form 1A with:

• Trust/Society/ROC records; 
• FCRA; 
• Income-tax; 
• CSR-1; 
• Other applicable registrations. 

11. Filing Support:-Assistance with submission to the applicable SSE.

12. Compliance File:- Maintaining a complete annual SSE disclosure file for 

     future reference, renewal and regulatory review.