POSH Act Compliance for Employers in India: 2026 Checklist

ByJurisAxios

POSH Act compliance for employers in India means a properly composed Internal Committee at every workplace with 10 or more employees, a displayed policy, a time-bound inquiry and an annual report. Since Aureliano Fernandes v State of Goa (2023) the Supreme Court has monitored compliance through district surveys and SHe-Box. This checklist covers what the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 requires.

Internal Committee and the external member

Section 4 obliges every employer with 10 or more employees to constitute an Internal Committee by written order at each office or administrative unit. “Employee” includes contract staff, trainees and apprentices. The composition is:

  • Presiding Officer: a senior woman employee, or one from another unit if none is available.
  • At least two employee members, preferably with social work or legal knowledge.
  • One external member from an NGO committed to the cause of women, or a person familiar with sexual harassment issues (Rule 4), paid a sitting fee under Rule 3.
  • At least half women; no member serves more than three years.

Policy, display and training duties

Section 19 and Rule 13 set the employer’s standing duties, which inspectors check first: a safe working environment; display at a conspicuous place of the penal consequences of sexual harassment and the order constituting the Committee; a written policy treating harassment as misconduct; regular workshops and Committee orientation; and help to the woman if she goes to the police.

Companies have a reporting overlay: Rule 8(5) of the Companies (Accounts) Rules, 2014, amended by MCA notification G.S.R. 357(E) of 30 May 2025, requires the Board’s report to confirm the Committee’s constitution and disclose complaints received, disposed of and pending over 90 days.

Complaint timelines: three months plus extension

Under section 9 a written complaint must reach the Committee within three months of the incident, or of the last incident in a series. The Committee may extend this by up to three more months if it records in writing that circumstances prevented the woman from filing earlier. Section 10 permits conciliation at her request, but not on a monetary basis.

Inquiry procedure and the 90-day limit

Section 11 requires the inquiry to be completed within 90 days under the respondent’s service rules or, where none exist, Rule 7. The Committee has civil court powers; the respondent receives the complaint within seven working days and replies within ten. The report must reach the employer within ten days (section 13), and the employer must act within 60 days. An appeal lies under section 18 within 90 days; section 16 bars publication of identities.

The 2023 judgment is itself a warning: the Goa University inquiry was set aside for haste and want of a fair hearing.

Annual report obligations

Section 21 requires the Committee to prepare a calendar-year annual report for the employer and the District Officer (Rule 14: complaints received and disposed of, cases pending beyond 90 days, workshops and action taken). Section 22 requires the employer to report the number of cases in the organisation’s annual report, or to the District Officer.

Aureliano Fernandes and the follow-up orders

In Aureliano Fernandes v State of Goa, decided on 12 May 2023 by Justices A.S. Bopanna and Hima Kohli, the Court found the Act poorly implemented a decade after enactment.

It will never succeed in providing dignity and respect that women deserve at the workplace unless there is strict adherence to the enforcement regime.

Supreme Court, Aureliano Fernandes v State of Goa (2023), paraphrased

It directed time-bound verification that every ministry, department and public institution had constituted Committees of the prescribed composition, publication of Committee details and the complaint procedure online, and regular orientation and awareness programmes.

Follow-up orders ran from 2024 into 2026. In December 2024 a Bench led by Justice B.V. Nagarathna fixed deadlines: District Officers by 31 December 2024, Local Committees by 31 January 2025 and a survey of public and private workplaces by 31 March 2025, with States told to activate SHe-Box for receiving and routing complaints. On 12 August 2025 it directed District Labour Commissioners to survey public and private establishments within six weeks and onboard the data to SHe-Box. Monitoring continues, so a Labour Officer may ask any employer for its Committee order, displayed notice, training records and annual report.

Penalties under section 26 and the BNS

Section 26 punishes an employer who fails to constitute a Committee, to act under sections 13, 14 or 22, or who otherwise contravenes the Act, with a fine of up to Rs 50,000. A second conviction doubles the punishment and may lead to cancellation or non-renewal of the business licence or registration.

The Act does not displace the criminal law. Sexual harassment is an offence under section 75 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (section 354A IPC): rigorous imprisonment of up to three years for unwelcome physical contact, demands for sexual favours or showing pornography, and up to one year for sexually coloured remarks. Limitation under section 514 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (section 468 CrPC) is three years, far longer than the POSH window. If a police complaint is likely, take early criminal law advice, as inquiry statements may surface there.

Frequently asked questions

Is an Internal Committee compulsory if an office has fewer than 10 employees?

No. Section 4 requires one only where there are 10 or more employees. Smaller establishments fall under the district Local Committee (section 6), but the employer must still meet its section 19 duties.

Can the Internal Committee take a complaint filed after three months?

Yes, within limits. Section 9 fixes three months from the last incident, but the Committee may extend this by up to three more months if it records in writing why the woman could not complain earlier. It cannot go beyond six months.

Does a POSH complaint stop the woman from going to the police?

No. The POSH inquiry is a civil workplace remedy. The same conduct may be an offence under section 75 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (section 354A IPC), and section 19 obliges the employer to assist her if she goes to the police.

What if an employer ignores the Internal Committee’s recommendations?

Section 13 requires action within 60 days. Failing to act, or to constitute a Committee at all, is punishable under section 26 with a fine of up to Rs 50,000; a repeat conviction doubles the penalty and may cost the business its licence.

Sources

This article is general information, not legal advice. For advice on your own matter, you may contact the firm.

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