Notification Record & Forms
Notification details and the forms every employer needs, in one place.
- Issuing Authority
- Andaman & Nicobar Administration, Secretariat, Labour Department, Sri Vijaya Puram
- Notified
- Draft pre published on 7 May 2026 vide Gazette Notification No. 89/2026, F. No. M 131/2023 Lab. Ins. III LAB_AN/554, in the Andaman and Nicobar Extraordinary Gazette
- Objection Window
- 45 days from the date of draft publication, addressed to the Office of the Labour Commissioner, Sri Vijaya Puram 744101 (closed around 21 June 2026)
- Legal Basis
- Sections 133 and 135 of the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020, read with Ministry of Home Affairs Notification S.O. 27(E) dated 2 January 2026
- Supersedes
- Replaces the earlier draft Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions (A & N Islands) Rules, 2024 (Gazette Notification No. 134 dated 13 December 2024); once finally notified, these Rules will take over from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands Factories Rules 1970 and the other central labour Acts and regulations that governed safety, health and working conditions in the Islands before the OSH Code
- Status As Of
- August 2026, still in draft form, no final notification traced
The Andaman & Nicobar Administration has pre published the draft Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions (A & N Islands) Rules, 2026, spelling out how the national OSH Code will actually work on the ground in the Islands. Running across 12 chapters and 122 rules, the draft brings registration, health checkups, accident reporting, working hours, women's night shift safety, contract labour licensing and factory approvals under one roof, replacing the patchwork of separate rules that used to apply to factories, construction sites, beedi units and contract labour in the Union Territory.
Forms under the State Rules
Due Dates
Compliance deadlines, forms and how often each one recurs.
| Compliance | Form | Compliance Frequency | Due Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registration of establishment | Form I (Rule 4(1)) | One time, on becoming applicable | Within 60 days of the Code becoming applicable to the establishment |
| Notice of commencement or cessation of operations | Form IV (Rules 4(9) and 6) | Event based | Within 30 days of commencement, completion or cessation |
| Annual health examination of employees above 40 years | Form V (Rule 7) | Annual | Within 120 days from the start of the calendar year |
| Notice of death or dangerous occurrence | Form VI (Rule 9) | Event based | Forthwith by phone, and electronically as soon as possible |
| Notice of injury preventing work for 48 hours or more | Form VI (Rule 9) | Event based | Within 12 hours after completion of the 48 hour period |
| Appointment letter to every employee | Prescribed format (Rule 8) | One time per employee | On appointment; within 3 months of these Rules for existing employees |
| Employee, attendance and wage registers | Forms VIII, VIII (A), VIII (B) (Rule 35(1)) | Continuous | Maintained current at all times, preserved for 5 years |
| Wage slip to employees | Form VIII (C) (Rule 35(2)) | Every wage period | On or before payment of wages |
| Unified annual return | Form IX (Rule 35(5)(a)) | Annual | On or before 28th or 29th February each year, for the preceding year |
| Half yearly return by contractor | Form IX A (Rule 35(5)(b)) | Half yearly | As prescribed for the January to June and July to December periods |
| Contract labour or beedi and cigar licence | Form XV (Rules 50 and 118) | Once in 5 years | Before commencing work through contract labour or in beedi and cigar premises |
| Health register for factory workers | Form XXVIII (Rule 86(1)(c)) | Continuous | Updated on every medical examination |
| Compounding of offence | Form XXXII (Rule 115(1)) | Event based | On receipt of compounding notice; amount payable within 15 days |
Key Provisions
What changed under the Code, and what it means for payroll.
Old Law vs. New Law
What employers followed before, against what applies now — point matched against point.
| On this point | Before — earlier law | Now — the new Code |
|---|---|---|
| Registration | Separate registrations under the Factories Act, BOCW Act, Contract Labour Act and other laws applicable to the Islands, each with its own process | Single electronic registration under the OSH Code within 60 days, deemed registered under the A & N Islands Shops and Establishments Regulation, 2004 as well |
| Factory threshold | 10 or more workers with power, 20 or more without power counted a premises as a factory under the Factories Act | 20 or more workers with power, 40 or more without power |
| Contract labour licensing threshold | 20 or more contract workers required a contractor's licence under the Contract Labour Act | 50 or more contract workers required for the licensing chapter to apply |
| Inter State Migrant Worker threshold | 5 or more inter state migrant workers triggered coverage under the ISMW Act | 10 or more inter state migrant workers |
| Appointment letters | Not uniformly mandatory across all establishments | Compulsory for every employee, in a prescribed format, within 3 months for existing staff |
| Annual health examination | Largely limited to workers in hazardous processes under the Factories Act | Free annual health checkup for employees above 40 years across factories, docks and construction work, Form V |
| Registers and returns | Separate registers under the Factories Act, Contract Labour Act, ISMW Act and Payment of Wages Act | Unified registers, Form VIII series, and a single annual return in Form IX |
| Licensing concept | Separate licences needed for factory, contract labour and beedi and cigar work | Provision for a common licence covering factory, contract labour and industrial premises together |
| Women's night employment | Largely restricted or required special permission in most establishments | Permitted with consent, subject to prescribed safeguards, transport, CCTV, welfare assistants and 12 hour rest between shifts |
| Working hours | Governed separately under the Factories Act and other sectoral laws, typically 9 hours a day | 8 hours a day, 48 hours a week, spread over capped at 12 hours under the Code |
| Compounding of offences | Procedures varied across the different Acts | Single compounding mechanism under Section 114 of the Code, Forms XXXII and XXXIII |
Applicability
Who the Code covers, and who gets special or exempt treatment.
Covered
- Factories employing 20 or more workers where power is used, or 40 or more workers where power is not used
- Building and other construction work establishments engaging workers on projects
- Establishments engaging 50 or more contract workers through a contractor, and contractors engaging 50 or more contract workers
- Establishments employing 10 or more inter state migrant workers on any day of the preceding 12 months
- Dock work, beedi and cigar industrial premises, motor transport undertakings, audio visual production and plantations of 5 hectares or more
- Every establishment employing 10 or more workers, for the purpose of registration under the Code
Exempted / special treatment
- Premises below the notified worker threshold, unless the process is notified as hazardous or life threatening, in which case the threshold does not apply
- Construction of an individual's own residence, where the cost does not exceed the notified limit and the number of workers stays within the notified limit
- Establishments engaging fewer than 50 contract workers, and work of a purely intermittent or casual nature
- Establishments employing fewer than 10 inter state migrant workers
- Establishments or land parcels below the notified threshold for each category, and private dwelling houses where beedi or cigar work is carried on only by family members
- Offices of the Central Government and State Government, and any ship of war, except where contract labour is engaged through a contractor and the Government is the principal employer; establishments already registered under the A & N Islands Shops and Establishments Regulation, 2004 are deemed registered
Frequently Asked Questions
Answers to what employers ask us most about this rule.
Are the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions (A & N Islands) Rules, 2026 already in force?
No. They are still a draft, pre published on 7 May 2026 for objections and suggestions. The 45 day objection window has closed, but the A & N Administration has not issued a final notification as of August 2026, so employers should track the Labour Department's website for the final version.
Which establishments in the Andaman & Nicobar Islands does this draft cover?
It covers factories, dock work, building and other construction work, contract labour, inter state migrant workers, beedi and cigar premises, audio visual production and plantations situated anywhere in the Union Territory, once each crosses its respective worker or size threshold.
What is the worker threshold for a premises to count as a factory?
20 or more workers if the manufacturing process uses power, or 40 or more workers if it does not, matching the threshold set by the OSH Code itself.
How does an employer register a new establishment?
By applying electronically in Form I within 60 days of the Code becoming applicable, on the designated portal of the A & N Administration. If the certificate in Form II is not issued within 15 days, registration is deemed granted automatically.
Do establishments already registered under another law need to register again?
No. An establishment registered under the A & N Islands Shops and Establishments Regulation, 2004 is deemed registered under the Code as well, so a separate registration is not required.
How often must employees undergo a health checkup?
Every employee above 40 years in a factory, dock or construction establishment is entitled to a free medical examination once a year, to be completed within 120 days of the calendar year starting, recorded in Form V.
What happens if an accident occurs at the workplace?
A death is reported forthwith by phone and electronically. An injury that keeps a worker off duty for 48 hours or more, or any dangerous occurrence, is reported in Form VI within 12 hours to the Inspector cum Facilitator and other named authorities.
Is an appointment letter mandatory for every employee?
Yes. No employee can be engaged without a written appointment letter carrying the prescribed particulars, and any existing employee without one must be issued a letter within 3 months of these Rules taking effect.
What are the standard working hours under the draft Rules?
No more than 48 hours a week, with a rest interval of at least half an hour after every 6 hours of work, and a spread over, including rest, that does not exceed 12 hours in a day.
How is overtime paid?
At twice the ordinary rate of wages, and overtime in any quarter of the year cannot exceed 144 hours.
When is the annual return due?
Every employer covered by the Code uploads a unified annual return in Form IX on or before the 28th or 29th of February each year, covering the preceding calendar year.
What threshold applies for contract labour licensing?
An establishment engaging 50 or more contract workers through a contractor, or a contractor engaging 50 or more contract workers, needs a licence, higher than the 20 worker threshold under the earlier Contract Labour Act.
Can women be employed at night in the Islands?
Yes, with their written consent and subject to safeguards such as free transport, CCTV coverage at the workplace, at least 12 hours rest between a shift change, and dedicated Special Welfare Assistants during night shifts.
How can an employer compound an offence instead of facing prosecution?
By applying in Form XXXII to the officer notified as Compounding Officer. Once a compounding notice is issued, the amount must be deposited within 15 days, after which a compounding certificate is issued in Form XXXIII.
Where can an employer raise objections or suggestions on the draft Rules?
Objections were to be sent to the Office of the Labour Commissioner, Labour Department, Andaman & Nicobar Administration, Supply Line, Sri Vijaya Puram 744101, or by email, within 45 days of the draft's publication on 7 May 2026.
Sources
Where every fact on this page comes from.
- → Andaman and Nicobar Extraordinary Gazette No. 89, dated 7 May 2026, Notification No. 89/2026, F. No. M 131/2023 Lab. Ins. III LAB_AN/554 (official)
- → Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 (Act No. 37 of 2020), including Chapter XII on Offences and Penalties (official)
- → Ministry of Home Affairs Notification S.O. 27(E) dated 2 January 2026 (official)
- → Website of the Department of Labour, Employment and Training, Andaman & Nicobar Administration (official)
- → Draft Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions (A & N Islands) Rules, 2024, Gazette Notification No. 134 dated 13 December 2024 (official)
For informational purposes only — not legal advice. State rules referenced here are subject to change on final notification. Verify current status with our compliance team before acting.