Notification Record & Forms
Notification details and the forms every employer needs, in one place.
- Issuing authority
- Labour and ESI Department, Government of Odisha
- Notified
- 16 February 2026, published in the Odisha Gazette Extraordinary No. 665, vide Notification No.1166 LESI LR POL 0003/2026/LESI, dated 15 February 2026
- Objection window
- Forty five days from the date copies of the Official Gazette were made available to the public. This window closed in early April 2026
- Legal basis
- Sections 133 and 135 of the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020, read with Section 24 of the General Clauses Act, 1897
- Supersedes
- The Odisha Factories Rules 1950, the Odisha Factories Control of Major Accident Hazard Rules 2001, the Odisha Motor Transport Workers Rules 1966, the Odisha Beedi and Cigar Workers Conditions of Employment Rules 1969, the Odisha Contract Labour Regulation and Abolition Rules 1975 and its Conditions of Service Rules 1975, the Odisha Inter State Migrant Workmen Rules 1980, the Odisha Building and Other Construction Workers Rules 2002, and the Odisha Dock Workers Safety Health and Welfare Rules and Regulations 2023
- Status as of
- 30th July 2026: Draft, objection window closed, no final notification traceable on the Odisha Labour Directorate portal or the Odisha Gazette
Odisha has put out a single rule book that folds ten separate old laws, covering factories, dock work, motor transport, beedi and cigar manufacturing, contract labour, inter state migrant workers and building and construction work, into one framework under the central Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code. These draft rules apply across the whole state and will come into force on the date they are published in the Odisha Gazette in final form.
This guide breaks down the forms an employer must file, the deadlines that matter, the key provisions to know, how the position compares with the old regime, who the rules cover, and the penalties employers should be aware of.
Forms under the State Rules
Due Dates
Compliance deadlines, forms and how often each one recurs.
| Compliance | Form | Compliance Frequency | Due Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Establishment registration | Form I (Rule 4(1)(i)) | One time, on becoming a new establishment | Within sixty days of the Code becoming applicable to the establishment. Late filing attracts an additional twenty five percent fee plus a late fee that scales up to one percent a day beyond ninety days |
| Registration certificate issued | Form II (Rule 4(1)(iv)) | One time, by the Registering Officer | Not later than fifteen days from a complete application, failing which registration is deemed granted automatically |
| Updating registration for already registered establishments | Online portal update (Rule 4(3)) | One time | Within six months of this rule coming into force |
| Notice of change in ownership or particulars | Portal update (Rule 4(6)) | Event based | Within thirty days of the change |
| Notice of commencement or completion of work or cessation | Form IV (Rules 4(9) and 6) | Event based | Within thirty days of the commencement, completion or cessation, as applicable |
| Annual health examination for employees above forty years | Form V (Rule 7) | Annual | Within one hundred twenty days from the start of the calendar year |
| Appointment letter to a new employee | Prescribed format (Rule 8) | Event based | At the time of employment. Employees already working must be issued a letter within three months of this rule coming into force |
| Notice of a fatal accident | Form VI (Rule 9(1)) | Event based | Forthwith, by telephone and electronically |
| Notice of an accident causing forty eight hours or more disability | Form VI (Rule 9(2)) | Event based | Within twelve hours after the completion of the forty eight hour disability period |
| Notice of a dangerous occurrence | Form VI (Rule 9(3)) | Event based | Within twelve hours of the occurrence |
| Notice of a delayed accident report where disability accrues later | Form VI, second proviso (Rule 9, second proviso) | Event based | Within twenty four hours of the disability period reaching forty eight hours |
| Notice of a notifiable disease | Prescribed format (Rule 10) | Event based | Without delay, sent forthwith |
| Implementing Safety Committee recommendations | Minutes to Inspector cum Facilitator (Rule 24(3)) | Event based | Within fifteen days of receiving the recommendations |
| Unified annual return | Form IX (Rule 35(5)(a)) | Annual | On or before the twenty eighth or twenty ninth of February each year, for the preceding year |
| Annual return under Chapter VI | Form IX (Rule 37) | Annual | Not later than the first of February following the end of the calendar year |
| Contractor half yearly return | Form IXA (Rule 59(6)) | Half yearly | Within thirty days of the close of each half year, January to June and July to December |
| Principal employer annual return for contract labour | Form IX Part II (Rule 59(8)) | Annual | Not later than the first of February following the end of the calendar year |
| Payment of wages to contract labour | Bank transfer (Rule 59(2)) | Recurring | Before the expiry of the seventh day after the end of the wage period |
| Preservation of registers and records | All statutory registers (Rule 35(4)(d)) | Ongoing | At least five years from the date of the last entry |
| Application for factory building or extension permission | Form XXIII (Rule 76(2)) | Event based | Before construction begins. Deemed approved if no response within thirty days |
| Factory registration and licence for existing factories on commencement | Form XXV A (Rule 76(10)) | One time | Within thirty days of these rules coming into force |
| Certificate of stability renewal | Filed with Chief Inspector cum Facilitator (Rule 76(6)) | Once every five years | Once every five years or after major structural change |
| Application for compounding of an offence | Form XXXII (Rule 115(1)) | Event based | Within fifteen days of receiving the compounding notice, failing which prosecution follows after one month |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Governing law | Ten separate Odisha specific laws for factories, motor transport workers, beedi and cigar workers, contract labour, inter state migrant workers, building and construction workers and dock workers | One consolidated rule book under the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 |
| Factory threshold | Ten or more workers where power is used, twenty or more where it is not | Twenty or more workers where power is used, forty or more where it is not, as set by the parent Code |
| Contract labour licensing threshold | Twenty or more contract workers | Fifty or more contract workers, as set by the parent Code |
| Establishment registration | Separate registration under each applicable sector specific law, largely on paper | Single electronic registration in Form I on the State portal, common across all covered categories |
| Registers to be maintained | Multiple registers under each separate Act, largely manual | A consolidated set of registers under Form VIII and its variants, maintainable electronically |
| Wage payment mode for contract labour | No mandated digital mode under the older Odisha rules | Compulsory payment through bank transfer or electronic mode under Rule 59(3) |
| Women working night shifts | Restricted or required special government permission under the Factories Act framework | Permitted between 7 p.m. and 6 a.m. with written consent and safeguards such as transport, lighting and a self certification in Form XXX |
| Health examinations | Not uniformly mandated across sectors | Free annual medical examination mandated for employees above forty years in factories, dock work and construction work |
| Offences and penalties | Prosecution under the respective sector specific Act, largely without a compounding mechanism | Layered penalty structure under the Code with a defined compounding process under Rule 115, and recoveries credited to the Odisha Unorganized Workers Social Security Fund |
| Appointment letters | Not uniformly required across all sectors | Mandatory appointment letter in a prescribed format for every employee, under Rule 8 |
| Inspections | Conducted by sector specific Inspectors under each separate Act | Conducted by a common Inspector cum Facilitator and Chief Inspector cum Facilitator across all covered establishments |
Applicability
Who the Code covers, and who gets special or exempt treatment.
Covered
- Factories using power, twenty or more workers
- Factories not using power, forty or more workers
- Establishments engaging fifty or more contract labour, directly or through a contractor
- Building and other construction work sites
- Motor transport undertakings covered under the erstwhile Motor Transport Workers Act
- Beedi and cigar manufacturing industrial premises
- Inter state migrant workers, establishments employing them directly or through a contractor
- Dock work establishments
- Plantations employing workers as defined under the Code
- Audio visual production establishments engaging audio visual workers
Exempted / special treatment
- Adolescents below fourteen years of age remain prohibited from factory employment
- Certain factories listed in Schedule C to the rules are exempted from specified sections, subject to conditions in that Schedule
- Contractors engaging fewer than fifty contract workers in a district may still need a common licence if their combined strength across districts is fifty or more
- Safety Committees are required only where fifty or more workers are engaged on a hazardous process, or two hundred fifty or more workers generally
- Establishments already exempted by specific State Government notification under Section 91 of the Code
- Family run beedi and cigar premises not employing outside labour may fall outside licensing requirements, subject to the specific rule conditions
- Workers who migrated on their own initiative without being recruited by a contractor are covered differently under the Code definition
- Government offices of the Central and State Government are outside the scope of the parent Code
- Plantations below the threshold prescribed by the State Government for specific welfare facilities such as crèche
- -
Frequently Asked Questions
Answers to what employers ask us most about this rule.
Are the Odisha OSH Rules 2026 final law right now?
No. As things stand, these are still draft rules. The forty five day objection window closed in early April 2026, but no final notification has been traced on the Odisha Labour Directorate website or in the Odisha Gazette. Employers should keep checking the department portal for the final version.
Which establishments does this draft cover?
Factories, dock work, motor transport undertakings, beedi and cigar manufacturing, building and other construction work, plantations, and any establishment engaging contract labour or inter state migrant workers, all as covered by the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020.
Has the definition of a factory changed under the new framework?
Yes. A premises now needs twenty or more workers where power is used, or forty or more where it is not, to qualify as a factory. The earlier Odisha Factories Rules used a lower threshold of ten and twenty workers respectively.
How does an employer register a new establishment?
By applying electronically in Form I on the designated State portal within sixty days of the Code becoming applicable, uploading identity and address proof. The registration certificate in Form II is issued within fifteen days, or is deemed granted automatically if the department misses that deadline.
What happens if registration is delayed?
The Registering Officer can still accept the application after sixty days, but the employer pays an additional fee that starts at five percent for delays up to thirty days and climbs to one percent a day for delays beyond ninety days.
What records must every employer maintain?
An employee register, an attendance cum muster roll, a wages and overtime register, a leave with wages register, and a register of accidents and dangerous occurrences, all under Form VIII and its related forms, preserved for at least five years.
How quickly must an accident be reported?
A fatal accident must be reported forthwith by telephone and electronically. An accident causing forty eight hours or more of disability must be reported within twelve hours of that disability period being completed. A dangerous occurrence must be reported within twelve hours regardless of injury.
Is an annual medical checkup mandatory for all employees?
It is mandatory for employees above forty years of age in factories, dock work and building or construction work, arranged free of cost by the employer within one hundred twenty days of each calendar year starting.
What conditions apply before women can be employed on night shifts?
Written consent, secure transport with GPS tracking, separate toilets and washrooms, adequate lighting with CCTV coverage where feasible, creche facilities in establishments with over fifty employees, and a self certification filed by the employer in Form XXX confirming all conditions are met.
What is the threshold for setting up a Safety Committee?
Mandatory for every major accident hazard factory regardless of size, for hazardous process factories with fifty or more workers, and for any other factory or establishment with two hundred fifty or more workers.
Sources
Where every fact on this page comes from.
- → Draft Odisha Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Rules, 2026, Notification No.1166 LESI LR POL 0003/2026/LESI, dated 15 February 2026, Odisha Gazette Extraordinary No. 665
- → Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 (37 of 2020), Government of India
- → Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions (Central) Rules, 2026, notified 8 May 2026
- → Labour and ESI Department, Government of Odisha, Acts and Rules page, labourdirectorate.odisha.gov.in
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.