From May 1, banks, financial companies, and other regulated entities will have no option but to submit their applications for licences, approvals, and authorisations only through the PRAVAAH portal.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced the move on April 28, stating that this shift is aimed at improving efficiency, cutting down processing delays, and bringing more transparency into the system.
In plain terms, any entity needing a regulatory clearance from the RBI will now have to log into PRAVAAH and go through the online route.
PRAVAAH, short for platform for regulatory application, validation and authorization, was launched on May 28, 2024. It is a secure, web-based system designed to act as a single window for submitting regulatory requests. Since its launch, PRAVAAH has handled around 4,000 applications.
However, the RBI pointed out that despite having the portal in place, many companies and institutions continued to send their applications offline. This led to inconsistent processing timelines and made it harder to maintain transparency.
To put an end to these problems, the RBI has now made PRAVAAH compulsory for all new applications.
The new rule applies across a broad range of players. Scheduled commercial banks such as small finance banks, local area banks, and regional rural banks will have to use the portal. So will urban co-operative banks, state co-operative banks, central co-operative banks, All-India financial institutions, and non-banking financial companies, including housing finance companies.
Primary dealers, payment system operators, and credit information companies are also included in the list. In short, anyone regulated by the RBI seeking its nod will have to go online from May 1 onwards.
The RBI says the PRAVAAH portal is equipped with a detailed user manual, frequently asked questions, and video tutorials to guide users through the process.
Application forms are already available on the platform, and users will also be able to track the status of their submissions.
By forcing everyone to move online, the RBI is looking to cut down paperwork, speed up approvals, and make regulatory dealings more predictable.
Whether this will entirely replace old habits or simply add a new layer to existing challenges is something that may become clear only as the system settles in.
