Para 4.5 — This para details the agency commission that RBI p

4.5 AGENCY COMMISSION PAYABLE BY RBI TO BANKS ON GOVERNMENT TRANSACTIONS 4.5.1 RBI pays agency commission to banks for handling government business transactions. The agency commission rates on eligible government transactions are currently as under :-

S. No. Type of Transaction Unit Rates applicable w.e.f. 1/7/2019 1 Receipts - Physical per transaction ₹40/- 2 Receipts – e-mode per transaction ₹9/- 3 Pension Payments per transaction ₹75/- 4 Payments other than Pension per ₹100 turnover ₹ 6.50 paise

(Authority: Circular No. DGBA. GBD. 3144/31.02.007/2018-19 dated June 20, 2019 issued by Department of Government and Bank Accounts and circulated vide CGA’S OM No. S11012/3(35)/TOC/2016/RBI /GBA /1151-1199 dated 12-7-2019).

4.6: PROCEDURE FOR LEVYING PENAL INTEREST ON ACCREDITED BANKS IN RELATION TO GOVERNMENT AGENCY BUSINESS:

4.6.1 Payment of interest on excess put through/double claim by the accredited bank: PAOs need to initiate action with FPB for recovery of penal interest on excess put through/double

claim by the accredited bank and send the requisite reports to Principal Accounts Office for consolidation and onward transmission to O/o CGA in accordance with the procedure laid down in para 13.6 (21) of CAM.

4.6.2 Payment of interest on delayed remittances: All challans pertaining to receipts should be scrutinized to detect cases of delays in remittance beyond the maximum period allowed for remittance. These delays should be investigated to ascertain whether they occurred at the receiving branch or the nodal /FPB branch of the bank. A record of all such cases of delayed remittance should be kept in the PAO, for calculation, levy and recovery of penal interest.

4.6.3 Calculation of Delay: ‘T’ is the date of Transaction which will be counted from the date of receipt in case of cash payment, and date of realization in case of cheques/ drafts at the receiving branch. Delayed period interest shall be imposed on the banks for the actual delayed period and not from the date of transaction (T). In other words, the delay period' calculation will start from the day following the prescribed put through date (actual "Put through date will be included for calculation of delay). Concerned Account Offices will identify cases of delay and inform their headquarters. All cases of recovery will be processed by the PAO and quarterly report will be submitted to their HQ for taking up the matter with the Head Office of the Banks.

(A) For manual receipts: 4.6.4 Timelines for credit of government revenues:

(i) Since all the branches of the agency banks are on CBS platform, all the agency banks (Public/Private Sector Banks), shall remit the physical government receipts collected by the branches of the banks to Government Account in RBI on the next working day i.e. T+1 (including put through) where T stands for the day when amount is received by the dealing branch.

(ii) For the branches falling under North Eastern States, the specified time for remittance would be T+2 days (including put through).

(B) For e-receipts: i. The remittance period in respect of all govt transactions made through e-payments (including tax receipts of CBDT and CBIC) in respect of Public/Private Sector Banks will be T+1 working day (including Put through date). ii. The following additional instructions for e-receipt collection by the accredited bank through Debit/Credit Cards/Net Banking are : a. Remittance norms of T+1 working day including the Put Through day should be strictly followed. T is the day money is available with the receiving bank branch of the agency/accredited bank. b. Penal interest should be levied on the delayed remittance of e-receipt into Government Account. i.e. on delay beyond T+1 working day, if any. c. In respect of transactions occurring through UPI/Debit/Credit Cards and Net Banking, the settlement should conform to the provisions contained in the Payment and Settlement Act, 2007 of the RBI and rules and regulations made therein.

4.6.5 For Small Savings Schemes of M/o Finance (PPF & SCSS etc): In respect of Small Savings Schemes of M/o Finance (PPF & SCSS etc), the directions given in the M/o Finance, Dept of Economic Affairs, Budget Division OM No. F.17/1/2008-NS-II dated 15th May, 2008 (as amended from time to time) would be applicable.

4.6.6 Rate of Penal Interest: i. The rate of interest to be charged is Bank Rate as prevailing (which is generally notified biannually on May 1 and November 1) plus 2% or as decided by RBI in consultation with CGA from time to time. ii. The period of delay in a transaction of ₹ 1 lakh and above shall attract delayed period Interest at Bank Rate + 2%. iii. For the transaction below Rs 1 lakh in each case, the delayed period interest shall be levied only at the Bank Rate for delays up to 5 calendar days and above 5 calendar days at the Bank Rate 2 % for the full period of delay. iv. For petty claims of delayed penal interest involving an amount of ₹500/- or below will be ignored and excluded from the purview of penal interest (CGA'S OM no S11012/3/P Intt(RP) /CGA/2007/R80/ 499 dated 06/04/2009). This limit of penal interest of Rs 500/- is for per transaction. v. In respect of Non-Tax and all other Government receipts also, for permissible time limit, calculation of delay period and delayed period interest, the above instructions shall be applicable. vi. The rate of penal interest in case of PPF/SCSS schemes of Mo Finance is mentioned in Budget Division OM No. F.17/1/2008-NS-II dated 15th May, 2008 (as amended from time to time). vii. All banks may build up their own internal control mechanism so that the preventive and corrective actions are taken by the bank for its branches well in time.

4.6.7 Reporting of Penal Interest: i. Total delayed amount, which has not been remitted in time as per the above timelines and the penalty due along with details of individual cases will be intimated by the concerned Pr. CCAS/CCAS/CAs (for the Non- Civil Ministries by the concerned Head of the Department) to the Head Office of the bank concerned on a quarterly basis, by 15th of the following month (i.e. for the quarter ending June, the cases should be sent by 15th July) along with all necessary documents. ii. Where penal interest payable is based on audit, all delays in remittance of receipts of Government along with Penal interest payable should be reported to the concerned banks within 3 months of completion of audit. iii. In exceptional cases where Ministry Department is not able to lodge the penal interest claim within the stipulated time frame prescribed above, a case for seeking relaxation with full justification would be sent to CGA for consideration.

What This Means

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Key Points

• 1Agency commission rates: Rs 40 (physical receipt), Rs 9 (e-receipt), Rs 75 (pension), 6.50 paise per Rs 100 (other payments)
• 2Remittance timeline: T+1 for all receipts (T+2 for North Eastern States), where T is the date of receipt/realization
• 3Penal interest: Bank Rate + 2% for transactions of Rs 1 lakh and above; Bank Rate alone for smaller amounts delayed up to 5 days
• 4Petty penal interest claims of Rs 500 or below per transaction are excluded
• 5Banks must pay penal interest within 3 months of receiving the claim from the Ministry/Department

Practical Example

This explanation was generated with AI assistance for educational purposes. Always refer to the official gazette notification for authoritative text.

Frequently Asked Questions

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