ASIA/INDIA – New “Implementing Regulations” of the Law on foreign funding of Civil and Religious NGOs
Thursday, 25 June 2026
AICU
New Delhi (Fides News Agency) – The Indian Ministry of Home Affairs has published new implementing regulations for the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) of 2010, which controls the inflow of funds and donations from abroad to non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and civil and religious associations operating in India. These new rules, already in force and legally binding, strengthen controls and sanctions against NGOs that fail to comply with the existing provisions: organizations risk heavy fines, immediate freezing of funds, and withdrawal of their licenses.
At the same time, the Indian government is pursuing two separate legal instruments concerning the “third sector”: on the one hand, the implementing regulations of the existing law, now amended and officially notified by the Ministry of Home Affairs; on the other, a new bill to reform the FCRA, which must still be approved by Parliament (see Fides, 19/6/2026).
According to the new implementing rules, applicant organizations will not only have to declare the precise purpose of the funds received, but also to indicate precisely the Indian States or Union Territories in which these funds will be used. Furthermore, they will have to pay additional fees for each additional territory or purpose they wish to add later. Already registered NGOs will have one year to comply with the new provisions and provide this information. The new regulations also specifically address organizations linked to faith communities. They reaffirm that “no foreign funds may be used for proselytizing or for the religious conversion of Indian citizens.” In addition, the new provisions introduce an exhaustive list of permitted activities. While in the past associations could register under a generic “religious” category, the government has now established a detailed list of 105 legal activities. Organizations will be required to specify exactly which of these activities they intend to finance with foreign funds.
Permitted activities include: construction, maintenance, and renovation of places of worship (temples, churches, mosques, and synagogues); printing, digitization, and translation of sacred texts; the religious education of their members, provided it does not aim at conversion; provision of assistance services to pilgrims and the management of community soup kitchens and housing; and the protection and preservation of indigenous and tribal religious traditions. The implementing regulations came into effect on June 22, 2026, and NGOs are already required to comply with them.
Registered associations have one year to submit a detailed list of their activities according to the new classification system provided by government forms. Meanwhile, the “Foreign Contribution Regulation Act Amendment Bill 2026,” introduced in the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the federal Parliament, aims to reform and amend the entire framework of the 2010 law. This bill grants the executive branch even broader powers than currently available, establishing a specific “designated Authority” empowered to confiscate, manage, permanently acquire, or even sell assets and properties (such as schools, hospitals, and other facilities built with foreign funds) belonging to organizations whose FCRA licenses have been revoked.
The parliamentary process of this the bill has sparked strong controversy and protests from opposition parties and numerous third-sector organizations. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government justifies this legislative tightening by invoking Article 25 of the Indian Constitution. Although the Constitution guarantees the freedom to profess, practice, and propagate one’s religion, the Supreme Court of India established, in a landmark 1977 ruling, that “the right to propagate religion does not include the right to convert another person.” While government supporters view these new measures as a necessary tool to curb interference and influence fueled by foreign capital, Indian civil society organizations, along with civic associations and religious groups, denounce a further tightening of bureaucracy that risks significantly restricting the activities of the third sector and organizations engaged in social, educational, and humanitarian work. (PA) (Fides News Agency, 25/6/2026)
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