The Ministry of Labour & Employment (MoLE) has operationalised a centralised e-inspection portal effective 1 July 2026, consolidating factory audits across all labour codes—Code on Wages, 2023; Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020; and Industrial Relations Code, 2020.
Manufacturers no longer receive notice-and-file cycles; inspectors now schedule site visits via the portal with 48-hour notice, access digital copies of statutory registers (Form A, B, C under the Factories Act equivalent sections), and cross-reference wage records against bank-settlement data in real time. The portal flags register gaps, missing signatures, and wage-component misclassifications instantly. Non-compliance attracts penalties under Section 144 (Code on Wages)—up to ₹50,000 per violation per worker—and closure orders under Section 87 (OSH Code) for repeat safety lapses.
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The MoLE portal now cross-references payroll data uploaded by your factory against NEFT/RTGS settlement records from linked bank accounts (via banking nodal data-sharing agreements effective May 2026). If your wage register shows a basic pay of ₹12,000 but bank settlements show ₹10,500, the discrepancy flags an automatic audit notice. Inspectors will request reconciliation within 7 days or escalate to a penalty order under Section 144 of the Code on Wages, 2023. Consequence: wage-slip templates must match bank settlement narration line-for-line; rounding errors or allowance mis-coding now carry audit risk.
From 15 July 2026, all factories with 50+ workers must upload scanned Form A (worker personal data), Form B (daily attendance and wages), and Form C (leave) onto the portal monthly in PDF format. Manual registers alone no longer satisfy the inspection protocol under Section 15 of the Factories Act analogue. If registers are missing pages, lack factory owner signatures, or show retroactive date entries, inspectors issue a 'Critical Deficiency' notice, freezing new worker registrations and triggering a follow-up audit within 14 days. Factories under 50 workers may retain paper registers but must produce originals within 24 hours of notice.
The portal logs all prior inspection findings for a factory. Under Section 87 of the OSH Code, if an inspector identifies the same safety violation (e.g., missing guard on a press, inadequate fire exit signage) on a second visit within 18 months, the factory faces an automatic closure order without a show-cause hearing. Consequence: previous audit reports are now discoverable and referenceable by the next inspector, so even minor findings from 2024 create exposure if not remedied and documented as closed. Many factories do not realise that closing a finding requires uploading photographic evidence and an inspector acknowledgement to the portal.
Manufacturers must treat the MoLE portal as a live compliance registry, not a post-audit filing system. The wage-data matching mechanism means your payroll software, bank account structures, and statutory registers must reconcile without exception—no floating provisions, no cash advances outside the register, no wage reversals without documented sign-off. Factory owners and Plant Heads must audit statutory registers monthly against the portal template (available on the MoLE website under 'Factory Resources') and ensure all signatures, dates and worker initials are original. Factories with 50+ workers must designate one compliance officer to upload Form A, B, C scans by the 5th
Frequently asked questions
The Ministry of Labour & Employment launched a centralised e-inspection portal effective 1 July 2026 that consolidates factory audits across all labour codes. Inspectors schedule site visits with 48-hour notice and access digital statutory registers in real time.
Non-compliance attracts penalties up to ₹50,000 per violation per worker under Section 144 of the Code on Wages, 2023, plus potential closure orders for repeat safety lapses under the OSH Code.
From 15 July 2026, all factories with 50+ workers must upload scanned Forms A, B, and C (worker data, attendance/wages, and leave records) monthly to the portal for mandatory digitisation.