INDIA Law and Practice Contributed by: Neeraj Tuli, Celia Jenkins and Rajat Taimni, Tuli & Co
fraud, call for regular awareness programmes, and require distribution channels to implement fraud risk management frameworks aligned with their operations. • The Policyholders Regulations along with Mas- ter Circular on Operations and Allied Matters of Insurers of 19 June 2024 and the Master Circular on Protection of Policyholders’ Interests 2024 of 5 September 2024 which consolidate and repeal the earlier norms in relation to the protection of policyholder’s interests, advertisements, outsourc- ing, receipt of premium, nomination, assignment, grievance redressal procedures, places of busi- ness, group insurance, and usage of trade logos by insurers. • The Registration Regulations and the Master Cir- cular on Registration, Capital Structure, Transfer of shares and Amalgamation of Insurers 2024 of 15 May 2024 consolidate and repeal the IRDAI’s erst- while norms in relation to registration, permitted capital structure, transfer of shares and amalgama- tion of insurers. • The IRDAI (Corporate Governance for Insurers) Regulations 2024 and the Master Circular on Corporate Governance for Insurers 2024 of 22 May 2024 specify a governance structure framework for all insurers (excluding FRBs) and include norms pertaining to the composition of the Board along with its power, roles and responsibilities, required Board committees, appointment and remuneration of KMPs, disclosure and reporting requirements. • The IRDAI (Expenses of Management, including Commission, of Insurers) Regulations 2024 and the Master Circular on Expenses of Management, including Commission, of Insurers, 2024 of 15 May 2024, which together consolidate and repeal the recently revised norms on expenses of manage- ment of insurers and commission payable to insur- ance agents and intermediaries. • The IRDAI (Actuarial, Finance and Investment Functions of Insurers) Regulations 2024 and the Master Circular on Actuarial, Finance and Invest- ment Functions of Insurers of 17 May 2024 con- solidate and repeal the IRDAI’s erstwhile norms in relation to an Indian Insurer’s appointed actuary appointments, duties and responsibilities, valuation of assets, liabilities and maintenance of solvency
margin, financial statements preparation, invest- ments, and loans and advances. • The IRDAI (Rural, Social Sector and Motor Third Party Obligations) Regulations 2024 (the “Rural Sector Regulations”), along with the IRDAI’s Master Circular on Rural, Social Sector and Motor Third Party Obligations of 17 May 2024 (the “2024 Mas- ter Circular”), to consolidate and repeal the IRDAI’s 2015 norms governing the insurer’s obligations towards the rural and social sector, and motor third party insurance business. The 2024 Master Circu- lar set out the minimum thresholds to be achieved for life, general and health insurers to fulfil their statutory obligations under the Insurance Act for FY 2024-25. Subsequently, the IRDAI issued the Master Circular on Rural, Social Sector and Motor Third Party Obligations 2025 on 25 July 2025, which supersedes the 2024 Master Circular and specifies the revised obligations to be achieved by Insurers for FY 2025-26 and FY 2026-27 under the Rural Sector Regulations. • The FRB Regulations, which consolidate and repeal erstwhile norms on registration and opera- tions of FRBs and Lloyd’s India. • The IRDAI has issued the Exposure Draft, IRDAI (Internal Insurance Ombudsman) Guidelines 2025, proposing the creation of an internal insurance ombudsman to enhance the standards of insur- ers’ complaint management systems and facilitate speedy grievance resolution. Although the expo- sure draft is currently at the deliberation stage and stakeholder comments have been invited, it is anticipated that new guidelines will be issued in due course. In addition, the Insurance Laws (Amendment) Bill 2024 proposes to introduce various significant changes. Some of the key proposed changes include: • increasing the limit on FDI in insurance companies from 74% to 100%; • introducing composite licences for insurance com- panies; • implementing differential capital requirements; • enabling a one-time registration for insurance inter- mediaries in place of periodic renewals; and • allowing individual agents to distribute policies from multiple insurance companies.
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