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In a major step towards faster clearance of cheques, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has announced same-day and hourly cheque clearances in phases.
According to the RBI's directive, issued on Wednesday to banks participating in the Cheque Truncation System (CTS) and the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), the new system will ensure that cheque processing, confirmation, and settlement take place in near real-time, significantly reducing delays for customers. "It has been decided to transition CTS to continuous clearing and settlement on realisation in two phases. Phase 1 shall be implemented on October 4, 2025 and Phase 2 on January 3, 2026," noted RBI's directives. In Phase 1, starting from October 4, there will be a single cheque presentation session between 10 am to 4 pm during which banks will scan and send cheques to the clearing house continuously. The clearing house will release cheque images to drawee banks on a rolling basis. Drawee banks will be required to process these cheques in real time and beneficiary to get credit by 7 pm the same day. Any cheque without confirmation by 7 pm will be deemed approved and included for settlement. In Phase 2, from January 3, 2026, the system will shift to a stricter timeline with "T+3 clear hours" as the item expiry time. A cheque received will need to be confirmed or denied within three hours of it being deposited in a bank. Cheques without confirmation in the stipulated time will be treated as approved for settlement. Under the revised framework, settlements will not be based on cheque presentation but on realisation. Starting from 11:00 AM each day, hourly settlements will be done based on positive confirmations and deemed approvals until the end of the confirmation session. No entries will be made for cheques returned with negative confirmation. After each settlement cycle, the clearing house will inform the presenting bank about the status of cheques. Presenting banks will then credit customers' accounts immediately, but no later than one hour after settlement, subject to standard safeguards. The RBI has directed all banks to ensure customers are well informed about the upcoming changes in the cheque clearing process. Banks have also been advised to be fully prepared to participate in continuous clearing from the respective phase start dates. With this move, the RBI aims to make cheque clearance faster, more transparent, and customer-friendly, marking a significant leap from the conventional batch-based cheque clearing system to real-time settlement efficiency. (ANI)
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