Last updated: May 23rd, 2024 5:42 PM

West Bengal Factory Registration

West Bengal factory registration is mandated by the Factories Act, 1948 to make sure that a factory complies with the specified rules and safety guidelines. Upon registering a factory, the Government of West Bengal issues a factory license. This license is a certificate of authorisation for granting permission to regulate and carry out manufacturing process from a particular locality. This article examines the procedure for obtaining West Bengal factory registration.

Factories Act, 1948

According to the Factories Act (West Bengal Amendment), any person who wants to construct or extend an existing building as the factory in West Bengal has to get prior permission from the concerned authority in advance before the commencement of the construction. The Factories Act is established with an aim to ensure the installation of appropriate safety measures and to promote the health and welfare of the employees employed in the factories. Besides, it strives to curtail the hazardous growth of factories. To complete the West Bengal Factory Registration and to get a factory license, the applicant needs to follow these three steps:

• Obtain Consent for Establishment – Approval of Plan and Permission to Construct or extending an existing building as a factory
• Obtain Consent for Manufacturing – Registration of Factory and Get license under the Factories Act, 1948

Eligibility Criteria

• Factory using power-driven machinery in a manufacturing process where 10 or more workers are employed or working on any day of the previous year is needed to get a factory license.
• The West Bengal Factory license is mandatory for factory engaged in manufacturing process without the aid of power where twenty or more employees are employed or were working on any day of the preceding year.
• The factory is employing less than ten workers for the following manufacturing process as declared in section 85 of the Factories Act, 1948.
  • Manufacture of rubber and plastic products
  • Manufacturing process-involving repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles
  • Manufacturing process using explosives or highly inflammable articles or substances
  • Fireworks manufacturing and its packaging units
  • Manufacturing of Leather Goods
  • Manufacturing of ice using ammonia as a refrigerant
  • Pesticides formulation units
  • Manufacturing, handling and processing of asbestos and its products

When to Apply?

Application for Factory Plan Approval

Before starting construction or expanding an existing building as a factory, the entrepreneur needs to apply for approval of the factory plan and to obtain permission.

Application Factory License

If the application for approval of factory plan and permission to construct or extend existing building as a factory has been successfully accepted and before the commencement of manufacturing operation, you can register the factory in West Bengal and apply for a factory license.

Licensing Authority

Department of Factories, Government of West Bengal, facilitates the process of West Bengal Factory Registration. Factories can be run only with a license issued by the Chief Inspector of Factories (CIF), West Bengal, under the Factories Act, 1948.

Validity of License

The permission and plan approval granted under the West Bengal factories act to construct or extending any building as a factory is valid for a lifetime from the date of issue. The West Bengal Factory license issued will be valid for a year.

Renewal of Jharkhand Factory License

The factory licensee needs to renew every year. The due date of renewal of factory license is 31st December of the year before the year for which license is required.

Applicable Fee

The West Bengal factory registration and license fees are calculated based on some workers employed and installed power in HP or KW of the machinery. The fee for registering factory is given in three schedules as Schedule A, B and C.

• Schedule A –It contains the fee structure for factories as specified under factories act, 1948 other than Electricity Generating Stations
• Schedule B - The fee structure for power generating station is explained in this schedule
• Schedule C- This schedule is for factories not using the power

Fee for Factories under Section 85

The Fees payable for West Bengal Factory Registration is Rs, 1000 and Grant of License and Renewal of License for Factories declared under section 85 of the Factories Act is Rs. 1000

Fee for Factory Plan Approval

No fee is required for applying for Approval of Plan.

Get Fee Rate Online

The applicant can get the West Bengal factory registration fee online through official website of Director of Factories, Government of West Bengal. From the home page select the option License Fee, the link will redirect to new page. You can see the different schedule of the factory registration fee. Image 1 West Bengal Factory Registration Click on the appropriate Schedule to get the fee structure for factory registration. Image 2 West Bengal Factory Registration Note: In case of any factory found to be running without obtaining registration and license, The factory license fees payable will be double the amount specified in the schedules provided that all the formalities prescribed in this regard have been duly complied with.

Documents Required

Documents Required for West Bengal Factory Registration is explained in detail below:

Documents for Factory Plan Approval

• Duly filled Common Application Form
• Flowchart of the manufacturing process along with a brief description
• Authenticated copy of Consent to establish factory from WBPCB
• Factory plans in duplicate for Kolkata, Howrah and three copies for regional offices
• The declaration, duly signed by the occupier, stating whether any process or activity of the factory is a dangerous process as defined in the Factories Act.1948

Documents for Registration and Grant of Factory License

• Duly filled Common Application Form
• Authenticated documents regarding deposition of fees
• Authenticated copy of Consent to operate provided by West Bengal pollution control Board or a Declaration for Exempted Category industries as provided by West Bengal pollution control Board
• Authenticated Copy of Lease Deed, Purchase Deed, Rent Receipt in respect of the premises to be used as a factory
• Authenticated Copy of Trade License
• For a Limited and Private Limited company-Authenticated copy of Memorandum of Article of Association
• Declaration duly signed by the occupier. Showing the date of starting of the manufacturing process (exact date) along with a number of workers engaged on that date and installed power, List of machinery along with HP/KW duly signed by the occupier.
• Health and Safety policy for the hazardous process

Documents for Factory License Renewal

• Authenticated document regarding deposition of fees
• Previous Factory License
• Authenticated copy of Consent to operate provided by West Bengal pollution control Board or a Declaration for Exempted Category industries as provided by West Bengal pollution control Board
• Form-32 or other to substantiate the change in List of Directors, if any

Application Procedure to Get Factory Plan Approval

The procedure to get plan approval for West Bengal factory registration is explained in detail below: Step 1: Visit the home page of Directors of Factories, West Bengal. You have to register in this portal to apply for plan approval. Image 3 West Bengal Factory Registration

User Registration

Step 2: From the WB Factory home page, click on Login Option and then select Registered Here option for new user registration. Image 4 West Bengal Factory Registration Step 3: In the new page, provide details of Name, Address, District, Gender, DOB, Email and mobile number. Image 5 West Bengal Factory Registration Step 4: By clicking on the Register option, the username and password will be sent to the registered mail ID.

Login to Portal

 Step 5: Login to the portal using the User ID and Password received after online Registration. Step 6: After login to the portal, select service as Approval of Plan and then select CAF option.

e-Filing of Application

Step 7: Provide details in Part A and B of CAF.  After providing details click on save button to upload the document. Step 8: Scan and upload all documents as mentioned above after uploading documents save the application. CAF application will be saved in the My application section. Note: No fees are required for applying for "Approval of Plan".

Upload Document

Step 9: Select appropriate attachments and documents along with the filled up CAF. Select My Applications option. Step 10: Download earlier filled CAF from the View and Print option under "My Application/Returns" option. Digitally Sign' the CAF. Step 11: You need to select 'Apply' option from the My Application section. Upload the Digital Signed CAF. Step 12: Select 'Submit' option to forward the factory plan approval application (CAF) to the concerned authority. Step 13: After successful submission of CAF application, the system will generate an Acknowledgement Receipt and unique Application ID for further reference and tracking.

Application Verification

Step 14: Plan Section will receive the application online and forward it to the Designated Officer. Step 15: The designated officer, as well as officers in higher-rank, will scrutinize the factory plan and other supporting documents and visit the site as per requirement. Step 16: Information regarding recommendation or rectification or rejection of a factory plan, as applicable during the whole process of plan scrutiny will be intimated to the applicant within the stipulated time of service. Note: If the application is rejected the applicant will be required to submit a fresh application. Step 17: Approval letter along with the plan can be downloaded from the website.

View / Download the Certificate

Login to West Bengal Factories web portal using the user ID and Password. After login to the portal, go to Dashboard. Go to My Factories section and click on the Certificate. Select Download and Print to get the Approval letter along with the plan.

West Bengal Factory Registration Application Procedure

The procedure for registering West Bengal Factory Registration is explained in detail below: Step 1: You can refer above step 1 to 4 for registering in the Directories of the Factories web portal. After login to the portal, select service as New License and Registration. Image 6 West Bengal Factory Registration

Provide Details

Step 2: Provide details in Part A and B of CAF.  After providing details click on save button to upload a document. The following declaration is mandatory for registration of the factory and grant of license.

• Date of starting the manufacturing process (exact date) along with a number of workers on that date
• Date on which more than nine employees/workers were employed for the first time along with a number of workers
• List of machinery along with HP/KW

Image 7 West Bengal Factory Registration

Upload Documents

Step 3: Scan and upload all documents as mentioned above. After uploading documents, save the application. CAF will be saved in my application page. Image 8 West Bengal Factory Registration Step 4: Get information on the fee to be paid as per the maximum number of Workers employed and installed machinery capacity from Fees Details. Image 9 West Bengal Factory Registration

Make Payment

Step 5: Make the requisite payment of fee through "Make Payment option" available with Form-2 and CAF and enter the GRN and BRN along with the date in the given column. Image 10 West Bengal Factory Registration Image 11 West Bengal Factory Registration Step 6: Select appropriate documents along with the filled up CAF. Select My Applications option. Image 12 West Bengal Factory Registration Step 7: Download earlier filled CAF from the View and Print option under "My Application/Returns" option. Digitally Sign' the CAF. Step 8: You need to select 'Apply' option from the My Application section. Upload the Digital Signed CAF. Step 9: Select 'Submit' option to forward the factory plan approval application (CAF) to the concerned authority.

Get Receipt

Step 10: After successful submission of the factory registration application, the system will generate an Acknowledgement Receipt and unique Application ID for further reference and tracking. Image 13 West Bengal Factory Registration Step 11: Registration Section will receive the application online and forward it to the Designated Officer.

Application Verification

Step 12: The designated officer, as well as officers in higher rank, will scrutinize the plan and other supporting documents and visit the site as per requirement. Step 13: Information regarding recommendation or rectification or rejection of a factory plan, as applicable during the whole process of plan scrutiny will be intimated to the applicant within the stipulated period of service. Note: If the application is rejected the applicant will be required to submit a fresh application. Registration letter and Factory license can be downloaded from the website

Track Status of Application

To track the West Bengal Factory Registration application status, you need to login to the portal. After login to the portal, select Dashboard and Select the applications to be checked in My Application, section under Details. Image 14 West Bengal Factory Registration Check for necessary rectification, resubmit or upload further documents, if desired by the Department. Image 15 West Bengal Factory Registration Note: In case of requirement of additional documents by the Departments, the Edit option is to be selected to upload the prescribed document.

View / Download the Certificate

Login to West Bengal Factories web portal using the user ID and Password. After login to the portal, go to Dashboard. Go to My Factories section and click on the Certificate. Select Download and Print to get the Registration letter and Factory license. Image 16 West Bengal Factory Registration

Renewal of West Bengal Factory License

For renewal of West Bengal Factory License, you can follow the same procedure as explained above. Select service as Renewal of License while filing the application.

Calculation of License fees if not Paid within due Date

If the factory license is not paid within the due date, the following are the fee for renewal.

• 25% excess fees upto 31st March - License fee applicable x 1.25 if paid within 31 March
• 50% excess fees beyond 31st March - License fee applicable x 1.5 if paid beyond 31st March