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Apprentices Act, 1961

Section 30: Offences and penalties

Section 30 of the Apprentices Act, 1961 explained with current 2025-26 amendments, employer controls, evidence and connected Rules.

Law Hub L8Data reviewed on 17 July 2026India-first compliance

What section 30 does

Creates a graduated enforcement ladder for specified contraventions.

2026 legal overlay: Effective 22 June 2026, section 30 was substituted. First contravention attracts an advisory with 30 days to comply; second contravention attracts a warning with 15 days to comply; each subsequent contravention attracts a penalty of ₹1,000 to ₹5,000. The section lists engagement-number, information/return, inspection, overtime, training-connected work, piece-rate, incentive, qualification and contract-compliance failures.

Connected instrument: 2026 advisory-warning-penalty framework

Finin2min practical reading

  • Identify the apprentice category, trade, establishment jurisdiction and applicable portal before applying the provision.
  • Separate statutory apprenticeship from internships, probation, traineeships and ordinary employment.
  • Do not treat scheme reimbursement as a substitute for the employer’s underlying statutory obligations.
  • Preserve the contract, approvals, portal trail and training evidence as one auditable file.

Employer control and evidence pack

  • Executed/registered contract and portal acknowledgement
  • Training plan, attendance/work diary and supervisor records
  • Stipend bank/DBT evidence where relevant
  • Adviser approval, correspondence or order where the section requires it

Statutory text extract

Extracted from the bundled official/consolidated source. For sections amended in 2026, the current overlay above controls over older consolidated wording.

30. Offences and penalties.—6[(1) If any employer contravenes the provisions of this Act relating to
the number of apprentices which he is required to engage under those provisions, he shall be given a
month’s notice in writing, by an officer duly authorised in this behalf by the appropriate Government, for
explaining the reasons for such contravention.

Compliance consequence

Failure should be tested against sections 30, 31 and 31A as in force from 22 June 2026, alongside contract termination/compensation consequences and any portal or scheme action.

← Section 29Section 31 →