Section 44: Payment of various undisbursed dues in case of death of employee
Reviewed by Finin2min Editorial Desk · Last reviewed 30 August 2026
Provides for payment or deposit of undisbursed dues when an employee dies or the amount cannot be paid to the employee.
Principal remaining provisions commenced on 21 November 2025 under S.O. 5322(E), read with the earlier partial commencement; check section-specific footnotes in the current India Code text.
Provision / India Code ↗ · Official Act PDF ↗ · 2026 Central Rules ↗
Finin2min analysis — what the section actually does
Operative clauses
- (1) Subject to the other provisions of this Code, all amounts payable to an employee under this Code shall, if such amounts could not or cannot be paid on account of his death before payment or on account of his whereabouts not being known,— (a) be paid to the person nominated by him in this behalf in accordance with the rules made under this Code; or (b) where no such nomination has been made or where for any…
- (2) Where in accordance with the provisions of sub-section (1), all amounts payable to an employee under this Code— (a) are paid by the employer to the person nominated by the employee; or (b) are deposited by the employer with the authority referred to in clause (b) of sub-section (1), then, the employer shall be discharged of his liability to pay those amounts.
Provisos, explanations & qualifications
- No proviso/explanation was separately extracted from this section text.
Thresholds and timelines in the text
- No explicit day/month/year/hour/percentage/rupee expression was detected in this section text.
Actors expressly appearing in the text
Employer, Employee / worker, Authority / officer
Full statutory text — Section 44
44. Payment of various undisbursed dues in case of death of employee.—(1) Subject to the other
provisions of this Code, all amounts payable to an employee under this Code shall, if such amounts could
not or cannot be paid on account of his death before payment or on account of his whereabouts not being
known,—
(a) be paid to the person nominated by him in this behalf in accordance with the rules made under
this Code; or
(b) where no such nomination has been made or where for any reasons such amounts cannot be
paid to the person so nominated, be deposited with the such authority, as may be prescribed, who
shall deal with the amounts so deposited in the manner as may be prescribed.
(2) Where in accordance with the provisions of sub-section (1), all amounts payable to an employee
under this Code—
(a) are paid by the employer to the person nominated by the employee; or
(b) are deposited by the employer with the authority referred to in clause (b) of sub-section (1),
then, the employer shall be discharged of his liability to pay those amounts.How to apply this provision
- Primary statutory test — (1) Subject to the other provisions of this Code, all amounts payable to an employee under this Code shall, if such amounts could not or cannot be paid on account of his death before payment or on account of his whereabouts not being known,— (a) be paid to the person nominated by him in this behalf in accordance with the rules made under this Code; or (b) where no such nomination has been made or where for any…
- Additional operative limb — (2) Where in accordance with the provisions of sub-section (1), all amounts payable to an employee under this Code— (a) are paid by the employer to the person nominated by the employee; or (b) are deposited by the employer with the authority referred to in clause (b) of sub-section (1), then, the employer shall be discharged of his liability to pay those amounts.
- Central Rule mapping — 45, 46. Read the mapped provision together with this text rather than treating the concordance as a substitute for it.
- Evidence file — retain facts and records proving the role/status of: Employer, Employee / worker, Authority / officer.
Rules, forms and cross-references
Forms mapped
No prescribed form is directly mapped in the current concordance.
Other sections cited in this text
Related Labour Hub resources
A direct concordance is not exhaustive. Central/State jurisdiction, schemes, authority appointments, saved instruments and later notifications may change the practical route without changing the section wording.
Worked example
An employer configuring payroll for payment of various undisbursed dues in case of death of employee should first identify the employee and wage period, then apply the exact provision and any linked rule. The system rule should be tested against a sample payslip and bank/payment record. A text point to test is: “(1) Subject to the other provisions of this Code, all amounts payable to an employee under this Code shall, if such amounts could not or cannot be paid on account of his death before payment or on account of his whereabouts not being known,— (a) be paid to the person nominated by” Read the mapped Central Rule(s) 45, 46.
Illustration only; it is not statutory text or a substitute for applying the actual facts, jurisdiction, current rule/scheme and official instrument.
Q&A — Section 44
What does Section 44 of the Code on Wages cover?
Provides for payment or deposit of undisbursed dues when an employee dies or the amount cannot be paid to the employee.
What is the main legal requirement or power in Section 44?
The first operative clause identified from the official text is: “(1) Subject to the other provisions of this Code, all amounts payable to an employee under this Code shall, if such amounts could not or cannot be paid on account of his death before payment or on account of his whereabouts not being known,— (a) be paid to the person nominated by him in this behalf in accordance with the rules made under this Code; or (b) where no such nomination has been made or where for any…” Read it with the remaining subsections and any proviso below.
Does Section 44 contain a proviso or explanation?
No standalone proviso or explanation was extracted from this section text. Check the full text below for clause-level qualifications.
What time limit, percentage or amount appears in Section 44?
No explicit day/month/year/hour/percentage/rupee expression was detected in the official section text.
Which 2026 Central Rules are linked to Section 44?
The current concordance maps Section 44 to Central Rule(s) 45, 46.
Is Section 44 currently operative?
Principal remaining provisions commenced on 21 November 2025 under S.O. 5322(E), read with the earlier partial commencement; check section-specific footnotes in the current India Code text.
Source & verification trail
Act: Code on Wages, 2019 — official India Code PDF ↗
Central Rules: Code on Wages (Central) Rules, 2026 — G.S.R. 343(E), 8 May 2026 ↗
Official library: Ministry of Labour & Employment — Labour Codes ↗
Source check: 20 August 2026. Individual professional interpretation should be re-reviewed when the section, rules, notification, scheme, State overlay or controlling judgment changes.