Labour Hub › OSHWC Code › Sections › Section 47

Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 · XI

Section 47: Licensing of contractors

Reviewed by Finin2min Editorial Desk · Last reviewed 30 August 2026

Section 47 — Governs licensing of contractors and the rights, duties, powers or procedure expressly stated in this section. Key operative text: (1) No contractor to whom this Part applies shall— (a) supply or engage contract labour in any establishment; or (b) undertake or execute the work through contract labour, except under and in accordance with a licence issued…

Full official textSource checked: 20 August 202612 direct Central Rule link(s)

Current-law status

All provisions were brought into force from 21 November 2025 under S.O. 5321(E), subject to the Central/State appropriate-Government split and provision-specific appointments/notifications.

Primary sources

Provision / India Code ↗ · Official Act PDF ↗ · 2026 Central Rules ↗

Finin2min analysis — what the section actually does

Operative clauses

(1) No contractor to whom this Part applies shall— (a) supply or engage contract labour in any establishment; or (b) undertake or execute the work through contract labour, except under and in accordance with a licence issued to him by the authority referred to in sub-section (1) of section 119 in accordance with the provisions of that section after satisfying that the contractor fulfills such requisite…
(2) Where the contractor does not fulfil the requisite qualifications or criteria referred to in sub-section (1), the authority referred to in sub-section (1) of section 119 may issue him a “work specific licence” electronically renewable within such period as may be prescribed by the Central Government to supply or engage the contract labour, or execute the work through contract labour, only for the concerned…
(3) Subject to the provisions of this Part,— (a) a licence under sub-section (1) may contain such conditions including, in particular, conditions as to hours of work, fixation of wages and other essential amenities in respect of contract labour as may be prescribed by the appropriate Government;
(b) the licence referred to in sub-section (1) or sub-section (2), shall be obtained from, if for such establishment the appropriate Government is— (i) the Central Government, the authority referred to in sub-section (1) of section 119 designated by that Government; and (ii) the State Government, the authority referred to in sub-section (1) of section 119 designated by that Government:
Provided that where the contractor is desirous of obtaining licence for supplying or engaging contract labour or undertaking or executing the contract works under sub-section (1) or sub-section (2) in more than one States or for the whole of India, then, he may obtain the licence from the authority referred to in sub-section (1) of section 119 designated by the Central Government for such purpose and the…

Provisos, explanations & qualifications

Provided that where the contractor is desirous of obtaining licence for supplying or engaging contract labour or undertaking or executing the contract works under sub-section

Thresholds and timelines in the text

(3) Subject to the provisions of this Part,— (a) a licence under sub-section (1) may contain such conditions including, in particular, conditions as to hours of work, fixation of wages and other essential amenities in respect of contract labour as may be prescribed by the appropriate Government;

Actors expressly appearing in the text

Appropriate Government, Central Government, State Government, Authority / officer

Full statutory text — Section 47

Official English text transcribed from the current India Code consolidation; page headers/line breaks are normalised for web reading. The Gazette/India Code PDF remains authoritative for typography, amendment footnotes and schedules.

47. Licensing of contractors.—(1) No contractor to whom this Part applies shall—
        (a) supply or engage contract labour in any establishment; or
        (b) undertake or execute the work through contract labour,
except under and in accordance with a licence issued to him by the authority referred to in sub-section (1)
of section 119 in accordance with the provisions of that section after satisfying that the contractor fulfills
such requisite qualifications or criteria as may be prescribed by the Central Government and such licence
shall, in addition to the requisite particulars and conditions specified in sub-section (3), specify the
number of such contract labour who can be supplied or engaged and the amount of security to be
deposited by the contractor.
    (2) Where the contractor does not fulfil the requisite qualifications or criteria referred to in
sub-section (1), the authority referred to in sub-section (1) of section 119 may issue him a “work specific
licence” electronically renewable within such period as may be prescribed by the Central Government to
supply or engage the contract labour, or execute the work through contract labour, only for the concerned
work order as may be specified in such licence and subject to such conditions as may be specified in such
licence.
   (3) Subject to the provisions of this Part,—
      (a) a licence under sub-section (1) may contain such conditions including, in particular, conditions
   as to hours of work, fixation of wages and other essential amenities in respect of contract labour as
   may be prescribed by the appropriate Government;
      (b) the licence referred to in sub-section (1) or sub-section (2), shall be obtained from, if for such
   establishment the appropriate Government is—

         (i) the Central Government, the authority referred to in sub-section (1) of section 119 designated
      by that Government; and
         (ii) the State Government, the authority referred to in sub-section (1) of section 119 designated
      by that Government:
    Provided that where the contractor is desirous of obtaining licence for supplying or engaging contract
labour or undertaking or executing the contract works under sub-section (1) or sub-section (2) in more
than one States or for the whole of India, then, he may obtain the licence from the authority referred to in
sub-section (1) of section 119 designated by the Central Government for such purpose and the provisions
of that section shall apply:
   Provided further that before issuing such licence the authority referred to in the first proviso shall
consult the concerned State or States authorities designated under sub-section (1) of section 119,
electronically before issuing licence for the establishments for which the appropriate Government is the
State Government.

How to apply this provision

Primary statutory test — (1) No contractor to whom this Part applies shall— (a) supply or engage contract labour in any establishment; or (b) undertake or execute the work through contract labour, except under and in accordance with a licence issued to him by the authority referred to in sub-section (1) of section 119 in accordance with the provisions of that section after satisfying that the contractor fulfills such requisite…
Additional operative limb — (2) Where the contractor does not fulfil the requisite qualifications or criteria referred to in sub-section (1), the authority referred to in sub-section (1) of section 119 may issue him a “work specific licence” electronically renewable within such period as may be prescribed by the Central Government to supply or engage the contract labour, or execute the work through contract labour, only for the concerned…
Qualification / exception to test — Provided that where the contractor is desirous of obtaining licence for supplying or engaging contract labour or undertaking or executing the contract works under sub-section
Numerical or timing control — (3) Subject to the provisions of this Part,— (a) a licence under sub-section (1) may contain such conditions including, in particular, conditions as to hours of work, fixation of wages and other essential amenities in respect of contract labour as may be prescribed by the appropriate Government;
Central Rule mapping — 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96. Read the mapped provision together with this text rather than treating the concordance as a substitute for it.
Prescribed-form link recorded in the corpus — XXI, XXII. Confirm the current notified form/version before filing.

Why this is section-specific: the operative-clause, exception, threshold and cross-reference panels above are extracted from Section 47 itself rather than a generic “trigger/control/evidence” template.

Rules, forms and cross-references

Direct 2026 Central Rule mapping

Rule 85 Rule 86 Rule 87 Rule 88 Rule 89 Rule 90 Rule 91 Rule 92 Rule 93 Rule 94 Rule 95 Rule 96

Forms mapped

XXI, XXII

Other sections cited in this text

Section 119

Related Labour Hub resources

State overlays Forms Labour litigation

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

For an establishment affected by licensing of contractors, the compliance owner should identify the applicable sector and authority, document the prescribed control/notice/record and retain inspection or training evidence. A text point to test is: “(3) Subject to the provisions of this Part,— (a) a licence under sub-section (1) may contain such conditions including, in particular, conditions as to hours of work, fixation of wages and other essential amenities in respect of contract labour as may be prescribed by the appropr” Also test the express qualification/proviso before concluding the result. Read the mapped Central Rule(s) 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96. Use the current notified XXI, XXII where the process requires it.

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 47

What does Section 47 of the OSHWC Code cover?

What is the main legal requirement or power in Section 47?

The first operative clause identified from the official text is: “(1) No contractor to whom this Part applies shall— (a) supply or engage contract labour in any establishment; or (b) undertake or execute the work through contract labour, except under and in accordance with a licence issued to him by the authority referred to in sub-section (1) of section 119 in accordance with the provisions of that section after satisfying that the contractor fulfills such requisite…” Read it with the remaining subsections and any proviso below.

Does Section 47 contain a proviso or explanation?

Yes. A qualification extracted from the official text is: “Provided that where the contractor is desirous of obtaining licence for supplying or engaging contract labour or undertaking or executing the contract works under sub-section”

What time limit, percentage or amount appears in Section 47?

The provision contains this numerical/time expression: “(3) Subject to the provisions of this Part,— (a) a licence under sub-section (1) may contain such conditions including, in particular, conditions as to hours of work, fixation of wages and other essential amenities in respect of contract labour as may be prescribed by the appropriate Government;” Apply it only in the clause and context in which it appears.

Which 2026 Central Rules are linked to Section 47?

The current concordance maps Section 47 to Central Rule(s) 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96.

Is a prescribed form mapped to Section 47?

The current corpus records: XXI, XXII. Confirm the current notified version before filing or service.

Is Section 47 currently operative?

All provisions were brought into force from 21 November 2025 under S.O. 5321(E), subject to the Central/State appropriate-Government split and provision-specific appointments/notifications.

Source & verification trail

Act: Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 — official India Code PDF ↗

Central Rules: Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions (Central) Rules, 2026 — G.S.R. 345(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.

Reliance note: This page is an educational legal-reference layer. Verify the current official text, the applicable Central/State rules, notifications, schemes and judicial decisions before acting on a live matter.