Labour Hub › Social Security Code › Sections › Section 96

Code on Social Security, 2020 · 7

Section 96: Appearance of parties

Reviewed by Finin2min Editorial Desk · Last reviewed 30 August 2026

Section 96 — Governs appearance of parties and the rights, duties, powers or procedure expressly stated in this section. Key operative text: Any appearance, application or act required to be made or done by any person before or to a competent authority (other than an appearance of a party which is required for the purpose of his examination as a witness) may be…

Full official textSource checked: 20 August 20260 direct Central Rule link(s)

Current-law status

The Code was commenced in stages: section 142 had earlier commencement, S.O. 5319(E) brought the specified provisions into force from 21 November 2025, and later commencement instruments must be read with the current India Code footnotes for the remaining clauses.

Primary sources

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

Finin2min analysis — what the section actually does

Operative clauses

Any appearance, application or act required to be made or done by any person before or to a competent authority (other than an appearance of a party which is required for the purpose of his examination as a witness) may be made or done on behalf of such person by a legal practitioner or by an official of an Insurance Company or a registered Trade Union or by an Inspector-cum- Facilitator appointed under…

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

Authority / officer, Trade union

Full statutory text — Section 96

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.

96. Appearance of parties.— Any appearance, application or act required to be made or done by any
person before or to a competent authority (other than an appearance of a party which is required for the
purpose of his examination as a witness) may be made or done on behalf of such person by a legal
practitioner or by an official of an Insurance Company or a registered Trade Union or by an Inspector-cum-
Facilitator appointed under sub-section (1) of section 122 or by any other officer specified by the State
Government in this behalf, authorised in writing by such person, or, with the permission of the competent
authority, by any other person so authorised.

How to apply this provision

Primary statutory test — Any appearance, application or act required to be made or done by any person before or to a competent authority (other than an appearance of a party which is required for the purpose of his examination as a witness) may be made or done on behalf of such person by a legal practitioner or by an official of an Insurance Company or a registered Trade Union or by an Inspector-cum- Facilitator appointed under…
Evidence file — retain facts and records proving the role/status of: Authority / officer, Trade union.

Why this is section-specific: the operative-clause, exception, threshold and cross-reference panels above are extracted from Section 96 itself rather than a generic “trigger/control/evidence” template.

Rules, forms and cross-references

Direct 2026 Central Rule mapping

None expressly mapped in the current concordance.

Forms mapped

No prescribed form is directly mapped in the current concordance.

Other sections cited in this text

Section 122

Related Labour Hub resources

EPFO Schemes ESIC Gratuity hub

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 a worker/member seeking a benefit connected with appearance of parties, the file should show coverage, service/contribution facts, the rule/scheme and prescribed form, and the calculation/payment. One statutory point to test is: “Any appearance, application or act required to be made or done by any person before or to a competent authority (other than an appearance of a party which is required for the purpose of his examination as a witness) may be made or done on behalf of such person by a legal practiti”

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 96

What does Section 96 of the Social Security Code cover?

What is the main legal requirement or power in Section 96?

The first operative clause identified from the official text is: “Any appearance, application or act required to be made or done by any person before or to a competent authority (other than an appearance of a party which is required for the purpose of his examination as a witness) may be made or done on behalf of such person by a legal practitioner or by an official of an Insurance Company or a registered Trade Union or by an Inspector-cum- Facilitator appointed under…” Read it with the remaining subsections and any proviso below.

Does Section 96 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 96?

No explicit day/month/year/hour/percentage/rupee expression was detected in the official section text.

Which 2026 Central Rules are linked to Section 96?

No direct Central Rule is recorded in the current concordance. That does not exclude a relevant scheme, notification, State rule or enabling provision.

Is Section 96 currently operative?

Source & verification trail

Act: Code on Social Security, 2020 — official India Code PDF ↗

Central Rules: Social Security (Central) Rules, 2026 — G.S.R. 344(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.