Demat accounts to be frozen if nominee not added by March 31. Check how to apply

The deadline for making nominations was supposed to be March 2022, but Sebi (Securities and Exchange Board of India) had extended the date by a year. The decision to extend the deadline was taken after representations and feedback from various stakeholders.

In July 2021, Sebi had asked all existing eligible trading and demat account holders to provide a choice of nomination.

For existing investors who have already provided the nomination details prior to the circular issued in July 2021, re-submission of nomination details is optional.

Further, existing investors who have not submitted nomination details to date and intend to submit their nomination or opt out of nomination will be allowed to do so by way of two-factor authentication login on trading platforms for stock brokers or depository participants providing such service.

The details previously required, like mobile number, e-mail ID and identification details of the nominee/guardian of the minor nominee, have been made optional.

Investors who are opening new trading and demat accounts have the choice of providing nomination or opting out of nomination through a declaration form.Further, no witnesses will be required for filing the nomination for the trading and demat accounts wherever the form is physically signed by the account holder. The nomination or declaration form filed online using the e-sign facility will not have witness requirements.

However, if the account holder uses a thumb impression instead of a signature, a witness signature will have to be there on the form as well.

Here are the steps to add nominee to demat account

Step 1: Login to your demat account

Step 2: Navigate to ‘My nominees’ under the profile segment and you will be redirected to the nominee details page

Step 3: You can chose ‘add nominee’ or ‘opt-out’

Step 4: Fill the nominee details and upload ID proof of the nominee. After uploading the documents, enter the nominee share in ‘percentage’ you would like to assign to the nominee

Step 5: E-sign the document with Aadhaar OTP

Step 6: The details of the nominee will be then processed for verification and added to the demat account within 24-48 hours