HomeCirculars › RBI/2022-23/184

March 2023 Central Govt Transactions: Closure & Reporting

Current · Source: Reserve Bank of India · RBI/2022-23/184 · issued 16 Mar 2023 · ~2 min read
Quick answerThe Government of India has set April 10, 2023 as the residual transaction closure date for March 2023. Agency banks must use special courier arrangements to ensure all March collections/payments are accounted in FY 2022-23. Nodal branches must prepare separate scrolls for March residual and April transactions, clearly marked, through April 10.
The rule, in the simplest words
How it plays out — a real example

An agency-banking (government business) officer in Indore receives a big tax payment from a customer on March 31, 2023. She uses a special courier to send the payment slip to the main branch in Nagpur the same day. The main branch officer then marks that slip as 'March Residual – 1' and keeps it separate from April slips, so the government counts that tax money in the right year.

What changed

The Government of India fixed April 10, 2023 as the closure date for residual March 2023 transactions. RBI now mandates that receiving branches use special messenger or courier services to forward challans/scrolls to nodal branches, ensuring all March-end transactions are captured in the same financial year. Nodal branches must prepare separate, distinctly marked scrolls for March residual transactions (e.g., 'March Residual – 1') and April transactions, with daily segregation starting April 1.

What it means for you

Banks must urgently implement special logistical arrangements to avoid mixing March and April transactions, as any delay could misstate government accounts for FY 2022-23. Nodal branches face increased operational burden to segregate and mark scrolls daily, and link cells must separately forward March residual advices to RBI CAS Nagpur. Failure to comply may lead to reconciliation issues and regulatory scrutiny, especially for tax collections and payments.

What you must do

Who it affects

All agency banks handling Central Government transactions, Receiving branches (including non-local branches), Nodal/Focal Point branches, Link cells at Nagpur, Departmental officials (Zonal Accounts Officers, Pay and Accounts Officers)

❓ Common questions

What is the deadline for reporting March 2023 residual transactions?

The closure date for residual March 2023 transactions is April 10, 2023. All transactions reported after this date will be accounted in the month of report, regardless of the transaction date.

How should nodal branches label March residual scrolls?

Nodal branches must mark main scrolls for March residual transactions as 'March Residual – 1', 'March Residual – 2', and so on, in consecutive order, for each scroll sent from April 1 to April 10, 2023.

What happens if March and April transactions are mixed?

Mixing transactions could lead to incorrect accounting for FY 2022-23, causing reconciliation issues with government accounts and potential regulatory action. Strict segregation is mandatory.

📜 Read the original circular — full text as issued by RBI
RBI/2022-23/184 DGBA.GBD.No.S1469/42-01-029/2022-2023 March 16, 2023 All Agency Banks Madam/Dear Sir, Reporting and Accounting of Central Government transactions for March 2023 Please refer to Circular DGBA.GBD.No.S1422/42-01-029/2021-2022 dated February 24, 2022 advising the procedure to be followed for reporting and accounting of Central Government transactions (including CBDT, CBIC, Departmentalized Ministries and Non-Civil Ministries) at the Receiving/Nodal/Focal Point branches of your bank for the Financial Year 2021-22. 2. The Government of India has decided that the date of closure of residual transactions for the month of March 2023 be fixed as April 10, 2023. In view of the ensuing closing of Government accounts for the financial year 2022-23, receiving branches including those not situated locally, should adopt special arrangements such as courier service etc., for passing on challans/scrolls etc., to the Nodal/Focal Point branches so that all payments and collections made on behalf of Government towards the end of March are accounted for in the same financial year. These instructions regarding special messenger arrangements may please be informed to all branches concerned. 3. As regards reporting of March 2023 transactions by Nodal/Focal Point branches in April 2023, the branches may be advised to follow the procedure as outlined in the Annex . To sum up, the nodal/Focal Point branches will be required to prepare separate set of scrolls, one pertaining to March 2023 residual transactions and another for April transactions during the first 10 days of April 2023. The Nodal/Focal Point branches should also ensure that the accounts for all transactions (revenues/tax collections/payments) are effected at the receiving branches up to March 31, 2023 in the accounts for the current financial year itself and are not mixed up with the transactions of April 2023. Also, while reporting transactions pertaining to March 2023 up to April 10, 2023, the transactions of April 2023 should not be mixed up with the residual transactions relating to March 2023. 4. Kindly issue necessary instructions in the matter to your branches concerned immediately. Yours faithfully (Indranil Chakraborty) Chief General Manager Encl: As above ANNEX Reporting of March 2023 transactions Beginning from April 1, 2023, the Nodal/Focal Point branches will segregate on a daily basis all scrolls/challans pertaining to March 2023 received from the receiving branches concerned and prepare separate main scrolls for: scrolls for transactions of March 2023 or earlier period (i.e. effected during the previous financial year 2022-23) and scrolls pertaining to current transactions (i.e. those effected from April 1, 2023 onwards). 2. The main scrolls for March 2023 transactions prepared from April 1 to April 10, 2023 are to be distinctly marked as March Residual – 1, March Residual – 2 and so on upto April 10, 2023. In other words, serial number should be allotted in consecutive order for each main scroll of March 2023 transactions sent from April 1 to April 10, 2023. These scrolls along with the copies of daily summary of Receipts and Payments prepared separately for March 2023 transactions will be forwarded to the Departmental Officials concerned (i.e. Zonal Accounts Officers/Pay and Accounts Officers and Designated Officers) in the usual way. The Nodal/Focal Point branches will also be required to report the above transactions to the Link Cell through separate Daily Memos. These advices must be sent to enable the Link Cell of each bank at Nagpur, to make daily settlement with Reserve Bank of India, Central Accounts Section (CAS) Nagpur. On receipt of advices from the Nodal/Focal Point branches, the Link Cell should segregate the advices for the March Residual transactions and forward them separately to Reserve Bank of India, CAS, Nagpur. This procedure should continue upto and inclusive of April 10, 2023 only. All transactions reported thereafter by the receiving branches will be reported and accounted for in the usual manner in the accounts of the month of report irrespective of the date of transaction. Following the special arrangements for March 2023 transactions, it is necessary for the Nodal/Focal Point branches to prepare two sets of DMS to be submitted to Zonal Accounts Officers/Pay and Accounts Officers for March 2023 transactions – one for transactions upto March 31, 2023 and another for March Residual transactions adjusted by Nodal/Focal Point branches with Reserve Bank of India, Central Accounts Section, Nagpur, during April 1 to April 10, 2023. 3. Since the Nodal/Focal Point branch will also be reporting the April 2023 transactions pertaining to year 2023-24 in addition to March 2023 residual transactions, monthly statement for April 2023 transactions should be compiled and furnished to Zonal Accounts Officers/Pay and Accounts Officers in the usual way. In order to distinguish the April 2023 (financial year 2023-24) and March Residual Transactions, the statement pertaining to March Residual Transactions should be clearly marked as "March Residual Account". The statement of March (Residual) Transactions should be sent by all Focal Point Branches to Zonal Accounts Officers/Pay and Accounts Officers latest by April 18, 2023. Note: As advised in our Circular GA.NB.No.376/42.01.001/1995-96 dated May 22, 1996 all the cheques/amounts realized on or before March 31, 2023 should be treated as transactions relating to the current financial year as "March 2023 or March Residual Transactions", the reporting of which may take place during the month of April (upto April 10, 2023). But if any cheque is tendered on or before March 31, 2023 and realised on or after April 1, 2023, it will be treated as transaction for the next financial year as "April Transactions". Accordingly, the banks will prepare separate scrolls for March 2023 and April 2023 (Financial year 2023-24) transactions.
Reproduced for reference with acknowledgment — Source: Reserve Bank of India · RBI/2022-23/184 · issued 16 Mar 2023. The plain-English explanation above is BankPulse’s own independent summary.
🧰 Tools — save, print, templates & related
Who does what — compliance checklist
🏦 Branch Manager
  • Immediately instruct all receiving branches to use courier or special messenger services for March-end challans/scrolls to nodal branches.
  • Ensure nodal branches segregate March residual transactions from April transactions daily from April 1 to April 10, 2023.
📜 Compliance
  • Prepare and mark main scrolls for March residual transactions as 'March Residual – 1', 'March Residual – 2', etc., up to April 10.
  • Forward separate daily summaries of receipts/payments for March transactions to departmental officials and link cells.
  • Train link cell staff to segregate and forward March residual advices separately to RBI CAS Nagpur through April 10.
Grouped from the action items above — a single circular may involve more than one team.
Worked example & action-note template

Example: if you are a Branch Manager at a bank this circular applies to (All agency banks handling Central Government transactions, Receiving branches (including non-local branches), Nodal/Focal Point branches, Link cells at Nagpur, Departmental officials (Zonal Accounts Officers, Pay and Accounts Officers)), your first concrete step on “March 2023 Central Govt Transactions: Closure & Reporting” is: “Immediately instruct all receiving branches to use courier or special messenger services for March-end challans/scrolls to nodal branches.” (RBI issued this 16 Mar 2023).

  1. Circular: RBI/2022-23/184 -- March 2023 Central Govt Transactions: Closure & Reporting
  2. Issued: 16 Mar 2023
  3. Action required: Immediately instruct all receiving branches to use courier or special messenger services for March-end challans/scrolls to nodal branches.
  4. Action required: Ensure nodal branches segregate March residual transactions from April transactions daily from April 1 to April 10, 2023.
  5. Action required: Prepare and mark main scrolls for March residual transactions as 'March Residual – 1', 'March Residual – 2', etc., up to April 10.
  6. Action required: Forward separate daily summaries of receipts/payments for March transactions to departmental officials and link cells.
  7. Action required: Train link cell staff to segregate and forward March residual advices separately to RBI CAS Nagpur through April 10.
  8. Owner: ____________ Target date: ____________
  9. Board/committee approval needed? Y / N
  10. Evidence filed in compliance register on: ____________
Built only from this circular’s own published fields — not legal advice; always confirm against the official RBI source.

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BankPulse Compliance Evidence Pack — generated 03 Aug 2026 · status cross-checked against RBI’s official withdrawal register (refreshed weekly).
Official RBI source: https://www.rbi.org.in/Scripts/NotificationUser.aspx?Id=12460&Mode=0 — Plain-English summary by BankPulse (bankpulse.ai), reviewed by our expert reviewer, CA Amit Jain. Independent platform, not affiliated with the Reserve Bank of India; is our own plain-English paraphrase, not RBI’s original wording.
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