The central bank has, however, decided to give a last opportunity to these companies to file their returns, failing which, approporiate penal action, including rejection of their applications for registration and cancellation of certificates if already issued will be taken.

The provisions of the RBI Act require all NBFCs holding public deposits to maintain liquid assets as a certain percentage of the public deposits, and furnish to the Reserve Bank of India a statutory return on a quarterly basis in the prescribed format.

A release issued today by the RBI said that on reviewing the position of statutory compliance by such companies, it has found that many NBFCs, particularly those with net-owned funds (NoF) of less than Rs 25 lakh, have not submitted these statutory returns.

The release further addsthat RBI has decided to make it mandatory even for those NBFCs which do not hold any public deposits, to file an `NIL' return in order to comply with the provisions of law.

The central bank has also clarified that the applications for issue of a certificate of registration of NBFCs having NoF below Rs 25 lakh have been kept in abeyance because they have been given three years' time to attain the requisite level of NoF.

During this period, these NBFCs cannot accept further deposits or renew the maturing deposits. They should repay such deposits as and when they mature. In the meantime, it is obligatory on their part to file the statutory return on liquid assets on a quarterly basis to the RBI.