The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has extended the deadline for banks to enter into revised agreements with safe deposit locker holders till December-end, as a large number of customers are yet to do so. In August 2021, the RBI had asked banks to enter into revised agreements with existing locker holders by January 1, 2023, citing various developments in the area of banking and technology, as well as feedback received from customers.

“However, it has come to the notice of RBI that a large number of customers are yet to sign the revised agreement. In many cases, the banks are yet to inform the customers about the need to do so before the stipulated date (January 1, 2023),” the central bank said in a statement.

Banks have been asked to notify all their customers of the revised requirements by April 30, 2023, and ensure that at least 50% and 75% of their existing customers have executed the revised agreements by June 30 and September 30, 2023, respectively. Banks have also been instructed to facilitate execution of the fresh/supplementary stamped agreements with their customers by arranging stamp papers, electronic execution of agreement, e-stamping, and providing a copy of the executed agreement to the customer.

The August 2021 guidelines pertain to customer due diligence, model locker agreement, locker rent, security of strong rooms, and attachment and recovery of contents in a locker, and the articles by any law enforcement authority, among others. The RBI has also advised the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) to review and revise the Model Agreement to ensure that it complies with the requirements of the circular dated August 18, 2021 and circulate a revised version to all banks by February 28, 2023.