Cheque Clearing Rules – Good news for everyone. If you deposit a check in the bank and have to wait up to two days for the money to arrive, there’s some good news for you. This delay often causes problems for people. But now, this problem is about to end. You won’t have to wait so long. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has implemented a new rule. Effective October 4, 2025, the check clearing system will change. Your check will now be cleared within hours, and the money will be deposited directly into your account.

Let us understand step by step how RBI’s new cheque clearing system will work…what is its timing and clearing process and what benefits will you get from it.

How will the new system work?

  1. RBI has now made the existing Cheque Truncation System even faster.
  2. Now as soon as you deposit the cheque in the bank, its scanned copy will be sent directly to the clearing house and then to the paying bank.
  3. There the bank will have to pass or reject the cheque within the stipulated time.
  4. This will reduce the clearing time from 2 days to just a few hours.
  5. Earlier it used to take 48 hours, now the cheque will be cleared in just a few hours.

RBI will implement the new rule in these two steps

  • The first phase will run from October 4, 2025, to January 3, 2026. During this period, the bank must provide confirmation on the check by 7 p.m. If no response is received, the check will automatically be cleared.
  • The second phase will begin on January 3, 2026. In this phase, banks must clear checks within three hours of their arrival. For example, if you deposit a check at 10 a.m., it will clear by 1 p.m.

This is the timing and clearing process

Banks will conduct continuous cheque presentation sessions from 10 am to 4 pm, meaning scanned copies will be sent to the clearing house throughout the day.
In the first phase, confirmation will have to be given to the bank by 7 pm.
From the second stage, it will be necessary to clear the cheque within just 3 hours.
After the check clears, the bank must deposit the money into your account within one hour. This means that upon depositing the check, the money will arrive in your account almost the same day.