Voluntary Lock-in / Debit Freeze Facility to Mutual Fund Folios

Circular Reference
  1. SEBI Circular HO/24/12/12(5)2026-IMD-SEC-1/I/6373/2026, dated Mar 06, 2026
  2. AMFI BP Circular No. 124/2026-27 dated Apr 10, 2026
Applicability
  1. The online facility is enabled in MFCentral platform
  2. Locking and unlocking can be done only through MFCentral
  3. Applicable only for Non demat folios (Units held in Non demat mode)
  4. Applicable only for Individual investors (having PAN 4th character as P) including Minor Folios & Sole proprietorship
  5. Applicable to Resident and Non-Resident Individual investors
  6. Facility to Lock / Unlock is available only to the First Holder
Prerequisites
  1. Folios should have KYC status as “Registered” or “Validated”
  2. Email ID and Indian Mobile number must be registered
  3. Holding mode must be “Single” or “Anyone or survivor”
Option for Locking and Unlocking

Two options are available for Investor Initiated Transactions:

  • Lock Only Debit Transactions
  • Lock Debit + Non-Financial Transactions
S. No. Lock Type Restrictions
1 Lock for all non-financial transactions Following investor-initiated NFTs would not be allowed:
  • Change/addition of bank mandate
  • Change of broker code
  • Change of Email/Mobile
  • Nominee registration/cancellation
  • Change in IDCW option
  • Lien marking
  • Change in signature
  • Consolidation of folios
  • Transfer of units
  • Change of tax status
  • SOA to Demat
2 Lock for all debit transactions All debits based on investor-initiated transactions:
  • Redemption (including Insta)
  • Switch
  • New STP Registration
  • New SWP Registration
  • New DTP Registration
Allowed Transactions during Lock-In
  1. All non-investor initiated transactions allowed
  2. SOA / Capital Gain statements allowed
  3. New SIP registration allowed
  4. Lien invocation/revocation allowed
  5. Transmission allowed
  6. SIP/SWP/STP triggers allowed
  7. Corporate actions allowed
  8. Regulatory reporting continues
  9. KRA KYC updates allowed
  10. Brokerage continues
  11. CAS & regulatory communication continue
  12. Legal/authority requests continue
  13. Regulatory reporting not impacted
Process Flow for Locking Transactions
  1. Login to MFCentral
  2. Only active folios will be displayed
  3. Investor can select multiple folios
  4. Lock-in date:
    1. From date = system date
    2. To date = Until Revoked (max 31/12/2999)
  5. Two OTPs sent (email + mobile)
  6. On validation, folios are immediately locked
  7. SMS/Email confirmation sent
Process for Unlocking
  1. Investor can choose any folios to unlock
  2. Two OTPs sent (email + mobile)
  3. On validation, folios get unlocked immediately
  4. SMS/Email confirmation sent