What is a record date? Corporate action cut-off
A record date is the cut-off date a listed company sets to decide which shareholders are eligible for a corporate action, such as a dividend, bonus issue, stock split, or rights issue. If you are on the company's register as of the record date, you qualify; if you are not, you do not. This guide explains what a record date is, who sets it, and how it differs from the ex-date. It is not investment advice.
Definition
A record date
is the cut-off date a listed company fixes to decide which shareholders are eligible for a corporate action, such as a dividend, bonus, split, or rights issue. Only holders on the register as of that date qualify. It is set under SEBI LODR Regulation 42. Source: SEBI.
Who sets the record date, and how?
The listed company sets the record date and notifies the stock exchanges in advance, under Regulation 42 of the SEBI LODR Regulations. The notice tells the market which corporate action is being paid and the date that fixes eligibility. An amendment effective December 12, 2024 requires a minimum gap of three working days between the board or shareholder approval and the record date, excluding both the intimation date and the record date.
What does the record date decide?
The record date fixes the register for one specific corporate action. For a dividend, it decides who is paid. For a bonus issue or stock split, it decides who receives the extra or adjusted shares. For a rights issue, it decides who is offered the rights entitlement. The company can set a record date for each such action.
Three working days
Minimum gap between board or shareholder approval and the record date, effective December 12, 2024
Source: SEBI
How is the record date different from the ex-date?
The record date is the cut-off for who is on the register. The ex-date is the first day the share trades without the entitlement, so a buyer from the ex-date onward does not receive the action. Since India moved to the T+1 rolling settlement cycle in January 2023, the ex-date and record date generally fall on the same day. For the full comparison, see record date vs ex-date.
For related mechanics, see what is a share buyback and stock split vs bonus issue. Flock reads disclosure filings and keeps each one dated and linked to its source, so you can move from an announcement to the exchange filing in one step. What any of it means for your money is your call to make.
Frequently asked questions
What is a record date?
A record date is the cut-off date a listed company fixes to decide which shareholders are eligible for a corporate action, such as a dividend, bonus issue, stock split, or rights issue. Only holders on the company's register as of that date qualify. It is set under SEBI LODR Regulation 42. Source: SEBI.
Who sets the record date?
The listed company sets the record date and notifies the stock exchanges in advance under SEBI LODR Regulation 42. An amendment effective December 12, 2024 requires a minimum gap of three working days between the board or shareholder approval and the record date, excluding both dates. Source: SEBI.
How is the record date different from the ex-date?
The record date is the cut-off for who is on the register. The ex-date is the first day the share trades without the entitlement. Since India moved to the T+1 settlement cycle in January 2023, the ex-date and record date generally fall on the same day. Source: SEBI, NSE.
Where can I find a stock's record date?
Companies announce record dates to the exchanges, so they appear in the corporate-action section on the NSE and BSE websites and in the company's exchange filings. The announcement states the action and the record date. Source: NSE, BSE.
Flock tracks these filings, sourced, dated, and linked back to the original. See what smart-money entities disclosed, without the guesswork about what it means.
Disclosures shown are public regulatory filings. Data may be delayed or incomplete. Smart-money entities may no longer hold positions shown. Not investment advice.