Form 3.1
The reporting format for the independent Social Impact Assessor's Annual Social Impact Assessment Report, prepared under Regulation 91E(2) of the SEBI LODR Regulations, 2015.
In plain language
A social enterprise reporting its own impact under Form 2.1 is one side of the story. Form 3.1 is the independent check on it.
The workbook's own description: Form 3.1 is the "Annual Social Impact Assessment Report prepared in terms of Regulation 91E (2) of the SEBI (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015."
Unlike Form 2.1, which the enterprise itself prepares, Form 3.1 is prepared by the Social Impact Assessor — a registered professional independent of the enterprise being assessed — and it is filed to accompany, and provide independent assurance on, the enterprise's own Annual Impact Report.
How it works
Form 3.1 completes the assurance loop the workbook sets up around annual impact reporting. Recall the fuller framework from Chapter 9's earlier sections: the Social Stock Exchange requires that "the AIR shall be assessed by Social Impact Assessors and the SEs shall disclose the report of the Social Impact Assessors along with AIR." Form 3.1 is that assessor's report, in the fixed reporting format SEBI has adopted for it.
| Step | Form | Prepared by |
|---|---|---|
| Enterprise's own impact account | Form 2.1 | The Social Enterprise (91E(1)) |
| Independent verification of that account | Form 3.1 | The Social Impact Assessor (91E(2)) |
Form 3.1 is what makes the whole Annual Impact Report credible to an outside donor or investor — the Social Enterprise's own claims (Form 2.1) are published alongside an independent professional's separate assessment (Form 3.1), so a reader does not have to take the enterprise's self-reported figures on trust alone.
A worked example
Illustrative figures, continuing the earlier example.
Jal Seva Trust's Form 2.1 claims 72,000 beneficiaries reached through its water projects in the year. The Social Impact Assessor engaged to review this, working from desk review, physical inspection and stakeholder interviews, files Form 3.1 confirming 68,500 of the claimed 72,000 beneficiaries as independently verifiable, with the remaining 3,500 flagged as based on incomplete village-level records.
Both forms — Jal Seva's Form 2.1 and the assessor's Form 3.1 — are published together as part of the Annual Impact Report. A donor reading both can see not just what Jal Seva claims, but how much of that claim an independent professional was actually able to stand behind.
Why NISM asks about it
Chapter 9, section 9.2.2, names Form 3.1 as the Annual Social Impact Assessment Report under Regulation 91E(2), immediately paired with Form 2.1 under 91E(1). Expect a question testing which party prepares Form 3.1 (the assessor, not the enterprise) and the correct sub-regulation pairing.
Common exam traps
- Form 3.1 is prepared by the Social Impact Assessor, an independent party — not by the Social Enterprise itself. This is the reverse of Form 2.1, and the two are frequently tested against each other.
- 91E(2) governs Form 3.1; 91E(1) governs Form 2.1 — do not transpose the sub-regulation numbers.
- Form 3.1 is filed to accompany the Annual Impact Report, providing independent assurance on it — it is not a stand-alone, unrelated filing.
- Do not confuse the assessor's Form 3.1 with the assessor's own engagement file — the engagement file is the assessor's internal working documentation; Form 3.1 is the public-facing report format the assessment ultimately feeds into.
Check yourself
1.Which reporting form adopted by Social Stock Exchanges is the Annual Social Impact Report by the Social Enterprise, prepared under Regulation 91E(1)?
- a)Form 1A
- b)Form 1B
- c)Form 2.1
- d)Form 3.1
Show the answer
Answer: (c) Form 2.1
Form 2.1 is the Annual Social Impact Report by the SE under 91E(1).
Form 3.1 is the Annual Social Impact Assessment Report under 91E(2). Form 1A covers general and governance aspects not dependent on a financial audit, and Form 1B covers aspects that refer to audited financial statements.
Where this is taught
Free preparation for NISM Series XXIIIRelated terms
- Annual Impact ReportThe yearly report of social impact every social enterprise registered on or raising funds through an SSE must file under LODR Regulation 91E, covering at least 67% of the previous year's programme expenditure.
- Engagement fileThe assembled record — hard copy or soft copy — of an assessor's engagement documentation, which must be completed within about 60 days of the social impact assessment report and then kept, not discarded.
- Form 2.1The reporting format for a Social Enterprise's own Annual Social Impact Report, prepared under Regulation 91E(1) of the SEBI LODR Regulations, 2015.
- Social Impact AssessorAn individual registered with an SRO (under ICAI or another SEBI-specified agency) who has passed the NISM certification and holds a valid certificate; performs independent verification of impact reports.
- Form 1AOne of the Social Stock Exchange's adopted reporting formats, covering a Social Enterprise's general and governance disclosures that do not depend on a statutory financial audit.
- Form 1BOne of the Social Stock Exchange's adopted reporting formats, covering general, governance and finance aspects that reference audited financial statements and filings with regulators.