Assam Micro Finance Incentive and Relief Scheme (AMFIRS)

What is the Assam Micro Finance Incentive and Relief Scheme?

Assam Micro Finance Incentive and Relief Scheme, commonly written as AMFIRS and sometimes referred to locally as the microfinance rin relief scheme, is a state relief programme run by the Finance Department, Government of Assam. The Government of Assam signed a Memorandum of Understanding with participating microfinance institutions in August 2021 to implement AMFIRS, 2021.

AMFIRS was designed for a specific crisis. Assam had among the highest microfinance penetration rates in India, and when incomes collapsed during the COVID-19 period a very large number of small women borrowers fell behind on weekly and fortnightly repayments. Rather than let those accounts spiral into recovery action, the state government chose to step in as payer of last resort for a capped part of the debt.

AMFIRS works on loan characteristics, not on an application form. The lender holds the data; the state government verifies it, classifies each borrower, and releases money either to the borrower as an incentive or to the lender against the loan account.

Core parameters, as published in state government announcements

• Relief covers loans from up to three lenders per borrower.
• The covered loan amount is capped at Rs 1.25 lakh.
• The benefit ceiling is Rs 25,000 or the outstanding balance, whichever is lower.
• The Government of Assam allocated Rs 550 crore to AMFIRS in the 2024-25 financial year.

Who is eligible for AMFIRS relief?

AMFIRS eligibility is decided by which of three categories your loan account falls into, as classified by your lender.

You can be covered if:

• You hold a microfinance loan taken in Assam from a lender that signed the AMFIRS Memorandum of Understanding with the state government.
• Your total covered borrowing is Rs 1.25 lakh or less, spread across no more than three lenders.
• Your loan account falls into one of the three defined categories:
• Category I, you repaid on time and maintained good credit discipline. A one-time incentive of up to Rs 25,000, or the outstanding balance, whichever is less, is paid to reward that discipline. Around 11 lakh women borrowers were covered here across the first two phases.
• Category II: your account is overdue by 1 to 89 days but has not been classified as a non-performing asset. The state government pays the overdue amount so the account is brought back to standard status.
• Category III, you are a stressed or destitute borrower whose account has already become a non-performing asset. The third phase, rolled out on 23 September 2023, covered more than 2.23 lakh such borrowers, offering the outstanding principal balance up to Rs 25,000.

You are not eligible if:

• Your total microfinance borrowing exceeds Rs 1.25 lakh, or you borrowed from more than three lenders. The excess falls outside the scheme.
• Your loan is not a microfinance loan. Housing loans, vehicle loans, gold loans, business term loans and credit card dues are outside AMFIRS.
• Your lender did not sign the AMFIRS Memorandum of Understanding. Relief flows only through participating institutions.
• The loan was taken outside Assam.

A fourth category of relief for borrowers who fell outside Categories I to III was described by the Chief Minister in September 2023 as being worked out. As of this fact-check no official category IV benefit structure had been published, so this guide does not state one.

What documents are needed for AMFIRS?

Because AMFIRS is a lender-driven scheme, the practical documentation burden on the borrower is low. What matters most is that the lender holds accurate Aadhaar and bank details against your loan account.

How to apply for AMFIRS or get your name included

AMFIRS has no citizen application form. Borrowers do not fill anything on a portal. What a borrower can do is make sure their record with the lender is correct and follow up if relief has not reached them.

1. Visit your microfinance lender's branch with your loan card or loan sanction letter and ask which AMFIRS category your account has been placed in. The lender is the only body that can tell you this.
2. Verify your Aadhaar number and bank account as recorded against the loan account. A wrong or dormant account number is the most common reason relief stalls. Get corrections recorded in writing at the branch.
3. Confirm that your lender is an AMFIRS signatory. Ask for the branch's confirmation that it signed the Memorandum of Understanding with the Government of Assam. If it did not, no relief can flow through it.
4. Ask for your outstanding balance certificate after relief is credited, showing how much the state paid and what remains payable by you.
5. Escalate to the district administration if the lender confirms eligibility but no relief arrives. Deputy Commissioners' offices in Assam have handled AMFIRS distribution events, including cheque handovers.

How much relief does AMFIRS actually give?

AMFIRS pays a maximum of Rs 25,000 per borrower, or the outstanding balance of the covered loan, whichever is lower. That is the ceiling in every category.

The form the money takes differs by category. Category I borrowers, the regular repayers, receive an incentive; money that rewards them for having paid on time, released in phases through cheque distribution events and direct credit. The first phase covered around 11 lakh prompt-paying women borrowers, with an approved outlay of Rs 2,000 crore reported for that release. Category II relief is applied to the account to clear the overdue portion so the loan does not slip into non-performing status. Category III relief goes against the outstanding principal of accounts already classified as non-performing assets.

AMFIRS is not a blanket loan waiver, and describing it as one is the single most common misunderstanding. Any borrowing above Rs 1.25 lakh, from a fourth or fifth lender, or of a non-microfinance type, remains a live liability.

How to check your AMFIRS status

1. Approach the branch of the microfinance institution that gave you the loan and ask for your AMFIRS category and relief status.
2. Ask the branch to show your updated loan statement, which will record any amount credited by the Government of Assam against your account.
3. If you were told you fall in Category I, ask when the cheque or credit for your phase is scheduled. Releases have been made in organised district-level events rather than continuously.
4. For unresolved cases, raise the matter with the Deputy Commissioner's office in your district, or lodge a written grievance with the Finance Department, Government of Assam through the CPGRAMS link on finance.assam.gov.in.

Why AMFIRS relief gets delayed or missed

• Loan above the Rs 1.25 lakh ceiling, so the account falls outside the covered slab entirely.
• Borrowing from more than three lenders, which puts the additional loans outside the scheme.
• Lender not a signatory to the AMFIRS Memorandum of Understanding.
• Aadhaar not seeded or seeded incorrectly against the loan account, blocking de-duplication.
• Dormant or closed bank account on record with the lender.
• Category dispute, a borrower who believes they repaid on time but has been placed in Category II or III because of a lender's recording error. This must be corrected at branch level, with supporting receipts.

Key dates for AMFIRS

• August 2021 — Government of Assam signs the Memorandum of Understanding with microfinance institutions for AMFIRS, 2021.
• First phase, Category I incentive of up to Rs 25,000 released to approximately 11 lakh regular-paying women borrowers.
• Second phase; rolled out at Biswanath, continuing Category I incentive distribution to regular repayers.
• 23 September 2023, third phase launched, covering more than 2.23 lakh Category III borrowers whose accounts had become non-performing assets.
• 2024-25, Rs 550 crore allocated to AMFIRS in the state budget.

There is no published last date for AMFIRS because there is no application window. Relief is released phase by phase as the state government approves each tranche.

Where to complain about AMFIRS

• Your lender's branch and grievance officer, the first and most effective stop, since the lender owns the underlying data.
• Deputy Commissioner's office in your district, which coordinates AMFIRS distribution locally.
• Finance Department, Government of Assam at finance.assam.gov.in, which carries a Lodge Grievance (CPGRAMS) link and a Public Grievance Officer listing.

No agent or middleman can get your name added to the AMFIRS list, and no fee is payable to anyone for relief under this scheme. Any person demanding money to "process" an AMFIRS waiver is running a fraud and should be reported to the police and to your lender.