NIC Code for Udyam Registration (2026): How to Pick the Right Code, With Examples for Common Businesses

NIC Code for Udyam Registration (2026): How to Pick the Right Code, With Examples for Common Businesses

Short answer: the NIC code is the activity code you pick on the Udyam form to say what your business does. On the Udyam portal you choose your main activity (manufacturing, services or trading) and then narrow it down through drop-downs to a 5-digit NIC 2008 code, such as 14105 for custom tailoring or 41001 for building construction. You can add more than one code. The choice matters more than most people realise: if you pick a retail or wholesale trading code (starting with 45, 46 or 47), your Udyam registration gives you priority sector lending and nothing else, not even the MSME delayed-payment protection. This guide shows how to choose, gives codes for common small businesses, and covers the new NIC 2025 list.

This is general information, not legal or tax advice. Choose codes that describe what your business actually does; the Udyam registration is a self-declaration.

What a NIC code is

NIC stands for National Industrial Classification, the government’s list of economic activities, maintained by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI). It works like a tree, getting more specific at each level. Take custom tailoring:

Udyam asks for the most detailed level, the 5-digit sub-class. Note that custom tailoring sits under manufacturing, even though many tailors think of themselves as a service. Classifications don’t always match everyday language, which is exactly why people pick the wrong code.

NIC 2008 or NIC 2025: which one does Udyam use?

MoSPI released a new classification, NIC 2025, on 18 November 2025. It uses 6-digit codes and adds activities that barely existed in 2008, such as cloud kitchens and app-based services. But government portals are moving to it in phases, and the Udyam portal’s drop-down list still uses the 5-digit NIC 2008 codes. So for Udyam today, use the code the portal shows you, which will be NIC 2008. If the portal switches later, you can update your codes on the same registration; there is no need to register again.

How to choose your NIC code on the Udyam form

1. Write down what you actually do, in one line. “I stitch clothes to order for customers” is better than “fashion business”.
2. Decide the main activity type. Do you make or process something (manufacturing), do work for others (services), or buy and resell goods (trading)? If you do more than one, pick the one that brings in most of your revenue as the main activity.
3. Search the code. MoSPI has an official NIC code search, and the Udyam portal’s own NIC Code menu links to the list. Search by keyword (for example “tailoring”, “printing”, “repair”) and read the full description, including what it excludes.
4. Select it on the form. In the Udyam application, choose the activity type, then the 2-digit, 4-digit and 5-digit codes from the drop-downs, and click Add Activity.
5. Add your other activities. Udyam’s FAQs allow up to 10 NIC codes on one registration. Add each genuine activity rather than registering again; one PAN can have only one Udyam registration.

NIC codes for common small businesses

Two traps hide in this table. First, repairing clothes is not the same code as stitching them: the NIC list sends repair of wearing apparel to class 9529, not to tailoring. Second, a motor vehicle repair garage falls under division 45, which is grouped with vehicle trading, so it is treated like a trader for Udyam purposes even though it provides a service.

The trader trap: codes 45, 46 and 47

Until 2021, retail and wholesale traders could not register on Udyam at all. The Ministry of MSME’s Office Memorandum of 2 July 2021 allowed registration under three NIC divisions:

• 45: Wholesale and retail trade and repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles
• 46: Wholesale trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles
• 47: Retail trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles

But the same memorandum restricts the benefits for these enterprises to priority sector lending only. A later memorandum of 1 September 2021 made it explicit that other benefits, including the delayed-payment provisions of the MSMED Act, do not apply to retail and wholesale trade. In practice this means:

• A pure trader gets Udyam mainly to qualify for priority sector loans from banks.
• A trader cannot file a delayed-payment complaint before the MSE Facilitation Council; see our guide to MSME delayed payment complaints for what that protection covers.
• If you also manufacture, assemble, process or provide services, add those codes. A distributor who runs a small packaging unit, or a hardware shop that also does fabrication work, should list both activities and put the one that earns most as the main activity.

The flip side is just as important: don’t pick a manufacturing or service code for what is really trading, just to get MSME protections. The Udyam notification makes intentional misrepresentation of self-declared facts liable to a penalty under Section 27 of the MSMED Act, and a buyer contesting a delayed-payment claim can challenge it.

Does the NIC code decide micro, small or medium?

No. Since 2020, manufacturing and service enterprises are classified by the same limits, based on investment in plant and machinery or equipment, and turnover. Since 1 April 2025, a micro enterprise has investment up to ₹2.5 crore and turnover up to ₹10 crore. The NIC code decides what kind of activity you are recorded as doing and which benefits apply, not your size.

Picked the wrong code? Fix it

You can add or change NIC codes on your existing registration through Update/Cancel Udyam Registration on the portal, free and without changing your Udyam number. Our guide to updating the Udyam certificate walks through the login and update steps. If you can’t log in because the OTP goes to an agent’s phone, start with recovering your Udyam number and contact details.

Frequently asked questions

Can I add more than one NIC code in Udyam?
Yes. Udyam’s FAQs allow up to 10 NIC codes in one registration. Mark the activity that earns the most as your main activity.

What is the NIC code for a tailor?
14105, custom tailoring, under manufacturing. If you only alter and repair clothes, look at class 9529 instead.

What is the NIC code for construction?
Building construction on own account or on contract is 41001. Construction of roads, bridges and other civil engineering works falls under division 42, and specialised work such as electrical, plumbing or demolition under division 43; pick the 5-digit code that matches your work.

Should I use NIC 2025 codes now?
Not on Udyam yet. The portal still lists NIC 2008 codes. Use whatever list the portal shows.

Does the NIC code have to match my GST registration?
GST uses HSN and SAC codes for the goods and services you supply, not NIC codes, so they won’t look the same. But the activity should be consistent: a business registered on GST as a manufacturer of garments shouldn’t appear on Udyam only as a retailer.

Is there a fee to choose or change NIC codes?
No. Registration and updates on udyamregistration.gov.in are free. See our post on the Udyam registration fee for how to avoid paid look-alike sites.

Sources: Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, National Industrial Classification 2008 and NIC 2025 (released 18 November 2025); Ministry of MSME Office Memorandum No. 5/2(2)/2021-E/P&G/Policy dated 2 July 2021 and the clarification dated 1 September 2021 on retail and wholesale trade; RBI circular FIDD.MSME & NFS.BC.No.13/06.02.31/2021-22 dated 7 July 2021; Ministry of MSME Notification S.O. 2119(E) dated 26 June 2020 and Udyam Registration FAQs; Notification S.O. 1364(E) dated 21 March 2025. Updated November 2026.

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