The Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) has introduced three age-based categories for films certified under the UA classification: UA 7+, UA 13+ and UA 16+. The categories are intended to give parents and guardians clearer information about the age suitability of films.
Under the revised framework, the certification categories are U, UA, A and S, with UA films carrying one of three age markers: UA 7+, UA 13+ or UA 16+. The markers are recommendations for parents or guardians and do not constitute legal age restrictions on entry.
The UA age markers replace the earlier single UA-12 classification. The government introduced the three markers through the Cinematograph (Certification) Rules, 2024, with the categories designed to indicate increasing levels of maturity in content. The CBFC’s current website lists UA 7+, UA 13+ and UA 16+ among its prescribed ratings.
The revised guidelines, issued by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting on September 16, also update the broader framework used to assess films. The guidelines are the first major revision to the CBFC’s certification guidelines since 1991.
They retain provisions relating to violence, obscenity, sexual violence, communal content, national security and public order, while adding or clarifying provisions concerning the depiction of crime and other potentially harmful content.
The guidelines state that films should not glorify or justify anti-social activities, criminal behaviour or violence. They also address depictions involving child abuse, cruelty to animals, vulgarity and content considered offensive to human sensibilities.
Another provision concerns content that could affect India’s relations with foreign states. The revised framework asks the CBFC to consider whether a film could adversely affect friendly relations with other countries, alongside existing considerations involving public order and national security.
For filmmakers, the three UA markers create a more granular certification system between unrestricted exhibition and an adults-only certificate. A film considered unsuitable for children under seven, for example, can receive a UA 7+ marker rather than being treated in the same category as a film deemed unsuitable for viewers under 16.
The CBFC has also retained the S certificate, which restricts public exhibition to members of a specified profession or class of persons.
The new framework therefore gives the Board five principal audience-facing classifications — U, UA 7+, UA 13+, UA 16+ and A — while S remains available for films restricted to a specified professional or class audience.
