This free tool holds 1,301 NIC 2008 codes across 21 sectors. You can search by business activity, browse by sector, or filter by category, so you can pick the right code for your Udyam / MSME Registration in seconds. New to NIC codes? Read our complete guide to NIC 2008 first.
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The National Industrial Classification (NIC) code is a 5-digit number that identifies the kind of economic activity a business is engaged in. NIC was developed by the Central Statistical Organisation (CSO), Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation (MOSPI), Government of India, and is harmonised with the United Nations' International Standard Industrial Classification (ISIC). For a deeper explanation of the hierarchy, common selection mistakes, and how NIC codes affect scheme eligibility, see our complete guide to NIC codes for MSME registration.
NIC 2008 — the version used by the Udyam Registration portal — has a five-level hierarchy:
The NIC code you select on the Udyam portal:
Picking an inaccurate NIC code can disqualify you from sector-specific benefits or trigger reclassification later. Use this finder to make sure you select the most accurate sub-class for each of your business activities.
Yes. The Udyam portal lets you add multiple NIC codes — one primary activity (your main revenue source) and any number of secondary activities. If your business does both manufacturing and trading, for example, you'd add an NIC code for each. We recommend listing the activity with the highest turnover share as primary.
NIC 2008 groups every business activity into 21 sectors, lettered A to U. The first two digits of a NIC code are its division, and each division sits inside one sector. Use this table to see where your business falls, then open that sector in the finder above.
| Section | Sector | Divisions | Codes in this tool |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing | 01 to 03 | 122 |
| B | Mining and Quarrying | 05 to 09 | 53 |
| C | Manufacturing | 10 to 33 | 610 |
| D | Electricity, Gas, Steam and Air-Conditioning Supply | 35 | 13 |
| E | Water Supply; Sewerage, Waste Management and Remediation Activities | 36 to 39 | 11 |
| F | Construction | 41 to 43 | 39 |
| G | Wholesale and Retail Trade; Repair of Motor Vehicles and Motorcycles | 45 to 47 | 134 |
| H | Transport and Storage | 49 to 53 | 50 |
| I | Accommodation and Food Service Activities | 55 to 56 | 17 |
| J | Information and Communication | 58 to 63 | 54 |
| K | Financial and Insurance Activities | 64 to 66 | 22 |
| L | Real Estate Activities | 68 | 2 |
| M | Professional, Scientific and Technical Activities | 69 to 75 | 26 |
| N | Administrative and Support Service Activities | 77 to 82 | 42 |
| O | Public Administration and Defence; Compulsory Social Security | 84 | 11 |
| P | Education | 85 | 26 |
| Q | Human health and social work activities | 86 to 88 | 16 |
| R | Arts, entertainment and recreation | 90 to 93 | 18 |
| S | Other Service Activities | 94 to 96 | 31 |
| T | Activities of Households as Employers; Undifferentiated | 97 to 98 | 3 |
| U | Activities of Extraterritorial Organisations and Bodies | 99 | 1 |
Manufacturing is the largest sector with 610 codes, which is why it helps to search by product name there. In total this tool holds 1,301 codes, taken from the official NIC 2008 document.
These are the codes for some common small businesses. Each one is taken from the NIC 2008 list. Read the full description in the finder before you choose, because two similar businesses can sit under different codes.
| Business | NIC code | NIC 2008 description |
|---|---|---|
| Kirana or general store | 47110 | Retail sale in non-specialized stores with food, beverages or tobacco predominating |
| Readymade garment shop | 47711 | Retail sale of readymade garments, hosiery goods and other clothing |
| Tailoring | 14105 | Custom tailoring |
| Restaurant | 56101 | Restaurants without bars |
| Fast food stall or cafeteria | 56102 | Cafeterias, fast-food restaurants and other food preparation in market stalls |
| Catering | 56210 | Event catering |
| Software development | 62011 | Writing, modifying and testing of computer programs for a client |
| Website design | 62012 | Web-page designing |
| Online seller | 47912 | Retail sale via e-commerce |
| Beauty parlour or salon | 96020 | Hairdressing and other beauty treatment |
| Photography studio | 74201 | Commercial and consumer photograph production |
| Advertising agency | 73100 | Advertising |
| Tuition or coaching | 85491 | Academic tutoring services |
| Accounting and bookkeeping | 69201 | Accounting, bookkeeping and auditing activities |
| Management consultancy | 70200 | Management consultancy activities |
| Travel agency | 79110 | Travel agency activities |
| Taxi service | 49224 | Taxi operation |
| Goods transport by truck | 49231 | Motorised road freight transport |
| Building contractor | 41001 | Construction of buildings carried out on own-account basis or on a fee or contract basis |
| Wooden furniture making | 31001 | Manufacture of furniture made of wood |
| Car garage | 45200 | Maintenance and repair of motor vehicles |
| Doctor’s clinic | 86201 | Medical practice activities |
| Solar power generation | 35105 | Electric power generation using solar energy |
| Dairy farm | 01412 | Production of milk from cows or buffaloes |
A shop that only sells goods takes a retail code from division 47. A unit that makes the same goods takes a manufacturing code from divisions 10 to 33. If you do both, add both codes.
The Udyam form does not ask you to type a code. It asks you to pick it in three steps:
Before these three steps the form asks whether your main activity is manufacturing or services. Trading is listed under services. If you already know your 5 digit code from this finder, the three steps take a few seconds because the first two digits give you the division and the first four give you the class.
You can add, remove or change NIC codes after your certificate is issued. This is done by updating your Udyam Registration, and the Udyam number stays the same. See our guide on adding a second business activity, or use the Udyam update service if you want us to file the change for you.