Do I need to sign a cancelled cheque?
I was wondering if I really need to sign a cancelled cheque whenever submitting it to authorities who require it. The answer is 'NO'. The modern cheques issued by the banks carry all the relevant information viz. your bank account number, bank name, full address - and that is more than enough information. I think this is an important information that everyone needs to know.
I'm in the process of withdrawing funds from my dormant EPF account and the process requires submitting a cancelled cheque along with the mandatory forms. I wondered what purpose does a cancelled cheque serve and some research on the Internet revealed that it's nothing but a confirmation that you hold an account with the bank. Not sure if it's a good way to verify; but that's what the PF department wants.
How to properly cancel a cheque?
Draw two parallel lines, separated by a distance of about 1.5 to 2 cm extending from the bottom left corner to the upper right corner of the cheque. Write in all caps " C A N C E L L E D " in between these two lines - and you are done! No need to sign it.
Hope you find this information useful. If you have questions - you may ask them below. I'm not an authority; but will try to offer as much help I can.
