Starting a private limited company is the easiest form of setting up a business in this country. All you need to do is register it and then sit back and enjoy the advantages and benefits that it brings along. But nothing in life can be this easy. You have to be vigilant and cautious with the rules and regulations that come along with it.

The most important part of the rules and regulation surrounding a private limited company is the filing of the annual returns with the Registrar of Companies. It is very important that the returns are filed within the due date or else heavy fine and penalty can be imposed against the companies, which further increases with each passing day.

The term annual filing refers to the procedure of submitting the Annual Financial Accounts of the Company that is accompanied by the Annual Return of the Company and the Directors Report to the Registrar of Companies. It is important to note here that these filings are mandatory in nature and not simply directory. They have to filed annually without a failure or delay.

Annual e-filing Guidelines

The list of important documents that needs to be filed along with their 2020 dates are as follows:

1.      Annual Financial Accounts of the company.

2.      Board Meeting Records and Minutes of the meetings.

3.      Audit of Accounts of the Company by the Statutory Auditors.

4.      Directors Report

5.      Annual General Meeting

6.      Filing Form AOC-4 with the Registrar of Companies.

7.      Filing Form MGT-7 with the Registrar of Companies.

8.      Checking the Appointment of Auditors and filing Form ADT-1 for the respective appointments.

There are three different ways of e-filing that are not only easy but also extremely convenient:

1.      The simplest way is that the company representative can register himself as the user of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs portal and then go to the “Annual Filing Counter” link available and upload the e-forms there.

2.      Second way of doing this is with the help of a “Registrar’s Front Office”. The company representative can simply get all the necessary document ready, get them signed with the help of an authorized signatory, copy them and take them to the RFO. From there onwards the RFO can assist the representative in the uploading the documents.

3.      The third option is using the assistance of the Certified Filing Centers or better known as the CFCs. The CFCs charge a certain service amount and take care of the rest.

Important Points to Remember:

1.      In case of e-filing of the forms, the size of the form along with relevant documents should not exceed 2.5 mb.

2.      The process of annual filing is a mandatory procedure and should be complied with.

3.      Only the Chartered Accountant who is in practise can get the accounts of the Company audited.

4.      It is irrelevant whether the company is in business or not, they have to file the AOC-4 and MGT-7 forms with the Registrar of the Company.

5.      The Balance Sheet and the Profit and Loss statement are two different documents and have to be filed with their respective forms.

6.      The penalty for delay or failure in filing the AOC-4 and the MGT-7 forms will be imposed on a daily basis. The amount charged per day is Rs. 100.

7.      In case the Accounts and the Annual Returns are not filed for two consecutive years than the Registrar of the Companies will process to close the Company.

8.      According to Section 16 of the Companies Act, if the Accounts and the Annual Returns are not filed for 3 consecutive years, then the Registrar of the Companies can disqualify the Directors. 

9.      It is advisable to upload the attachment of Balance Sheet, Profit and Loss Account and the Annual Return in PDF form.

10.  The Companies should verify the MCA database with respect to the Authorised Capital and the Paid-up Capital.