Vachharajani and Associates

MCA extends Annual filing date without addl. fees

2019-10-29T09:01:00.001-07:00

MCA extends relaxation of Addl. Fees till 30th June, 2016

2016-06-03T06:16:00.003-07:00

MCA announced relaxation of additional fees and extension of time and filing of e-Forms by the Companies under Companies Act, 2013 and for filing of Annual Return (Form 11) by the LLPs under the Limited Liability Partnership Act, 2008. Read more at:

http://www.mca.gov.in/Ministry/pdf/GeneralCircular07_31052016.pdf

MCA notifies constitution of NCLT & NCLAT in place of CLB from 1st June, 2016

2016-06-03T06:06:00.000-07:00

The Ministry of Corporate Affairs has issued notification for constitution of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) and National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) with effect from today i.e. 1st June, 2016. Hon’ble Justice S.J. Mukhopadhaya, Judge (Retd.), Supreme Court of India has joined as the Chairperson of the NCLAT and Hon’ble Justice M.M.Kumar, Judge (Retd.) has joined as the President of the NCLT.

With the constitution of the NCLT, the Company Law Board constituted under the Companies Act, 1956 stands dissolved.

Initially, NCLT will have eleven Benches, two at New Delhi and one each at Ahmedabad, Allahabad, Bengluru, Chandigarh, Chennai, Guwahati, Hyderabad,Kolkata and Mumbai.

The detailed notification can be accessed at the links below:

http://www.mca.gov.in/Ministry/pdf/Notification_02062016_II.pdf

http://www.mca.gov.in/Ministry/pdf/Notification_02062016_I.pdf

MCA extends the date for Addl. Fees waiver till 10.06.2016

2016-05-17T05:56:00.001-07:00

MCA has extended the period for which the one time waiver of additional fees

is applicoble to all e-forms which are due for filing by companies between the 25th

March 2016 upto 31st May 2016 as well as extend the last date for filing such

documents and availing the benefit of waiver to 10.06.2016. To download the Circular click below:

http://www.mca.gov.in/Ministry/pdf/General_circular_16052016.pdf

Why-the-MCA21-portal-is-a-pain-to-use

2016-04-28T10:26:00.001-07:00

http://www.livemint.com/Companies/RaT3ci2PpOjCKazJSdnakN/Why-the-MCA21-portal-is-a-pain-to-use.html?facet=print

MCA - FAQs on filings

2016-04-18T23:08:00.001-07:00

MCA released 8 FAQs on various forms:

e.g.
Which eforms can I file as attachments with GNL-2?

Annual filing eforms under the Companies Act, 1956 viz. 23AC/ACA, 23AC/ACA-XBRL, 20-B, 21-A, Form 66, I-XBRL, A-XBRL, 23B, 23C and 23D would be made available shortly for filing purposes. Users are requested not to file these forms as attachments with GNL-2 eforms.

Pls visit the following links for rest of FAQs:

http://www.mca.gov.in/Ministry/pdf/Stakeholder_FAQ_18042016.pdf

MCA - Companies Amendment Bill 2016 goes to Standing Committee

2016-04-18T06:44:00.002-07:00

The Bill seeking to make further amendments to the Companies Act has been referred to the Parliamentary Standing Committee, which is expected to prepare its report within three months. Corporate Affairs Minister Arun Jaitley had introduced the Companies (Amendment) Bill, 2016 on March 16 in the Lok Sabha. After taking into consideration suggestions made by a high level panel on further possible changes to the law, the government came up with the Bill as part of larger efforts to address difficulties faced by stakeholders and improve the the ease of doing business in the country. Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan has referred the Bill to the Standing Committee on Finance, which is chaired by senior Congress leader Veerappa Moily. The Speaker has referred the Companies (Amendment) Bill, 2016, as introduced in the Lok Sabha to the Standing Committee on Finance for examination and report within three months, according to the latest Lok Sabha bulletin. This would be the second time that Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government would be amending the Companies Act, 2013 which was passed during the previous UPA regime.

Read more at: http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/economy/companies-amendment-bill-goes-to-standing-committee_6274281.html?utm_source=ref_article

MCA - Relaxation in Addl. Fees .will be effective from 18.04.2016

2016-04-14T05:50:00.002-07:00

The relaxation of additional fee waiver vide General Circular No.03/2016 dated 12th April 2016 is likely to be implemented in production by 18th April, 2016(Monday) . Users may kindly visit the portal from time to time for confirmation/updates in this regard and plan their filings accordingly.

MCA - Information on EForms on new portal w.e.f. 27.03.2016

2016-03-24T10:10:00.001-07:00

The Company e-Forms are being revised on MCA portal effective 27th March 2016. You are advised to download the latest version of forms from ‘Company Forms Download’ page on the MCA portal. The previous version of Company e-forms will not be compatible with the new MCA21 portal.

The existing Company Forms have been revised.

1. The following eForm will not be available in the new MCA21 portal temporarily.

CRA-4 and Refund forms are expected to be made available by 11th April 2016 and 25th April, 2016 respectively.

The timelines for 23 C, 23 D, I-XBRL and A-XBRL will be confirmed subsequently. a. CRA 4 - Form for filing Cost Audit Report with the Central Government. b. 23 C - Form of application to the Central Government for appointment of cost auditor. c. 23 D - Information by cost auditor to Central Government d. I-XBRL - Form for filing XBRL document in respect of cost audit report and other documents with the Central Government e. A-XBRL - Form for filing XBRL document in respect of compliance report and other documents with the Central Government f. Refund - Application for requesting refund of fees paid.

2. The following new e-forms will come into effect immediately :

a. CHG-8 (previously attachment) b. INC-12 (previously attachment) c. Investor Complaint eform d. Serious Complaint eform

3. The following new e-forms will come into effect from the date of notification(to be notified later):

a. IEPF-1 - Statement of amounts credited to Investor Education and Protection Fund b. IEPF-2 - Statement of unclaimed or unpaid amounts c. IEPF-3 - Statement of shares and unclaimed or unpaid dividend not transferred to the Investor Education and Protection Fund d. IEPF-4 - Statement of shares transferred to the Investor Education and Protection Fund e. IEPF-5 - Application to the Authority for an order for payment of dividend etc. out of the Fund f. IEPF-6 - Statement of shares and unclaimed or unpaid amounts to be transferred to the Investor Education and Protection Fund

4. The following eForms should be filed as attachments with GNL-2 from the date of notification (to be notified later):

a. 23 AC - Form for filing balance sheet and other documents with the Registrar b. 23 AC- XBRL - Form for filing XBRL document in respect of balance sheet and other documents with the Registrar c. 23 ACA - Form for filing Profit and Loss account and other documents with the Register d. 23 ACA-XBRL - Form for filing XBRL document in respect of Profit and Loss account and other documents with the Registrar e. 20B - Form for filing annual return by a company having a share capital with the Registrar f. Form 66 (Until FY 2014) - Form for submission of compliance certificate with the Registrar g. 21 A - Particulars of annual return for the company not having share capital h. 23 B - Information to the Registrar by company for appointment of auditor

5. Kindly note a new Service ‘Upload Details of Security Holders/Debenture Holders/Depositors’ has been introduced for uploading relevant details of Security Holders/Debenture Holders/Depositors for forms MGT-7, PAS-3 and DPT-4 in excel instead of submitting CD to concerned RoC office. These forms will not be approved if details are not uploaded using this service.

6. The following eforms are withdrawn : a. 1INV - Statement of amounts credited to investor education and protection fund. b. 5INV - Statement of unclaimed and unpaid amounts. c. Investor Complaint Form – a new version has been released.

Central Registration Centre to process Incorporation forms

2016-03-24T00:29:00.001-07:00

[To be published in the Gazette of India, Extraordinary, Part II, Section 3, Sub-Section (ii)]

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF CORPORATE AFFAIRS

Notification

New Delhi, 23^rd March, 2016

S.O. (E) In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-sections (1) and (2) of section 396 of the Companies Act, 2013 (18 of 2013) (hereinafter referred to as the Act), the Central Registration Centre (herein after referred to CRC) established vide notification number. S.O. 218(E) dated 22 ^nd January 2016 shall also exercise functional jurisdiction of processing and disposal of e-forms and all related matters pertaining to registration of companies under section 7, 8 and 366 of the Companies Act, 2013 having territorial jurisdiction all over India.

2. The CRC shall process forms pertaining to registration of companies i.e. e-forms (INC-2, INC-7 and INC-29 along with linked forms INC-22, DIR-12 and URC-1 and any other forms as may be notified by the Central Government) filed along with the prescribed fee as provided in the Companies (Registration of Offices and Fees) Rules, 2014 .

3. The jurisdiction, processing and approval of name or names proposed in e-Form number INC-29 hitherto exercised by the respective Registrar of companies having jurisdiction over incorporation of companies under the Companies Act, 2013 and the rules made thereunder shall forthwith be exercised by Registrar, CRC.

4. The jurisdictional Registrar of companies, other than Registrar CRC, within whose jurisdiction the registered office of the company is situated shall continue to have jurisdiction over the companies incorporated by the Registrar, CRC under the Companies Act, 2013 for all other provisions of the Act and the rules made thereunder, which may be relevant after incorporation.

5. This notification shall come into force from 28^th March,2016.

[F.No. A-42011/03/2016.-Ad.11]

(Manoj Kumar)

Joint Secretary to the Govt. of India

MCA INFORMATION

2016-03-18T22:59:00.001-07:00

MCA - INFORMATION

In our continuous endeavor to serve you better, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs will launch a new MCA21 portal for Company users.

The new portal is likely to be launched on 27th March 2016. To facilitate implementation of the new portal, the offline payment methods – Challan, NEFT, Pay Later – will be disabled for Company services effective Saturday, 19th March 2016. Stakeholders are advised to make use of online payment methods until the new portal is launched.

Budget 2016: Companies Act to be amended for greater ease of business

2016-03-01T07:22:00.002-08:00

A bill to amend the Companies Act will be introduced in the current session of Parliament for greater ease of doing business, including for facilitating registration of a new company in just one day, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said on Monday.

Presenting the Union Budget for 2016-17, Jaitley said the proposed bill to amend the Companies Act 2013 will remove the difficulties and impediments to ease of doing business.

PPF stays on exemption list, only EPF interest to attract tax

2016-03-01T07:05:00.001-08:00

Budget 2016: PPF stays on exemption list, only EPF interest to attract tax http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/wealth/tax/budget-2016-ppf-stays-on-exemption-list-only-epf-interest-to-attract-tax/articleshow/51206058.cms via The Economic Times App(Download Now): http://ecoti.in/etapps

MCA - Notice inviting Comments on the Report of the Companies Law Committee dated 1st February, 2016

2016-02-04T08:08:00.002-08:00

The Ministry of Corporate Affairs had, on 4th June, 2015, constituted a Companies Law Committee (CLC) to make recommendations on issues arising from the implementation of the Companies Act, 2013 and on the recommendations received from the Bankruptcy Law Reforms Committee, the High Level Committee on CSR, the Law Commission and other agencies. The CLC has submitted its Report to the Government on 1st February, 2016 which has been placed on the website of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA).

The report is available at the following link

http://www.mca.gov.in/Ministry/pdf/Report_Companies_Law _Committee_01022016.pdf

It has been decided to invite comments/suggestions on the said Report from all the stakeholders through an online facility made available on the MCA website upto 15th February, 2016. It is requested that comments/suggestions on the Report may be provided through such facility by 15th February, 2016. Comments/suggestions should be with specific reference to one or more paragraphs of the Report of the CLC and should be submitted through the online facility only. Suggestions not related to the paragraphs will not be taken on record. In order to avoid repetition/duplication of comments/suggestions, the members/ patrons of the Professional Institutes/ Councils/ Industry Chambers should route their comments/ suggestions through respective Institute/Council/Chamber.

Foreign Direct Investment –Reporting under FDI Scheme, Mandatory filing of form ARF, FCGPR and FCTRS on e-Biz platform and discontinuation of physical filing from February 8, 2016

2016-02-01T10:50:00.001-08:00

RBI/2015-16/303
A.P. (DIR Series) Circular No. 40

February 01, 2016

All Category - I Authorised Dealer Banks

Madam / Sir,

Foreign Direct Investment –Reporting under FDI Scheme, Mandatory filing of
form ARF, FCGPR and FCTRS on e-Biz platform and discontinuation of
physical filing from February 8, 2016

Attention of Authorised Dealers Category-I (AD Category - I) banks is invited to the provisions of the Foreign Exchange Management (Transfer or Issue of Security by a Person Resident outside India) Regulations 2000, notified by the Reserve Bank vide Notification No. FEMA 20/2000-RB, dated 3rd May 2000, as amended from time to time. Attention of AD Category – I banks is also invited to A.P. (DIR Series) Circular No.102 dated February 11, 2014; A.P. (DIR Series) Circular No.6 dated July 18, 2014; A.P.(DIR Series) Circular no.77 dated February 12, 2015; A.P.(DIR Series) Circular No. 95 dated April 17, 2015 andA.P.(DIR Series) Circular No.9 August 21, 2015.

2. With a view to promoting the ease of reporting of transactions related to Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), the Reserve Bank of India, under the aegis of the e-Biz project of the Government of India has enabled online filing of the following returns with the Reserve Bank of India viz.

- Advance Remittance Form (ARF) which is used by the companies to report the FDI inflows to RBI;

- FCGPR Form which a company submits to RBI for reporting the issue of eligible instruments to the overseas investor against the above mentioned FDI inflow; and

- FCTRS Form which is submitted to RBI for transfer of securities between resident and person outside India.

3. At present both the options, i.e. online filing and physical filing of abovementioned forms, are available to the users.

4. Based on the experience it has been decided that beginning February 8, 2016 the physical filing of forms ARF, FCGPR and FC-TRS will be discontinued and forms submitted in online mode only through e-Biz portal will be accepted.

5. AD Category-I banks may bring the contents of this circular to the notice of their customers / constituents concerned. They are advised to extend necessary guidance/ assistance to their constituents for uploading the abovementioned forms on the e-Biz platform.

6. The directions contained in this circular have been issued under section 10(4) and 11(1) of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), 1999 (42 of 1999) and are without prejudice to permissions / approvals, if any, required under any other law.

Yours faithfully,

(B. P. Kanungo)
Principal Chief General Manager
http://www.rbi.org.in/scripts/NotificationUser.aspx?Id=10248&Mode=0

MCA allows vague, not related to object/ Activity/ person, misleading impression giving name application

2016-01-25T22:55:00.001-08:00

As per Companies incorporation Rules, 2014 following names which were earlier not allowed to be applied or considered undesired for incorporation of Companies under Companies Act, 2013 are now allowed to be applied vide relaxation given vide Notification No. G.S.R. (E).- dated 22.01.2016. 1) it is not in consonance with the principal objects of the company as set out in the memorandum of association; Provided that every name need not be necessarily indicative of the objects of the company, but when there is some indication of objects in the name, then it shall be in conformity with the objects mentioned in the memorandum; 2) the proposed name is vague or an abbreviated name such as ‘ABC limited’ or ‘23K limited’ or ‘DJMO’ Ltd: abbreviated name based on the name of the promoters will not be allowed. For example:- BMCD Limited representing first alphabet of the name of the promoter like Bharat, Mahesh, Chandan and David: 3) it is intended or likely to produce a misleading impression regarding the scope or scale of its activities which would be beyond the resources at its disposal: 4) If any company has changed its activities which are not reflected in its name, it shall change its name in line with its activities within a period of six months from the change of activities after complying with all the provisions as applicable to change of name. 5) In case the key word used in the name proposed is the name of a person other than the name(s) of the promoters or their close blood relatives, No objection from such other person(s) shall be attached with the application for name. In case the name includes the name of relatives, the proof of relation shall be attached and it shall be mandatory to furnish the significance and proof thereof for use of coined words made out of the name of the promoters or their relatives.

Ministry of Corporate Affairs sets up Central Registration Centre (CRC) on Republic Day

2016-01-25T11:52:00.001-08:00

Press Information Bureau
Government of India
Ministry of Corporate Affairs
25-January-2016 11:54 IST

Ministry of Corporate Affairs sets up Central Registration Centre (CRC) on Republic Day

The Ministry of Corporate Affairs has taken the initiative in Government Process Re-engineering (GPR) and launched the Central Registration Centre (CRC), on the occasion of Republic Day 2016, with the specific objective of providing speedy incorporation related services within stipulated time frames which are in line with international best practices.

The GPR involves a three pronged approach of further automating some of the approval processes by utilizing advanced software tools & engines, rationalising and modifying some of the rules and engaging professionals to expedite the process of manual scrutiny.

In the first phase, the CRC will process applications for name availability (INC-1 e-forms) submitted on line across the country and endeavour to process these by the end of next working day. Operations of the CRC will formally commence w.e.f. 27 January 2016 and more services will be rolled out progressively.

The GPR exercise is in pursuance of the ministry’s objective of providing greater “Ease of Doing Business” to corporates and is expected to result in speedier processing of incorporation related applications, uniformity in application of rules, eradicating discretion. It will also be supplemented by intensive monitoring aimed at providing timely approvals.

*****

DSM/MAM/KA

Grace period of 5 days to deposit PF removed

2016-01-10T02:53:00.001-08:00

The EPFO has issued EPF Circular No. WSU/9(1)2013/Settlement/35031 dt. 8 Jan., 2016, removing the grace period of 5 days for depositing PF and hence Feb., 2016 onwards the due date shall be 15th instead of 20th. This will have impact on Tax audit report

The Companies (Meeting of Board and its Powers) Second Amendment Rules, 2015

2015-12-19T06:48:00.001-08:00

The Companies (Meeting of Board and its Powers) Second Amendment Rules, 2015

Central Government vide Notification dated 14.12.2015, has inserted a new rule after Rule 6 of The Companies (Meeting of Board and its powers) Rules,2014 as:-

"Rule 6A :- omnibus approval for related party transactions on annual basis "

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MCA notifies 14th December, 2015 as the date on which Sec 143(12) & 177(4)(iv) for fraud reporting by Auditors shall come into effect

2015-12-18T04:07:00.000-08:00

MCA vide Notification No S.O. 3388(E), has appointed the 14th day of December, 2015 as the date on which the provisions of Section 13 and 14 of the Companies (Amendment) Act, 2015 shall come into force. The said Sections are as under:

13. In section 143 of the principal Act, for sub-section (12), the following sub-section
shall be substituted, namely:—

“(12) Notwithstanding anything contained in this section, if an auditor of a
company in the course of the performance of his duties as auditor, has reason to
believe that an offence of fraud involving such amount or amounts as may be
prescribed, is being or has been committed in the company by its officers or employees,
the auditor shall report the matter to the Central Government within such time and in
such manner as may be prescribed:

Provided that in case of a fraud involving lesser than the specified amount, the
auditor shall report the matter to the audit committee constituted under section 177 or
to the Board in other cases within such time and in such manner as may be
prescribed:

Provided further that the companies, whose auditors have reported frauds
under this sub-section to the audit committee or the Board but not reported to the
Central Government, shall disclose the details about such frauds in the Board's report
in such manner as may be prescribed.”.

14. In section 177 of the principal Act, in sub-section (4), in clause (iv), the following
proviso shall be inserted, namely:—

"Provided that the Audit Committee may make omnibus approval for related
party transactions proposed to be entered into by the company subject to such
conditions as may be prescribed;".

MCA clarifies that 30 Dec 2015, the extended last day for annual filing forms will not be extended further

2015-12-15T05:21:00.003-08:00

MCA has issued the following Notice on its website.

The last date for annual filing forms is 30 Dec 2015 and no further extension would be accorded after this date. All stakeholders are requested to complete their filing accordingly, without waiting for the last date to avoid last minute rush.

No proposal to relax e-filing norms under Companies Act : Government

2015-12-10T02:16:00.001-08:00

There is no proposal before the government to relax rules pertaining to electronic filing of documents under the Companies Act, Parliament was informed today.
Currently, the Corporate Affairs Ministry provides end-to-end e-governance services on its MCA 21 portal, which occasionally faces software and hardware issues.

To address this, the ministry has taken several steps, including a dedicated e-governance division which intensively monitors not just performance of MCA 21, but work status at various registrar offices, timely resolution of stakeholder complaints and positive consideration of any suggestions.

"There is no proposal before the ministry for relaxing the rules pertaining to electronic filing of documents," Corporate Affairs Minister Arun Jaitley said in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha.

He was replying to a query whether the ministry is intending to relax the existing set of stringent regulations in this regard.

Govt starts process for selecting NCLT members

2015-12-04T03:03:00.001-08:00

The government has started the process for selecting members for the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT).

The tribunal, to be set up under the Companies Act, 2013, will replace the Company Law Board (CLB).

In a written reply to the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday, Corporate Affairs Minister Arun Jaitley said the process for constitution of NCLT has already been initiated, with "the selection process for (judicial as well as technical) members of NCLT and technical members of National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) having commenced".

Steps have also been taken to make provisions for infrastructure and other supportive requirements for the tribunals, he added.

MCA modifies certain Eforms from 2 Dec. 2015

2015-12-01T22:58:00.001-08:00

MCA - Version of following Forms are modified w.e.f 02 Dec 2015:-

DIR-3 (Application for allotment of Director Identification Number);DIR-6 (Intimation of change in particulars of Director to be given to the Central Government);FC-4 (Annual Return of a Foreign company);MGT-14 (Filing of Resolutions and agreements to the Registrar);INC-7 [Application for Incorporation of Comapny (Other than OPC)];INC-22 (Notice of situation or change of situation of registered office);SH-7 (Notice to Registrar of any alteration of share capital);INC-29 (Integrated Incorporation Form);DIR-12 (Particulars of appointment of Directors and the key managerial personnel and the changes among them);CHG-1 (Application for registration of creation, modification of charge (other than those related to debentures)) andForm 23ACA (Form for filing Profit and Loss account and other documents with the Registrar)

ICSI issues Guidance Note on Annual Return

2015-12-01T11:44:00.001-08:00

ICSI has come out with revised Guidance Note on Annual Return on 30th November 2015.

The same may be downloaded from
http://www.icsi.edu/Docs/Website/Guidance_note_Annual%20Return_301115.pdf