In a significant move to ease compliance pressure, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has extended the deadline for companies to file their financial statements and annual returns for the financial year (FY) 2024–25 without additional fees until December 31, 2025, according to General Circular No. 06/2025 issued on October 17, 2025.
The extension was granted due to the deployment of revised e-forms on the MCA-21 Version 3 portal and requests from stakeholders.
The new deadline for filing financial statements and annual returns is December 31, 2025, with only normal fees applicable during this period.
This extension does not alter the statutory deadline for holding Annual General Meetings (AGMs). Companies should hold their AGM within the statutory deadline and file forms before December 31, 2025, to avoid extra fees. For more details, refer to the General Circular No. 06/2025.
The circular provides relaxation for the filing of following forms:
Form AOC-4 – Filing of financial statements
Form AOC-4 (CFS) – Consolidated financial statements
Form AOC-4 XBRL / Non-XBRL – For companies required to file in structured formats
Form MGT-7 / MGT-7A – Annual return for companies and small companies/OPCs respectively
Companies must take care that the ROC forms/returns are filed correctly and within the given date. Not adhering to the instructions can lead them to deal with various penalty charges and legal consequences.
Therefore, it is recommended that companies reach out to professionals to assist them in ensuring compliance with the filing needs.
A company cannot file a strike-off application unless it has filed overdue financial statements and overdue annual returns.
The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has notified an amendment to the Companies (Removal of Names of Companies from the Register of Companies) Rules, 2016.
The amendment provides more clarity on the filing requirements of overdue financials before applying for strike-off.
As per the amended norms, a company cannot file a strike-off application unless it has filed overdue financial statements under section 137 and overdue annual returns under section 92, up to the end of the financial year in which the company ceased to carry out its business operations.
Previously, the MCA had removed the requirement for up-to-date financial results and annual returns, vide the amendment introducing the Centre for Processing Accelerated Corporate Exit.
However, this requirement has now been reintroduced. The present amendment shall be effective from 10.05.2023.
Annual Filing (i.e. AOC-4 and MGT-7) is required to be filed before applying for Strike off.
As per the amendment made in rule 4 in May 2019 and amendment made on May 2023 “no application in Form No. STK-2 shall be filed by a company unless it has filed overdue returns in Form No. AOC-4 (Financial Statement) or AOC-4 XBRL, as the case may be, and Form No. MGT-7 (Annual Return), up to the end of the financial year in which the company ceased to carry its business operations”
Therefore, after amendment in Rule 4 w.e.f. 08th May, 2019 read with notification dated 10th May 2023, annual filing of AOC-4 and MGT-7 is mandatory up to the end of the financial year in which the company ceased to carry its business operations. In other words, Company is required to file AOC-4 and MGT-7 up to financial year till company carries its business and operations.
MINISTRY OF CORPORATE AFFAIRS
NOTIFICATION
New Delhi, the 10th May, 2023
G.S.R. 354(E).—In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-sections (1), (2) and (4) of section 248 read with section 469 of the Companies Act, 2013 (18 of 2013), the Central Government hereby makes the following rules further to amend the Companies (Removal of Names of Companies from the Register of Companies) Rules, 2016, namely:-
Short title and commencement.- (1) These rules may be called the Companies (Removal of Names of Companies from the Register of Companies) Second Amendment Rules, 2023.
(2) They shall come into force on the date of their publication in the Official Gazette.
In the Companies (Removal of Names of Companies from the Register of Companies) Rules, 2016 (hereafter referred to as the principal rules), in rule 4, in sub-rule (1), the following provisos shall be inserted, namely: –
“Provided that the company shall not file an application unless it has filed overdue financial statements under section 137 and overdue annual returns under section 92, up to the end of the financial year in which the company ceased to carry its business operations:
Provided further that in case a company intends to file the application after the action under subsection (1) of section 248 has been initiated by the Registrar, it shall file all pending financial statements under section 137 and all pending annual returns under section 92, before filing the application:
Provided also that once notice under sub-section (5) of section 248 has been issued by the Registrar for publication pursuant to the action initiated under sub-section (1) of section 248, a company shall not be allowed to file the application under this sub-rule.”.
[F. No. 1/28/2013-CL-V(Part-III)]
MANOJ PANDEY, Jt. Secy.
Note: The principal rules were published in the Gazette of India, Extraordinary, Part II, Section 3 of Subsection (i), vide number G.S.R. 1174(E), dated the 26th December, 2016 and amended, vide Notification numbers G.S.R 355(E), dated the 12th April, 2017, G.S.R 350(E), dated the 8th May, 2019, G.S.R 420(E), dated the 29th June, 2020, G.S.R. 436(E), dated the 9th June, 2022 G.S.R. 658(E), dated the 24th August, 2022 and G.S.R. 298(E), dated 17th April, 2023.
The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has again extended the due date of filing Annual Return and Financial Statement.
The MCA has again relaxed the levy of additional fees for filing of e-forms AOC-4, AOC-4 (CFS), AOC-4, AOC-4 XBRL AOC-4 Non-XBRL till 15.03.2022 and for filing of e-forms MGT-7/MGT-7A for the financial year ended on 31.03.2021 till 31.03.2022.
MGT-7 is an electronic form provided by the Ministry of Corporate affairs to all the corporates in order to fill their annual return details. This e-form is maintained by the Registrar of Companies via electronic mode and on the basis of the statement of correctness given by the company.
Form AOC 4 is used to file the financial statements for each financial year with the Registrar of Companies (ROC). In the case of consolidated financial statements, the company shall file the AOC 4.
Keeping in view the extension of timelines for audit/ tax audit and finalization of accounts under the Income Tax Act, 1961, this extension was very much required to synchronize with the inter-connected chain of events.
Accordingly, the ROC annual return due date for FY 2020-21 stands extended for companies, without payment of additional fee, as under:
MCA grants extension of time for filing Annual Financial Statements (AOC-4) and Annual Returns (MGT-7) without additional fees.
The Ministry of Corporate Affairs has recently granted the much-needed relief by extending the dates for filing of the 5 important e-forms with the removal of additional fees on the e-forms, namely Forms Annual Financial Statements -AOC-4, AOC-4 (CFS), AOC-4, AOC-4 XBRL AOC-4 Non-XBRL, and Annual Returns -MGT -7 / MGT -7A, filing to the Financial Year ended 31st March 2021 under the Companies Act 2013.
The extended due dates for filing of e-forms such as AOC-4, AOC-4 (CFS), AOC-4 XBRL, AOC-4 Non-XBRL are 15th February 2022 and for filing of e-forms such as MGT-7, and MGT-7A are 28th February 2022, for all stakeholders, without any additional fees.
The extension of due dates has been done as per the demand of the stakeholders for the filing of financial statements for the financial year ended 31.03.2021.
MCA relaxes levy of additional fees in filing of e-forms AOC-4, AOC-4 (CFS), AOC-4 XBRL and AOC-4 Non-XBRL for the financial year ended on 31.03.2020 under the Companies Act, 2013
Keeping in view of various requests received from stakeholders regarding relaxation on levy of additional fees for annual financial statement filings required to be done for the financial year ended on 31.03.2020, it has been decided that no additional fees shall be levied upto 15.02.2021 for the filing of e-forms AOC-4, AOC-4 (CFS), AOC-4 XBRL and AQC-4 Non-XBRL in respect of the financial year ended on 31.03.2020.
During the said period, only normal fees shall be payable for the filing of the aforementioned e-forms.
Earlier, the Annual General Meeting for adoption of the Audited Financial Statements, Directors Report and Auditors’ Report was extended by 3 months from September 30 to December 30, 2020.
Accordingly, the companies were required file Audited Financial Statements before January 31st, 2021.
This has now been further relaxed for another 15 days up to February 15, 2021, for filing of the eForms with Ministry of Corporate affairs (MCA).
In a major relief to companies, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) today extended the deadline for submission of financial results for the quarter, half-year, and financial year ended 30 June 2020 to September 15. The SEBI circular said that it has received representations requesting an extension of time for submission of financial results for the quarter or half year-ended 30 June 2020, due to the shortened time gap between the extended deadline for submission of financial results for the period-ended 31 March 2020 and the quarter or half year-ended June 30, 2020.
Under Regulation 33 of the SEBI (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015 (‘LODR Regulations’), a listed entity is required to submit its quarterly, half-yearly, or annual financial results within 45 days or 60 days, as applicable, from the end of each quarter, half year, or financial year.
Accordingly, listed entities were required to submit the financial results for the quarter, half-year-ended 30 June 2020 on or before 14 August 2020.
Earlier, the regulatory body had also extended the timeline for submission of financial results by listed entities for the quarter, half-year, or financial year-ended 31 March 2020 to 31 July 2020, due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
SEBI further said that today’s announcement shall come into force with immediate effect and advised all stock exchanges to bring the provisions of this circular to the notice of all listed entities.
It has asked the stock exchanges to bring the provisions of the circular to the notice of all listed entities and also disseminate on their websites.
Meanwhile, SEBI’s move to relax the deadlines is expected to give more time to companies already struggling with operations part amid the pandemic.
In-line with the efforts to provide relief to the sagging businesses, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman earlier announced to decriminalise some offences under the Companies Act.
The SEBI has also introduced new norms to give more fund-raising flexibility to stressed firms.
The amendments can help promoters get financial investors on board without losing control of the company.
“There is a need to create a regulator or authority for data business, which provides centralized regulation for all non-personal data exchanges,” the government-appointed panel said in the report. Such a regulator would be armed with legal powers to request data, supervise data sharing requests and settle disputes“.
A formal Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed today between the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) and the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) for data exchange between the two organizations.
The MoU was signed by Smt. Anu J. Singh, Pr. DGIT (Systems), CBDT, and Smt. MadhabiPuri Buch, Whole Time Member, SEBI in the presence of senior officers from both the organizations via video conference.
The MoU will facilitate the sharing of data and information between SEBI and CBDT on an automatic and regular basis.
In addition to regular exchange of data, CBDT and SEBI will also exchange with each other, on request and suo moto basis, any information available in their respective databases, for the purpose of carrying out scrutiny, inspection, investigation and prosecution,” SEBI said in a statement.
In addition to regular exchange of data, SEBI and CBDT will also exchange with each other, on request and Suo moto basis, any information available in their respective databases, for the purpose of carrying out their functions under various laws.
The MoU comes into force from the date it was signed and is an ongoing initiative of CBDT and SEBI, who are already collaborating through various existing mechanisms.
A Data Exchange Steering Group has also been constituted for the initiative, which will meet periodically to review the data exchange status and take steps to further improve the effectiveness of the data-sharing mechanism.
The MoU marks the beginning of a new era of cooperation and synergy between SEBI and CBDT.
In the past, SEBI has cracked on several entities who had manipulated the stock prices of listed companies. The regulator had observed in the penny stock scam that promoters and market operators were using the stock exchange platform to evade taxes and launder black money.
