Simplified filings: RoC approval not required for most corporate actions

The govt has introduced a new system called "file and forget," which is part of its ongoing revamp of the statutory filing website, MCA21

The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has simplified the process of corporate reporting. MCA has eliminated the need for approval by Registrars of Companies (RoCs) in most cases. This enables companies to fulfil their reporting obligations with an online acknowledgement, as two individuals aware of the development said, according to a report by Mint.

 

According to the report, the government has introduced a new system called "file and forget," which is part of its ongoing revamp of the statutory filing website, MCA21. This allows companies to fulfil most of their statutory filing obligations with an online acknowledgement, which will be considered equivalent to approval by RoCs.

 

Companies must file nearly 100 forms as part of the Companies Act's compliance essentials on various transactions and filing obligations related to statutory requirements. Of these 100 forms, 56 have been migrated to a new web-based version in January, and an additional 30 web-based forms will be launched soon, according to the report.

 

The report quoted someone familiar with the developments: "Among these, the majority of the critical ones, such as allotment of securities or shares, are now out of the RoC approval requirement. Online acknowledgement is enough, and they are taken on record under an auto-approval process. Earlier, barring a few, most forms filed by companies used to go to RoCs for their approval." The person did not want to be named.

 

In addition, the report added that the ministry is also setting up a centralised processing centre for corporate filings under the Companies Act, similar to the income tax department's centralised processing centre in Bengaluru.

 

The new system is reported to have improved security features, including two-factor authentication for company incorporation and other filings. It prevents an individual from maintaining multiple login credentials. This has caused inconvenience to some professionals and has prompted finance and corporate minister Nirmala Sitharaman to set up a special team to look into the grievances and monitor them daily, the report said.
 

Quoting another person familiar with the development, the report added that changes in the authentication process for making statutory filings would help check attempts to register shell companies with dummy directors. "Web forms ensure real-time validation of data keyed in by matching them with the MCA database. If something is wrong, you cannot proceed," the person told ET.