ROC E-Forms under the Companies Act, 2013: MCA V3 Filing Guide
Companies registered in India make statutory filings with the Registrar of Companies (ROC) through the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) electronic filing system. Most company forms are now presented as online MCA V3 webforms, rather than the older downloadable e-form workflow.
How ROC e-Forms Are Organised
Forms under the Companies Act, 2013 use an alpha-numeric naming system linked to the subject of the relevant Chapter. Common prefixes include INC for incorporation matters, PAS for prospectus and allotment, SH for share capital, CHG for charges, MGT for management and administration, AOC for accounts, ADT for auditors, DIR for directors, MR for managerial personnel, MSC for dormant companies and FC for foreign companies.
Common Current ROC / MCA Company Forms
| Form / service | Main purpose | Typical legal area |
|---|---|---|
| SPICe+ (INC-32) | Integrated incorporation application for a company, including linked incorporation services. | Company incorporation |
| INC-3 | Consent of nominee of a One Person Company. | OPC |
| INC-4 | Change in member or nominee of a One Person Company. | OPC |
| INC-6 | Application relating to conversion of a company as prescribed under the incorporation rules. | Conversion |
| INC-18 | Application to the Regional Director for conversion of a Section 8 company into another kind of company. | Section 8 company |
| INC-20A | Declaration for commencement of business by companies to which Section 10A applies. | Commencement of business |
| INC-22 | Notice of situation or change of situation of registered office. | Registered office |
| INC-23 | Application to the Regional Director for prescribed changes in registered office jurisdiction. | Registered office shift |
| INC-24 | Application for approval of change of company name where approval is required. | Company name |
| INC-27 | Conversion between permitted classes of company, as applicable. | Conversion |
| INC-28 | Notice of an order of Court, Tribunal or other competent authority. | Orders / restructuring |
| PAS-3 | Return of allotment of securities. | Share / securities allotment |
| SH-7 | Notice to Registrar of alteration of share capital. | Share capital |
| SH-8 | Letter of offer in relation to buy-back. | Buy-back |
| SH-11 | Return in respect of buy-back of securities. | Buy-back |
| CHG-1 | Registration of creation or modification of charge other than specified debenture-related charges. | Charges |
| CHG-4 | Particulars of satisfaction of charge. | Charges |
| CHG-6 | Notice of appointment or cessation of receiver or manager. | Charges / receiver |
| CHG-9 | Registration of creation or modification of charge relating to debentures and prescribed rectification matters. | Debenture charges |
| MGT-6 | Return relating to declaration of beneficial interest in shares. | Beneficial ownership |
| MGT-7 / MGT-7A | Annual return; MGT-7A applies to prescribed small companies and One Person Companies. | Annual compliance |
| MGT-14 | Filing of resolutions and agreements required to be registered under Section 117. | Resolutions |
| AOC-4 | Filing of financial statements and related documents with the Registrar. | Annual financial filing |
| AOC-4 CFS | Filing of consolidated financial statements and related documents. | Consolidated accounts |
| AOC-4 XBRL | Filing of financial statements in XBRL by companies covered by the applicable rules. | XBRL filing |
| ADT-1 | Notice to Registrar regarding appointment of auditor. | Auditor |
| ADT-3 | Notice relating to resignation of auditor. | Auditor |
| DIR-3 | Application for allotment of Director Identification Number where permitted. | DIN |
| DIR-3 KYC / Web KYC | Annual KYC compliance for DIN holders, subject to applicable MCA requirements. | Director KYC |
| DIR-6 | Intimation of change in particulars of a director / DIN holder. | Director particulars |
| DIR-11 | Notice of resignation of a director to the Registrar. | Director resignation |
| DIR-12 | Particulars of appointment, cessation or change relating to directors and key managerial personnel. | Directors / KMP |
| MR-1 | Return of appointment of managing director, whole-time director or manager. | Managerial personnel |
| CRA-2 | Intimation of appointment of cost auditor by the company to the Central Government. | Cost audit |
| MSC-1 | Application to Registrar for obtaining dormant-company status. | Dormant company |
| MSC-3 | Return of dormant company. | Dormant company |
| MSC-4 | Application for obtaining active-company status from dormant status. | Dormant company |
| FC-1 | Information to be filed by a foreign company after establishing a place of business in India. | Foreign company |
| FC-2 | Return of alteration in documents or particulars filed by a foreign company. | Foreign company |
| FC-3 | Annual accounts and list of places of business in India, as applicable to foreign companies. | Foreign company |
| FC-4 | Annual return of a foreign company. | Foreign company |
| GNL-1 / GNL-2 | General filing applications or documents with the Registrar / MCA where the prescribed service applies. | General filings |
| RD-1 | Application to the Regional Director for matters routed through the prescribed RD service. | Regional Director |
| URC-1 | Application for registration of an existing entity under Section 366. | Registration under Part I, Chapter XXI |
Annual ROC Filings
Two of the most important recurring company filings are the filing of financial statements under Section 137 and the annual return under Section 92 of the Companies Act, 2013. Depending on the class and circumstances of the company, the relevant forms may include AOC-4, AOC-4 CFS, AOC-4 XBRL, MGT-7 or MGT-7A.
Section 92 generally requires the annual return to be filed with the Registrar within sixty days from the date of the annual general meeting, or within sixty days from the date on which the AGM should have been held where no AGM is held, together with the prescribed fee or additional fee.
MCA V3 Webform Filing Process
Under MCA V3, many company forms are completed online. The normal process is to log in with the appropriate MCA user profile, select the relevant company filing service, enter or pre-fill company details, complete the webform, submit it, obtain the Service Request Number (SRN), complete Digital Signature Certificate requirements where applicable and pay the prescribed fee.
Companies Act, 2013 and Companies Act, 1956: Legacy Form Mapping
The following table preserves the important historical mapping originally used when the Companies Act, 2013 forms were introduced. It is useful for research and understanding older corporate records, but the 1956 form numbers are not current filing forms.
| Companies Act, 2013 form | Legacy Companies Act, 1956 form | Purpose / historical mapping |
|---|---|---|
| INC-1 legacy / replaced workflow | Form 1A | Reservation of name. Current incorporation/name reservation is handled through the MCA incorporation services rather than the original INC-1 workflow. |
| INC-2 legacy / replaced | New form | Former OPC incorporation and nomination form; incorporation is now through SPICe+ and linked services. |
| INC-3 | New form | Consent of nominee of One Person Company. |
| INC-4 | New form | Change in member / nominee of One Person Company. |
| INC-6 | New form | Application for prescribed conversion. |
| INC-7 legacy / replaced | Form 1 | Former incorporation form for companies other than OPC; replaced in the incorporation workflow by SPICe+. |
| INC-18 | New form | Application to Regional Director for conversion of Section 8 company. |
| INC-20 | New form | Intimation relating to revocation or surrender of Section 8 licence, as applicable. |
| INC-21 legacy | Form 19 | Former declaration prior to commencement of business; the current commencement declaration regime uses INC-20A where Section 10A applies. |
| INC-22 | Form 18 | Registered office notice / change. |
| INC-23 | Forms 1AD / 24AAA | Application relating to specified registered-office shifts. |
| INC-24 | Form 1B | Approval for change of name. |
| INC-27 | Forms 1B / 62 | Conversion of company class as prescribed. |
| INC-28 | Form 21 | Notice of order of Court or other authority. |
| PAS-3 | Form 2 | Return of allotment. |
| SH-7 | Form 5 | Alteration of share capital. |
| SH-8 | New form | Letter of offer for buy-back. |
| SH-11 | Form 4C | Return in respect of buy-back of securities. |
| CHG-1 | Form 8 | Creation or modification of charge other than prescribed debenture-related charges. |
| CHG-4 | Form 17 | Satisfaction of charge. |
| CHG-6 | Form 15 | Appointment or cessation of receiver or manager. |
| CHG-9 | Form 10 | Creation or modification of specified debenture-related charge. |
| MGT-6 | Form 22B | Return concerning beneficial interest in shares. |
| MGT-14 | Form 23 | Filing of resolutions and agreements under Section 117. |
| DIR-3 | DIN-1 | Application for DIN, subject to current DIN allotment rules and incorporation workflow. |
| DIR-6 | DIN-4 | Change in particulars of director / DIN holder. |
| DIR-11 | New form | Notice of resignation of a director. |
| DIR-12 | Forms 32 / 32AD | Appointment, cessation or change of directors and key managerial personnel. |
| MR-1 | Form 25C | Return of appointment of managing director, whole-time director or manager. |
| MR-2 | Form 25A | Application relating to managerial appointment / remuneration where Central Government approval is prescribed. |
| URC-1 | Forms 37 / 39 | Application for registration under Section 366. |
| FC-1 | Form 44 | Information to be filed by foreign company. |
| FC-2 | Forms 49 / 52 | Alteration in particulars filed by foreign company. |
| FC-3 | Form 52 | Foreign-company accounts / places of business information as applicable. |
| FC-4 | Form PT-II | Annual return of foreign company. |
| GNL-1 | Form 61 | General application filing with Registrar. |
| GNL-2 | Form 62 | Submission of documents with Registrar where applicable. |
| MSC-1 | New form | Application for dormant-company status. |
| MSC-3 | New form | Return of dormant company. |
| MSC-4 | New form | Application for active-company status. |
| RD-1 | Form 24A | Application to Regional Director. |
| CRA-2 | New / no direct equivalent shown | Intimation of appointment of cost auditor. |
Older Companies Act, 1956 Forms No Longer Used for Current Companies Act, 2013 Filings
Older filings such as Forms 20B, 21A, 23AC, 23ACA, 23AC-XBRL, 23ACA-XBRL, 23C, 23D, FTE and other Companies Act, 1956 forms belong to the earlier statutory and MCA filing framework. They can still appear in historical company records, but current compliance should be completed through the form presently prescribed under the Companies Act, 2013 and the MCA portal.
Filing Fees and Delayed Filing
Section 403 of the Companies Act, 2013 provides the general framework for filing documents, facts and information with the prescribed fee. Additional or higher additional fees may apply where a filing is made after the statutory period, without prejudice to other legal action or liability that may arise under the Act.
Official MCA and Companies Act Resources
Disclaimer: This page is a general informational guide. Form availability, filing workflow, fees, attachments and validations can change. Always verify the live MCA service and applicable Companies Act provisions and rules before filing.