Annual Compliance Checklist for Startups in India

Posted by Ananya Nair on February 12th, 2020

If you are startup company and registered your company as a Private Limited Company then you have to follow certain numbers of compliance as laid down by various statutes and other regulatory bodies in India. Here we are sharing compliance checklist for private limited companies, particularly Small Companies with paid up capital of upto Rs 50 Lakh or having annual turnover in last year below Rs 2 Crore.

Private Limited Company compliances can be categorized as below -

Registrar Related Compliance

• Appointment of Auditor - First Statutory Auditor has to be appointed within the 30 days of company incorporation in first board meeting. Subsequent auditors will be appointed for 5 years in Annual General Meeting. Form ADT-1 is filed for a 5-year appointment. After that every year in Annual General Meeting, Shareholder ratify the Auditor but there is no need to file ADT-1.
• Holding Board Meeting - First meeting within the 30 days of company registration. Minimum 2 meetings required, one in each half calendar year. Minimum gap of 90 days is required between 2 meetings (ignore if more than 2 meetings held during the year)
• Holding Annual General Meeting (AGM) - One Annual general meeting. Maximum gap of 15 months between 2 Annual General Meetings.
• E- Forms Filing Requirements

o   E-form MGT-7 - File Annual Return within 60 days of holding of AGM for the period 1st April to 31st March.                

o   E-form AOC-4 - File Financial Statemen i.e Balance Sheet along with Statement of Profit and Loss Account and Directors’ Report    

o   Form MBP- 1 - Every Director of the Company in First Meeting of the Board of Director in each Financial Year needs to disclose his interest in other entities by filing the form. Fresh MBP-1 needs to be filed, whenever there is change in his interest from the earlier given MBP-1

o   Form DIR – 8 - Every Director of the Company in each Financial Year has to file with the Company disclosure of non-disqualification

• Director's Report - Director's Report needs to be filed covering all the information required for Small Company under Section 134. It should be signed by the “Chairperson” authorized by the Board, where he is not so authorized by at least 2 Directors.
• Statutory registers and books of accounts

o   Statutory Registers

o   Minutes Book - Board Meeting Minutes Book & General Meeting Minutes Book (i.e. AGM, EGM, Postal Ballot, Creditors Meetings, Debenture holders Meetings)

o   Books of Accounts/Financial Statements (Under Section 44aa)

o   Register of Directors Attendance at Board or Committee Meetings.

• Circulation of Financial Statement & other relevant Docs - Company will send to the members of the Company approved Financial Statement, Director's Report and Auditor’s Report at least 21 clear days before the AGM (Annual General Meeting).        

Non-Registrar Compliance

• Payment of periodic dues like GST Liability, TDS & TCS payment
• Payment of periodic returns like GST Returns (Monthly, quarterly, annual returns), TDS etc
• Monthly/Quarterly GST Returns
• Quarterly TDS Returns
• Assessment of advance tax liability and payment of advance tax periodically
• Filing of Income Tax Returns (Tax will be payable at a flat rate of 30% plus Education Cess)
• Filing of Tax Audit Report
• Regulatory Assessment of business under different acts of law (Eg. Environment and Protection Act, Money Laundering Act, Competition Act, Factory Act etc.)