Company Annual Filing Calendar India — All ROC Due Dates

Overview

Most compliance failures in Indian companies are not acts of defiance. They are acts of forgetting. A founder remembers the GST returns, remembers the income tax audit, and completely misses that the AGM was due last month — and that two separate filing clocks started ticking the day the AGM was (or should have been) held. By the time anyone notices, the additional fees have been compounding at ₹100 a day per form with no ceiling.

The annual filing calendar exists to make that impossible. It is the complete schedule of what your company owes the Registrar of Companies in a year: the annual general meeting and the three filings that hang off it (AOC-4, MGT-7, ADT-1), plus the fixed-date returns that have nothing to do with the AGM — DPT-3 in June, MSME Form 1 twice a year, DIR-3 KYC once every three years — plus the event-based filings that trigger whenever something changes (DIR-12 for director changes, MGT-14 for special resolutions, BEN-2 for beneficial ownership changes).

This page lays out the entire calendar with the actual section numbers, the actual clocks, the extension machinery for when you genuinely need more time, and the honest math of what lateness costs. If you run a private limited company, an OPC, or a Section 8 company, this is the one page to bookmark.

Is this page for you?

This calendar matters to you if:

• You are a director of a private limited company, OPC, or Section 8 company and want to know exactly what is due when
• You are a founder who handles compliance yourself and needs the dates in one place instead of scattered across MCA circulars
• You are a CFO, finance head, or company secretary building the year's compliance plan and board calendar
• Your company missed filings in earlier years and you want to understand the full backlog before cleaning it up

This page is less useful if:

• You run an LLP — LLPs follow a different calendar (Form 11 by 30 May, Form 8 by 30 October under the LLP Act). The company calendar on this page does not apply to you
• You are looking for tax deadlines — GST, TDS, and income tax run on separate calendars administered by different authorities
• Your company is dormant, struck off, or under liquidation — different regimes apply

What to do instead: LLPs should track the LLP Act calendar. Everyone else — companies of every class — should read on, because the core calendar below applies to private companies, public companies, OPCs, and Section 8 companies alike, with the small-company relaxations noted where they exist.

The complete MCA deadline calendar — every form, every clock

This is the section most visitors come for. The table below assumes the standard financial year (1 April to 31 March) and an AGM held on the last permissible day, 30 September. If your financial year differs, shift the AGM-anchored dates accordingly; the fixed-date filings do not move.

| Filing | Form | What triggers it | Due date (March year-end) | Section / Rule | |---|---|---|---|---| | Annual General Meeting | — | 6 months from FY-end | 30 September | Sec 96 | | Auditor appointment | ADT-1 | 15 days from AGM | 15 October | Sec 139 | | Financial statements | AOC-4 | 30 days from AGM | 29/30 October | Sec 137 | | Annual return | MGT-7 / MGT-7A | 60 days from AGM | 29/30 November | Sec 92 | | Return of deposits | DPT-3 | Fixed date (as on 31 March) | 30 June | Rule 16, Deposit Rules | | MSME dues return | MSME Form 1 | Half-yearly (Apr–Sep / Oct–Mar) | 31 October / 30 April | Sec 405 Order, 2019 | | Director KYC | DIR-3 KYC | Once every 3 years | 30 June 2028 (next) | Rule 12A | | Commencement of business | INC-20A | 180 days from incorporation | One-time | Sec 10A | | SBO declaration | BEN-2 | 30 days of the change | Event-based | Sec 90 | | Director appointment/cessation | DIR-12 | 30 days of the event | Event-based | Sec 170 | | Special resolutions | MGT-14 | 30 days of the resolution | Event-based | Sec 117 | | LLP annual return | Form 11 | Fixed date | 30 May | Sec 35, LLP Act | | LLP statement of account | Form 8 | Fixed date | 30 October | Sec 34, LLP Act |

Four things about this table that trip people up:

The AGM is the anchor, not just another date. AOC-4, MGT-7, and ADT-1 do not have fixed calendar dates — their clocks start from the date the AGM is actually held. Hold the AGM early (say, 15 August) and all three deadlines move forward. Delay the AGM to 30 September and everything shifts back. This is why "when did we hold the AGM?" is the first question in any compliance review.

DPT-3 and MSME-1 ignore the AGM entirely. These run on their own fixed dates. A company that has not yet held its AGM still owes DPT-3 by 30 June and MSME Form 1 by 31 October. Founders who think "we'll do everything after the AGM" miss these two every year.

DIR-3 KYC is no longer annual. Since 31 March 2026, the KYC is triennial — once every three years — and the next one is due by 30 June 2028. Any checklist still showing an annual September KYC deadline is working from repealed law.

The LLP rows are a different statute. Form 11 and Form 8 belong to the LLP Act, 2008, not the Companies Act. They are included here only so LLP partners who land on this page find their dates instead of applying company law to an LLP.

The 30-day and 60-day clocks — how the AGM anchors everything

Section 96 requires every company other than an OPC to hold its AGM within six months of the close of the financial year — 30 September for the standard March year-end. The first AGM gets nine months from the close of the first financial year. After that, the gap between two AGMs cannot exceed fifteen months.

Three filing clocks start from the AGM date:

ADT-1 — 15 days. The company informs the Registrar of the auditor's appointment within fifteen days of the AGM at which the appointment is made (Section 139). Miss this and the appointment itself is valid, but the intimation is late — with the usual ₹100-a-day additional fee.

AOC-4 — 30 days. A copy of the financial statements, adopted at the AGM, must be filed within thirty days of the AGM (Section 137). If the AGM is held on 30 September, the last date is 29 October (30 October in practice, counting inclusively — file by 29 October to be safe).

MGT-7 — 60 days. The annual return goes within sixty days of the AGM (Section 92) — 29 November for a 30 September AGM. Small companies and OPCs file the simplified MGT-7A instead of MGT-7.

When you genuinely need more time: the AGM extension

The law provides a safety valve. The first proviso to Section 96(1) allows the Registrar to extend the AGM deadline by up to three months — but three conditions apply, and they are strict:

1. The application (filed in Form GNL-1) must reach the Registrar before the original due date expires. An extension sought after 30 September is not an extension at all. 2. The extension is not available for the first AGM. 3. The extension cannot push the gap between two AGMs beyond the statutory limits.

An extended AGM shifts all three dependent clocks — AOC-4, MGT-7, and ADT-1 move with the actual AGM date. The fixed-date filings (DPT-3, MSME-1) do not move; they were never linked to the AGM.

Practical note: extensions are routinely granted for genuine reasons, but "we forgot to start the audit" is a weaker ground than "the statutory audit is in progress and needs completion." Apply early, state the reason plainly, and keep the ROC's order on file — it is the document that proves your later filings were on time.

Advantages of running on a proper calendar

You stop paying the ₹100-a-day tax on forgetfulness

The single biggest financial benefit of a calendar is negative: money you do not lose. A company that files AOC-4 and MGT-7 two years late pays roughly ₹1,46,000 in additional fees alone (₹100 × 730 days × 2 forms), before any adjudication penalty. A calendar with reminders costs a fraction of one late filing.

Board meetings get scheduled around real deadlines

When the compliance calendar is known in January, the board calendar can be built around it — audit committee reviews in August, AGM in September, filings in October and November. Directors stop being ambushed by last-minute signing requests.

The statutory audit finishes on time

Most AGM delays are really audit delays. A calendar that works backwards from 30 September — auditor appointment in April, books closed by June, audit fieldwork in July–August — gives the audit a fighting chance of finishing before the AGM window closes.

Lenders and investors see a clean MCA record

Banks check MCA filing status before renewing working-capital limits. Investors check it during due diligence. A company whose AOC-4 and MGT-7 are filed on time every year passes these checks silently; a company with gaps gets questions it cannot answer quickly.

Directors stay clear of disqualification

Section 164(2) disqualifies every director of a company that fails to file financial statements or annual returns for three consecutive financial years — from appointment or reappointment in any company for five years. A calendar is the cheapest director-protection instrument that exists.

Strike-off risk disappears

The Registrar can initiate strike-off under Section 248(1) against companies with two years of missing filings. Staying current on the calendar removes the ground for that action entirely.

Event-based filings stop slipping through

DIR-12, MGT-14, and BEN-2 each have 30-day clocks that start on the event, not on any calendar date. A compliance system that tracks events alongside the annual calendar catches these — most companies miss them precisely because they are not "annual" filings.

Documents and data each filing needs

For the AGM and AOC-4/MGT-7 cycle:

• Audited financial statements (balance sheet, profit and loss, cash flow, notes) signed by the statutory auditor
• Board's report with all Section 134(3) disclosures
• Minutes of the board meeting approving the financial statements
• AGM notice, attendance, and minutes
• Shareholding pattern and indebtedness details for the annual return
• Auditor's appointment details for ADT-1

For DPT-3:

• Trial balance / books as on 31 March showing all outstanding receipts
• Classification of each receipt as deposit or exempted (director loans, inter-corporate borrowings, customer advances)
• Statutory auditor's certificate where the form requires it (mandatory for certain selections)

For MSME Form 1:

• Vendor master identifying micro and small enterprise suppliers
• Ageing of payables to those suppliers — anything outstanding beyond 45 days from acceptance
• Reasons for delay on each overdue amount

For DIR-3 KYC (triennial):

• Director's PAN, Aadhaar-linked mobile/email, and current address proof
• Digital signature of the director; certification by a practising professional where required

For event-based filings (DIR-12, MGT-14, BEN-2):

• The underlying event document — board/shareholder resolution, appointment letter, resignation letter, SBO declaration in BEN-1
• DIN of incoming/outgoing directors; consent to act where applicable

The annual compliance cycle — step by step

Step 1 — Fix the AGM date in the first quarter

Do not wait until September to think about the AGM. In April, fix a target AGM date (say, mid-September), and work backwards: statutory audit completion two weeks before, board meeting to approve accounts three weeks before, dispatch of notices 21 clear days before the AGM.

Step 2 — Close the books and complete the audit by August

The single most common cause of delayed AGMs is an unfinished audit. Books should close by June, audit fieldwork should run July–August, and the signed financial statements should be in hand by early September.

Step 3 — Hold the board meeting and issue AGM notice

The board approves the financial statements and the Board's report, fixes the AGM date and venue, and authorises the notice. Twenty-one clear days' notice goes to every member, director, and the auditor.

Step 4 — Hold the AGM and start the three clocks

At the AGM: adopt the financial statements, declare dividends if any, appoint or reappoint directors, and appoint/ratify the auditor. The moment the AGM concludes, the 15-day (ADT-1), 30-day (AOC-4), and 60-day (MGT-7) clocks start.

Step 5 — File ADT-1 within 15 days

Intimate the auditor's appointment to the Registrar. This is the shortest clock and the most commonly missed — put it on the calendar the day the AGM is held.

Step 6 — File AOC-4 within 30 days

File the adopted financial statements with the Board's report. XBRL filing applies to companies meeting the prescribed thresholds (listed companies and companies above the paid-up capital/turnover limits); everyone else files the standard AOC-4.

Step 7 — File MGT-7 within 60 days

File the annual return with shareholding, indebtedness, and meeting details. Small companies and OPCs use MGT-7A.

Step 8 — Handle the fixed-date filings on their own track

DPT-3 by 30 June. MSME Form 1 by 31 October and 30 April. These do not wait for the AGM — diary them separately at the start of the year.

Step 9 — File event-based forms within 30 days, as events happen

Director change? DIR-12 within 30 days. Special resolution? MGT-14 within 30 days. New significant beneficial owner? BEN-1 from the individual, BEN-2 to the ROC within 30 days. Do not batch these with the annual cycle.

How long does the cycle take?

For a company that is current, the annual cycle runs roughly six months from books-closure to the last filing:

| Phase | Window | What happens | |---|---|---| | Books closure | April – June | Finalise trial balance, close ledgers | | Statutory audit | July – August | Audit fieldwork, signed financials | | Board + AGM notice | Late August – early September | Approve accounts, issue 21-day notice | | AGM | By 30 September | Adopt accounts, appoint auditor | | ADT-1 | Within 15 days of AGM | Auditor intimation | | AOC-4 | Within 30 days of AGM | Financial statements filing | | MGT-7 | Within 60 days of AGM | Annual return filing |

For a company with a backlog — say, two years of missed filings — the cleanup typically takes four to eight weeks: reconstructing records, getting the audits done, holding the belated AGMs, and filing everything with additional fees. The MCA system accepts belated filings; there is no point at which a missed filing becomes un-filable. The cost is money, not permission.

Fees and packages

Government fees for the annual filings are nominal — most MCA forms carry fees of a few hundred rupees based on authorised capital. The real cost of the annual cycle is professional time: audit coordination, drafting the Board's report, preparing the filings, and tracking the clocks.

What drives the professional fee:

• Whether the statutory audit is already done (we coordinate; we do not replace your auditor)
• Number of events during the year (director changes, share issues, resolutions — each means extra forms)
• Whether DPT-3 needs auditor certification and MSME-1 needs vendor ageing
• Backlog years, if any — each missed year is a full repeat of the cycle plus additional fees

How ComplyKart helps

Annual calendar setup. We map your company's specific deadlines — AGM-anchored and fixed-date — into a year plan with reminders at 60, 30, and 7 days before each due date.

AGM support. Drafting the notice, Board's report disclosures, minutes, and the resolutions — the paperwork that has to be right before the meeting, not after.

Filing execution. ADT-1, AOC-4, MGT-7/MGT-7A, DPT-3, MSME Form 1 — prepared, digitally signed, filed, and acknowledged, with the SRNs tracked to approval.

Event-based filings. DIR-12, MGT-14, BEN-2 filed within their 30-day windows as events occur through the year.

Backlog cleanup. For companies with missed years: a gap analysis, the filing sequence, additional-fee computation, and execution until the MCA record shows current.

What we will not do: We will not backdate board minutes or AGM records to make late filings look timely — the MCA system timestamps everything, and fabricated records are a fraud exposure. We will not advise you to skip filings because "the company is not doing business" — an active company owes the full calendar regardless of turnover. And we will not sign as your statutory auditor; audit and compliance are separate roles.

What happens after a deadline is missed

Within the first month: Only the additional fee accrues — ₹100 per day per form. File now and the damage is a few thousand rupees.

After several months: The additional fee keeps compounding with no cap. A one-year delay on AOC-4 and MGT-7 together costs roughly ₹73,000 in additional fees. Adjudication exposure also builds — ₹10,000 plus ₹100 per day of default under Sections 92(5) and 137(3).

After two financial years: The Registrar gains the power to initiate strike-off under Section 248(1). Your company appears on defaulter lists that lenders and counterparties check.

After three financial years: Every director is disqualified under Section 164(2) from appointment or reappointment in any company for five years. This is the consequence founders never see coming — it follows the person, not just the company.

The way back: File everything belatedly with additional fees. There is no amnesty to wait for and no point of no return — the MCA accepts late filings at any time. The only question is how large the additional-fee bill has grown.

Recurring compliance — the calendar repeats every year

The annual filing calendar is, by definition, recurring. Each financial year produces a fresh AGM, a fresh AOC-4, a fresh MGT-7, a fresh DPT-3, and two fresh MSME-1 filings. DIR-3 KYC recurs every three years. The discipline is not in filing once — it is in running the same cycle cleanly, year after year, without the clocks ever catching you off guard. Most of our retainer clients treat the calendar as a standing instruction: the dates are diarised in January, and the filings happen as a matter of routine.

Common mistakes

Treating the AGM date as flexible. The 30 September deadline is statutory. Every week of delay compresses the 30-day and 60-day filing windows and pushes the company closer to the additional-fee zone.

Forgetting the 15-day ADT-1 clock. It is the shortest of the three AGM-linked deadlines and the easiest to miss in the post-AGM lull.

Assuming DPT-3 does not apply. Any company with outstanding director loans, inter-corporate borrowings, or customer advances as on 31 March owes this filing — which covers most private companies.

Ignoring MSME Form 1. Companies that buy from micro and small suppliers and pay late often do not realise they are "specified companies" with a half-yearly filing obligation.

Batching event-based filings with the annual cycle. DIR-12 and MGT-14 have 30-day clocks from the event. Waiting for the year-end to file them means every one of them is late.

Letting the auditor relationship drift. If the auditor is appointed late, the audit starts late, the AGM slips, and the entire calendar collapses like dominoes. Fix the auditor appointment in the first quarter.

Sources

• Companies Act, 2013 — Sections 92, 96, 117, 137, 139, 164(2), 170, 248, 405, 454
• Companies (Acceptance of Deposits) Rules, 2014 — Rule 16 (DPT-3)
• Companies (Registration Offices and Fees) Rules, 2014 — additional fee provisions
• Companies (Appointment and Qualification of Directors) Rules, 2014 — Rule 12A (DIR-3 KYC, as amended 31-3-2026)
• Specified Companies (Furnishing of information about payment to micro and small enterprise suppliers) Order, 2019 (Sec 405)
• LLP Act, 2008 — Sections 34, 35 (Form 8, Form 11)

Verification register

| # | Claim | Source | Checked | |---|---|---|---| | 1 | AGM within 6 months of FY-end; 30 Sept for March year-end; first AGM 9 months | Sec 96(1), Companies Act 2013 | 2026-10-12 | | 2 | Max 15-month gap between two AGMs | Sec 96(1) | 2026-10-12 | | 3 | ROC may extend AGM up to 3 months; not for first AGM; apply before due date | Sec 96(1) proviso | 2026-10-12 | | 4 | AOC-4 within 30 days of AGM | Sec 137(1) | 2026-10-12 | | 5 | MGT-7 within 60 days of AGM; MGT-7A for OPC/small companies | Sec 92(1) | 2026-10-12 | | 6 | ADT-1 within 15 days of AGM | Sec 139(1) | 2026-10-12 | | 7 | DPT-3 due 30 June, position as on 31 March | Rule 16, Deposit Rules | 2026-10-12 | | 8 | NIL DPT-3 not required where no deposits/exempted amounts; govt cos, banks, NBFCs, HFCs exempt | taxguru.in analyses of Rule 16 | 2026-10-12 | | 9 | DPT-3 is not an STP form; requires ROC approval; auditor certificate mandatory for specified selections | taxguru.in | 2026-10-12 | | 10 | MSME Form 1 half-yearly: 31 Oct (Apr–Sep), 30 Apr (Oct–Mar); 45-day payment trigger | Sec 405 Order dated 22-1-2019; instruction kit | 2026-10-12 | | 11 | MSME Form 1 penalty: Sec 405(4) — ₹25,000 min + ₹1,000/day, max ₹3 lakh, company + officers | Sec 405(4) | 2026-10-12 | | 12 | DIR-3 KYC triennial since 31-3-2026; next due 30-6-2028 | G.S.R. 943(E); standing correction | 2026-10-12 | | 13 | Additional fee ₹100/day/form, no cap | Companies (Registration Offices and Fees) Rules, 2014 (as amended) | 2026-10-12 | | 14 | Adjudication penalty Sec 92(5)/137(3): ₹10,000 + ₹100/day; caps ₹2L company / ₹50K officers | Companies Act 2013 | [NEEDS VERIFICATION — confirm caps against current text] | | 15 | Sec 164(2): 3 consecutive FYs of missed filings disqualify directors for 5 years | Sec 164(2) | 2026-10-12 | | 16 | Sec 248(1): ROC may strike off after 2 FYs without filings | Sec 248(1) | 2026-10-12 | | 17 | DIR-12 within 30 days | Sec 170(2) | 2026-10-12 | | 18 | MGT-14 within 30 days of special resolution | Sec 117(1) | 2026-10-12 | | 19 | BEN-2 within 30 days of SBO change | Sec 90; SBO Rules | 2026-10-12 | | 20 | INC-20A within 180 days of incorporation | Sec 10A | 2026-10-12 |

Schema markup plan

Service + FAQPage (20 questions) + HowTo (9 steps) + BreadcrumbList + GovernmentService. HowTo steps map to the annual compliance cycle section; FAQPage carries all 20 FAQs verbatim.