Govt relaxes requirements in annual returns form under Cos Act

Easing procedural requirements, the government has made changes in the annual returns form that is to be submitted by corporates under the Companies Act.
The latest move is part of continuing efforts to improve the ease of doing business in the country.
Under the Companies Act, 2013 -- whose most provisions came into force from April last year -- entities are required to file their annual returns by way of electronic form MGT-7.
Now, the Ministry, which is implementing the Act, has made changes in the form.
Among others, the certification requirements in place for company secretaries with respect to annual filings of firms have been relaxed.

The changes have been made in the form to address concerns raised by stakeholders and these are aimed to ensure that doing business becomes easier, a senior official said.

In this regard, the Ministry notified the Companies (Management and Administration) Third Amendment Rules, 2015, on November 16.
Earlier in September, the Ministry had made it compulsory for companies to furnish Permanent Account Number (PAN) in the annual returns form - a move that would help in sharing of information between different departments.
In recent months, the government has made various changes to rules pertaining to the Companies Act, 2013 apart from amending certain provisions in the main law itself.

Meanwhile, a high-level panel is looking at ways to address issues related to the new companies law. The committee was set up in June amid concerns expressed in various quarters about certain provisions in the Act.