Professionals registered on MCA21 portal to have single ID, says govt

The government has started the process for deactivating multiple login IDs that are in the name of a single company secretary, chartered accountant or cost accountant on the MCA21 portal, which is the platform for submitting statutory filings under the companies and LLP laws.

In this regard, the corporate affairs ministry has issued a circular and professionals, who are having multiple IDs, need to get approval from their respective apex institutes for deactivating the IDs so that there is only one ID for one user, according to officials.

Professionals refer to company secretaries, chartered accountants and cost accountants.

The move comes as Version 3 (V3) of the portal is being operationalised.

Under V3, a professional can have only one login ID whereas in V2, multiple IDs were allowed.

For instance, a company secretary having multiple log IDs on the MCA21 portal need to get approval from the Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI) for deactivating the multiple IDs.

In the case of chartered accountants, it is the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) and with respect to cost accountants, it is the Institute of Cost Accountants of India.

With only log-in ID allowed, it will be easier to know which particular individual has submitted the filings, the officials said.

When contacted, ICSI President Manish Gupta said the institute has always been forthcoming in supporting the initiatives of the regulatory authorities.

The recent circular of the ministry to solicit information from professionals so as to deactivate or merge multiple IDs is a welcome step for all stakeholders and shall go a long way in streamlining the transition from MCA21 V2 to V3, he said in a statement.

The institute has also initiated communication with its members to solicit the requested information on account of multiple IDs, he added.

ICAI did not offer comments.

According to one of the officials quoted earlier, the issues related to the MCA21 portal are getting resolved and that LTIMindtree is working on improving the system.

LTIMindtree is managing the portal.

Amid various issues with respect to the portal, the ministry, last month, held consultations with stakeholders in multiple cities.

More than 35 lakh forms have been filed on MCA21 V3 portal since its inception, the ministry said in an update on its website on Tuesday.

Statutory filings under the companies law and the Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) Act are submitted to the ministry through the MCA21 portal.