Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi
New Delhi, Oct 25: The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has extended the deadlines for companies to file financial statements and annual returns for the financial year 2025-26 without paying additional fees, following requests from stakeholders citing technical difficulties on the MCA-21 portal.
According to a circular dated October 24, companies can now file financial statements using various versions of Form AOC-4, including consolidated financial statements, XBRL-format filings and applicable forms for non-banking financial companies (NBFCs), by December 31, 2026, without additional fees.
The deadline for filing annual returns through Forms MGT-7 and MGT-7A has been extended to January 31, 2027, the ministry said.
Form AOC-4 is used to submit financial statements to the Registrar of Companies (RoC), while MGT-7 is used for annual returns. Form MGT-7A applies to one-person companies and small companies.
The extension follows concerns raised by company secretaries and other professionals over technical glitches on the MCA-21 Version 3 portal, the ministry's online platform for statutory corporate filings and compliance services.
The Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI), in a representation dated October 9, had sought an extension until December 31, 2026, without additional fees, citing recurring portal issues and increased compliance requirements under revised filing forms.
The ICSI highlighted several problems, including frequent downtime, slow response times, session timeouts, automatic logouts, login difficulties and errors in pre-filled data. It also cited challenges in updating profiles, managing user access, associating Digital Signature Certificates, validating forms and tracking submitted filings and approvals.
ICSI president Pawan G Chandak said technical and operational difficulties could prevent otherwise compliant companies from completing their filings within the prescribed deadlines.
The extension, he said, was intended to ensure that genuine compliance efforts were not adversely affected by technological challenges.
However, the MCA circular clarified that the relaxation does not extend the statutory deadlines for holding annual general meetings (AGMs).
The ministry had also extended the annual filing deadlines for FY 2024-25 last year through circulars issued on October 17 and December 30, 2025.