A Public Limited Company — defined under Section 2(71) of the Companies Act 2013 — is a company that is not a private company, has a minimum of 7 members, no upper cap on members, minimum 3 directors, and (for listed entities) is governed additionally by the SEBI (LODR) Regulations 2015. Public Limited Companies operate under the most extensive compliance regime in Indian corporate law — covering board governance, independent and woman directors, audit committee, NRC, CSR (Sec 135), related-party transactions (Sec 188), deposits (Sec 73 / DPT-3), and (for listed cos) quarterly disclosures, postal-ballot e-voting, and Reg 30 / 33 / 36 LODR filings.
Public-co compliance includes mandatory annual filings of Form AOC-4 / AOC-4 XBRL (financials), Form MGT-7 (annual return), Form MGT-14 (special resolutions and Sec 117 resolutions), Form ADT-1 (auditor appointment), Form DPT-3 (deposits / loans return by 30 June), Form CRA-2 / CRA-4 (cost audit), and Form MSME-1 (MSME outstanding return). Listed companies additionally file quarterly results (Reg 33), shareholding pattern (Reg 31), corporate governance reports (Reg 27), and 30+ event-based disclosures under Reg 30. Our Public Limited Company compliance services cover the full lifecycle — board / committee governance, annual / event-based ROC filings, SEBI LODR (listed), audit, income-tax, secretarial audit (MR-3), and CSR / RPT compliance.
Mandatory yearly filings — AOC-4 / AOC-4 XBRL (within 30 days of AGM), MGT-7 (within 60 days of AGM), MGT-14 (special resolutions), ADT-1 (auditor), DPT-3, MSME-1.
Min 4 board meetings per year (gap < 120 days), AGM by 30 September, EGM as needed; SS-1 / SS-2 compliance, notice / minutes / attendance, statutory registers under Sec 88 / 170.
Min 3 directors, max 15 (extendable), at least 1 resident director, woman director where applicable, independent directors for prescribed public / listed companies, IICA databank ID.
Audit Committee (Sec 177), NRC (Sec 178), Stakeholders Relationship Committee, CSR Committee (Sec 135) — composition, charter, minutes, and meeting cadence as prescribed.
For companies meeting net worth ₹500 cr / turnover ₹1,000 cr / net profit ₹5 cr threshold — CSR Committee, CSR policy, 2% spend, Form CSR-1 (NGO registration), Form CSR-2 (annual).
Annual Form DPT-3 by 30 June — outstanding loans / advances / deposits as on 31 March; covers private + public cos; Sec 73 / 76 deposits framework; auditor certification.
For listed public cos — quarterly results (Reg 33), shareholding pattern (Reg 31), corporate governance (Reg 27), Reg 30 event-based disclosures, postal-ballot e-voting.
Mandatory for every listed company and prescribed public companies (paid-up ₹50 cr / turnover ₹250 cr / outstanding loans ₹100 cr) — annual MR-3 audit by practising CS, attached to AOC-4.
"Public company" means a company that is not a private company, with min 7 members and min 3 directors; subsidiary of a public company is also a public company even if its AOA restricts share transfer.
Every company (other than OPC) must hold AGM each year — first AGM within 9 months of first FY end, subsequent AGMs within 6 months of FY end (i.e., by 30 September), max 15-month gap.
Minimum 4 board meetings per FY with a gap not exceeding 120 days between two meetings; first board meeting within 30 days of incorporation.
Special resolutions and certain board resolutions (Sec 179(3)) must be filed in Form MGT-14 within 30 days of passing; failure attracts heavy penalties under Sec 117(2).
CSR mandatory for companies meeting net worth ₹500 cr or turnover ₹1,000 cr or net profit ₹5 cr (any one) — 2% spend of average net profit of last 3 FYs; Schedule VII activities.
Listed cos: at least 1/3rd independent directors + 1 woman director; specified public cos (paid-up ₹10 cr / turnover ₹100 cr / borrowings ₹50 cr): 2 independent directors; top 1000 listed: independent woman director.
RPTs require board approval; specified RPTs above prescribed thresholds (10% of turnover / net worth / paid-up) require shareholder approval by ordinary resolution; SEBI LODR has additional requirements for listed cos.
Mandatory for every listed company and prescribed public companies (paid-up ₹50 cr / turnover ₹250 cr / borrowings ₹100 cr) — annual MR-3 secretarial audit by practising CS, attached to AOC-4 / Director's Report.
End-to-end AOC-4 / AOC-4 XBRL, MGT-7, MGT-14, ADT-1, DPT-3, MSME-1, and CRA-2 / CRA-4 filings — drafting, attachments, certification, and SRN closure.
Drafting agenda / notice / explanatory statement, minutes, attendance, voting / scrutiniser report — full SS-1 / SS-2 compliance for board meetings and general meetings.
Audit / NRC / Stakeholders / CSR / Risk Management Committee — terms of reference, composition, charter, meeting cadence, minutes, and Sec / Reg 18-21 LODR alignment.
IICA databank registration, Sec 149(6) eligibility test, Sch IV code, performance evaluation framework, declarations of independence.
Threshold mapping, CSR policy drafting, CSR Committee minutes, CSR-1 / CSR-2 filings, unspent-CSR account, ongoing-project compliance, and impact assessment.
Related-party policy, board / audit-committee approvals, omnibus approvals, shareholder approval for material RPTs, register of contracts (MBP-4), and disclosures.
Annual DPT-3 by 30 June, Sec 73 / 76 deposits framework, auditor certification, deposit-trust-deed (where applicable), liquid-asset deposit compliance.
Quarterly results (Reg 33), shareholding (Reg 31), corporate governance (Reg 27), Reg 30 event disclosures, insider-trading code, postal-ballot e-voting, scrutiniser reports.
MR-3 secretarial audit by practising CS — annual review of compliance with Co Act, SEBI, FEMA, depository, and other applicable laws; annexure to Director's Report.
Annual ITR-6, advance tax, Sec 115BAA / 115BAB option (22% / 15%), MAT / AMT, transfer pricing (Form 3CEB), and tax audit (3CA / 3CD).
Annual DIR-3 KYC for all directors, registers under Sec 88 / 170 (members, directors, charges, contracts, beneficial owners), and SBO disclosures (Form BEN-2).
Multi-year arrears, additional-fee penalty quantification, compounding under Sec 441, MGT-14 belated filings, MR-3 retrospective certification, and clean compliance reset.
Fresh public company — first board meeting within 30 days, ADT-1 auditor appointment, statutory registers, first AGM, and first-year compliance roadmap.
April–November every year — board meetings, audit, AGM by 30 September, AOC-4 / MGT-7 within 30 / 60 days, DPT-3 by 30 June, ITR-6 by 31 October.
Crossed paid-up / turnover / borrowings thresholds triggering independent directors / CSR / secretarial audit — composition refresh and policy implementation.
Pre-IPO restructure — board reconstitution, audit / NRC / SRC committees, RPT policy, ICDS, DRHP secretarial inputs, SEBI LODR readiness.
Special resolution under Sec 117 (loan / borrowing / RPT / capital change) — MGT-14 within 30 days of passing; missed filing attracts heavy penalty.
Quarter-end — Reg 33 results within 45 days (60 for Q4 with audit), Reg 31 shareholding within 21 days, Reg 27 corporate governance within 21 days.
Missed AOC-4 / MGT-7 / MGT-14 for 2+ years — heavy additional fees, Sec 164(2) director disqualification risk, compounding under Sec 441.
VC / PE / lender / acquirer requesting last 3-5 years of MCA filings, secretarial-audit reports, board minutes — gap-cure, restated agreements, compounding.
Past-filing health-check, threshold mapping (Sec 135 / 149 / 204), DIR-3 KYC, audit applicability, and 12-month compliance calendar.
Board cadence, AGM planning, audit / NRC / CSR / SRC committee setup, independent-director onboarding, and SS-1 / SS-2 alignment.
Statutory + tax + secretarial + cost audit (where applicable), ITR-6, advance tax, TDS / TCS, GST returns, and transfer pricing.
AOC-4 / MGT-7 / MGT-14 / ADT-1 / DPT-3 / MSME-1 / CSR-2 / BEN-2 / DIR-3 KYC; LODR Reg 27 / 30 / 31 / 33 (listed); SRN tracking.
SRN approvals archived, registers refreshed, retainer rolled to next FY, threshold monitoring, and event-based filings on demand.
Partner with our company-secretarial specialists for end-to-end public-company compliance — board / committee governance, AOC-4 / MGT-7 / MGT-14, CSR, RPT, secretarial audit, and SEBI LODR for FY 2026–27.
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