MCA21 Portal to Go Dark for 26 Days: Govt Waives All Late Fees [Read Circular]

The ministry said that all annual-filing and auditor-related forms listed in the annexure—including AOC-4, AOC-4 XBRL, MGT-7, MGT-15, ADT-1 and CRA-4—will be unavailable between 18 June and 13 July 2025 while data is moved to the upgraded system. Where a form’s normal due date or resubmission deadline falls between 18 June and 31 July, companies may now file until 15 August without paying any extra fees.

Tax Planning For Trusts and cooperation Societies - Click HERE

Why the portal is going dark

The MCA21 V3 roll-out is the final—and largest—phase of a multi-year digitisation drive that began in 2022. V3 consolidates 38 forms and introduces pre-filled data fields, Excel-based shareholder tables and geo-tagged photographs of registered offices, all aimed at cutting clerical errors and reducing paper uploads. The ministry has already disabled offline payments and will block all V2 filings at 00:00 IST on 18 June, administrators have warned.

During the 26-day blackout (18 June–13 July) stakeholders will be unable to upload or pay for the affected forms. The V3 site itself will also be unavailable from 09–13 July, when production databases are transferred and stress-tested. Companies have been urged to clear any “pending payment” or “resubmission” Service Request Numbers (SRNs) before the cut-off to avoid rejection.

Who benefits from the fee holiday?

The relief chiefly targets small and mid-sized companies that finalise accounts in July. Ordinarily, late filing attracts additional fees that escalate daily—often outstripping the original statutory charge. By extending the zero-fee window to 15 August, MCA estimates savings of ₹200-300 crore across roughly 350,000 entities, according to an internal briefing shared with regional registrars.

Compliance still required

Officials stress that the waiver does not postpone the statutory obligation to hold board or shareholder meetings on time, nor does it suspend penalties for non-filing after 15 August. “Stakeholders are advised to complete necessary filings promptly once the relevant forms are live,” Deputy Director Dr Amit Kumar wrote in the circular. Experts add that companies must also update user IDs, DSCs and beneficial-owner disclosures to comply with the V3 architecture.

Next Steps

1. Before 18 June: Pay any pending V2 SRNs and download form drafts.
   
   
2. 18 June–13 July: Portal blackout—no filings possible for the 13 forms.
   
   
3. 14 July–31 July: New V3 forms go live; existing due dates within this window are automatically fee-free.
   
   
4. By 15 August: Submit all impacted forms to avoid late-fee accrual.
   
   

The MCA says it will monitor live traffic when the platform reopens and may issue further advisories if load times spike. In the meantime, corporates are scrambling to reschedule AGMs and audit committee meetings so that statutory documents are ready for upload the moment V3 accepts them.

Step by Step Guide of Preparing Company Balance Sheet and Profit & Loss Account Click HERE

With India’s corporate reporting cycle entering its busiest quarter, the temporary fee relief offers both a cushion and a deadline: a chance to adjust, but no excuse to delay.

Support our journalism by subscribing to Taxscan premium. Follow us on Telegram for quick updates