The due date for holding Annual General Meeting (AGM) extended for companies whose financial year ended on December 31, 2019

The MCA has extended due date for holding Annual General Meeting for companies whose financial year ended on 31st December 2019. The said relaxation is notified vide General Circular No. 18/2020 dated 21st April 2020. Background: As per the provisions of Section 96 of the Companies Act, 2013, every company shall hold its first Annual General Meeting within a period of 9 months from the closure of first financial year and thereafter within 6 months from the closure of the financial year and not more than 15 months shall elapse between two AGM....

April 21, 2020 · 3 min

MCA allows relaxation of additional fees for filings under Section 124 and 125 of the Companies Act 2013 in view of COVID-19

The MCA issued clarification vide General Circular No. 16/2020 dated April 13, 2020, for filings required under Section 124 and 125 of the Companies Act, 2013. Background: Pursuant to provisions of Section 124 of the Companies Act, 2013 if a company declares adividend but did not pay or remains unclaimed for a period of 30 days, then such unpaid or unclaimed dividend shall be transferred to Unpaid Dividend Account within 7 days from the expiry of 30 days....

April 19, 2020 · 2 min

Change in FDI (Foreign Direct Investment) policy in view of COVID-19 pandemic: Investment by neighboring countries will now require Government Approval

The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade released a Press Note 3 on 17/04/2020 under FDI Policy Section to secure the Indian Companies from opportunistic takeovers/acquisitions in the current situation arising out of COVID-19. The Government has reviewed the FDI policy and revised Para 3.1.1 of the Policy related to the eligibility for foreign investors for Foreign Direct investment in India. The decision will take effect from the date of FEMA notification....

April 18, 2020 · 2 min

COVID-19: Spending of CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) funds

The pandemic COVID-19 has caused damages to the world economy. The Government of India has declared Coronavirus is notified as a disaster and spending CSR funds for COVID-19 is eligible CSR activity. The companies have come forward to help on a large scale. Keeping this in view the Ministery of Corporate Affairs vide General Circular No. 10/2020 clarified that spending of CSR funds for COVID-19 is eligible CSR activity. Such funds may be spent on various activities related to COVID-19....

April 15, 2020 · 5 min

EGM (Extra-Ordinary General Meetings) through Video conferencing on account of the threat posed by COVID-19

Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic has made the entire world standstill. Businesses are facing difficulties while making decisions. Considering the difficulties in attending meetings physically, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has allowed companies to hold extraordinary general meetings (EOGM) via Video Conferencing or any other audiovisual mode and allowed e-voting or via shareholders registered email id on business resolutions. Post representation by many stakeholders regarding the difficulty, the MCA vide General Circular No....

April 15, 2020 · 13 min