JMJA and Associates LLP

CBDT, by order dated 31st August, 2017 , has extended the due date for filing Income Tax returns and Audit reports from September 30, 2017 to October 31, 2017 for the following assesses covered under clause (a) of Explanation 2 to sub-section (1) of Section 139 of Income Tax Act, 1961. A company, A person (other than company) whose accounts are required to be audited under this act or under any other law for the time being in force A working partner of a firm whose accounts are required to be audited under this act or under any other law for the time being in force.

Revised Secretarial Standards on Meetings of the Board of Directors (SS-1) and General Meetings (SS-2)                                                                                                           Secretarial Standards on Meetings of the Board of Directors (SS-1) and General Meetings (SS-2) were approved by the Central Government under Section 118(10) of the Companies Act, 2013 on 10 th April, 2015 and were published in the Gazette of India Extraordinary Part III -Section 4 on 23 rd April, 2015 vide ICSI Notification No. (1) SS of 2015, making them effective from 1 st July, 2015. SS-1 and SS-2 have now been revised by ICSI and the same have been approved by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs ( MCA) vide its letter No. 1/3/2014-CL.I dated 14 th June, 2017. The revised SS-1 and SS-2 shall be applicable to all the companies (except the exempted class of companies) w.e.f. 1 st October, 2017 and accordingly all Board Meetings (including meetings  of commit

Q 1.     Is the observance of Secretarial Standards issued by ICSI mandatory? Ans.     Section 118(10) of the Companies Act, 2013 mandates the observance of Secretarial Standards on General and Board Meetings specified by The Institute of Company Secretaries of India and approved by the Central Government. Accordingly, the Secretarial Standards on Meetings of the Board of Directors (“SS-1”) and Secretarial Standards on General Meetings (“SS-2”), as approved by the Central Government, have been issued by the ICSI for observance by all companies (except exempted class of companies). Q 2.     What is the effective date of revised SS-1 and SS-2? Ans.     The revised SS-1 & SS-2 shall be applicable for compliance by all the companies (except the exempted class of companies) w.e.f.  1 st October, 2017 in respect of Meetings of Board & its Committees and General Meetings for which Notices are issued on or after the said date, and will supersede the existing SS-l

Are you aware that as many as  81 lakh  Aadhaar numbers and  11 lakh  PANs (Permanent Account Numbers) have either been deleted or deactivated? From July 1, quoting of Aadhaar - a 12-digit identity number based on biometrics data - has been made mandatory for filing of income tax returns (ITRs) as well as for applying for a new PAN, a 10-digit alphanumeric number allotted by the Income Tax Department. While the government has explained the rationale behind  why seeding of Aadhaar into PAN database is essential , it has time and again used multiple platforms to urge assessees to link their Aadhaar with PAN.  August 31  is the last date to do this. So if you haven't done this already, you need to link your Aadhaar with PAN soon. But first, it is advisable to  check  whether both your identities - Aadhaar and PAN - are active. Here's how you can check the status of your Aadhaar: A tool on the UIDAI website, called 'Verify Aadhaar Number', enables service provider

Recently, since SEBI took action against 331 Shell Companies, the word Shell Company is in the news more often and while it is used by many news channels and government officials alike, surprisingly, there is no proper definition of Shell Company is available or in other word there are no particular way a Shell Company is classified. What does it mean? It means that a Company which is Shell Company as per SEBI may not be Shell Company per se if proven in court of law.  So what is Shell Company after all? Shell Company is not a legally defined word but it is generally used to describe a Company which has no business activity. Shell Company may not necessarily used for Money Laundering or illegal activities per se .  Shell company is not a word defined under Companies Act, 2013. However, in general team it means a Company which does not have any business or a business which is different from what it is apparently visible. These are generally a non-trading company used as a vehicl

As per Companies Act, 2013, a Public Company can be converted into Private Company. However, unlike, the Companies Act, 1956, the process requires NCLT approval. Step by step process for conversion of Public Company into Private Company is as under: Give atleast 7 days notice (or shorter notice as per the provisions of Act) to call Board Meeting of the Company Hold Board Meeting for approval of conversion of Company into Private Limited subject to approval of Tribunal and approve notice calling General Meeting to obtain shareholders approval for conversion and alteration of MOA & AOA (of Private Limited Company). Hold General Meeting and obtain shareholders approval by way of Special Resolution for Conversion of the Company and approving alteration in MOA & AOA  of the Company.  File form MGT-14 within 30 days of passing of Special Resolutions. Give news Paper Advertisement atleast 14 days before filing of petition with NCLT.  File a Petition with National Compan

As per Companies Act, 2013 a company can be formed in any of the following way— Public Company (any seven or more persons can come together to form a public company);  Private Company (any two or more persons can come together to form a public company);  One Person Company (any one or more individual form a One Person Company)  Steps in Incorporation Step 1: Acquiring Digital Signature Certificate (DSC) A Digital Signature Certificate (DSC) is mandatory for all the Directors/Applicants of a Company. A DSC is a signature of an Individual in digital mode which is used to sign e-documents or documents in soft copies. Step 2: Obtaining of Director Identification Number (DIN)  Director Identification Number (DIN) is a permanent unique identification number allotted to Individuals by Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) (more or less similar to PAN issued by Income Tax Authorities). DIN is mandatory for all Directors and individual is required to obtain DIN before

Elbert Hubbard, an American writer, once said "Responsibility is the price of Freedom." While the corporate expects government to give more freedom to facilitate ease of doing business in India, Government of India is ensuring Companies who gets exemptions (freedom) from stricter compliance do its part of filing on time.  Prime Minister Modi on July 1, 2017 at CA day announced and which was later confirmed by FM Arun Jaitley in Parliament, registration of nearly 1.62 lakh companies were cancelled by Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA). In a follow up suit SEBI recently banned 331 so called 'Shell Companies' from trading on Stock Exchanges. The criteria for Shell Companies were not very clearly defined but it is understood that any Companies, which has not filed its Annual Filing Forms (Form AOC-4 Balance Sheet and/or Form MGT-7 - Annual Return) for period of 2 or more year is considered as a Shell Company automatically. MCA, had issued notices to all suc