The article below deals with the step by step procedure for company incorporation in India.
Minimum requirements for the formation of a Private Limited Company
- A minimum of two directors
- A minimum of two shareholders
- The directors and shareholders above mentioned can be same individual
- A minimum share capital of Rupees 1 Lakh
- DIN (Director’s Identification Number for the Directors)
- DSC (Digital Signature Certificate) for one of the directors. This digital signature is required for filing of various forms with the Roc
- Six proposed names of the new company
Step 1 : Obtain the DIN for all the directors and DSC for one of the Directors .
What is a DIN?
DIN is the director’s identification number which is a unique code or number that is issued by the ministry of corporate affairs through the MCA21 portal.
What are the requirements for obtaining a DIN ?
The following are the requirements for DIN Application:
For an Indian Individual:
a) Address proof: Passport, election card, ration card, driving licence, electricity bill, telephone bill or bank account can be attached but they should be in the name of the applicant only. In case the applicant is Indian the documents should not be older than 2 months from the date of filing of the form.
b) Identity Proof: Income-tax PAN is a mandatory requirement for proof of identity.
Note: In case of proofs which are in languages other than Hindi / English, the proofs should be translated in Hindi / English from professional translator carrying his details (name, signature, address) and seal. In the case the applicant is a foreign national the translation of documents done by foreign notary are also acceptable.
c) Email of the applicant
d) A passport size photograph of the applicant
e) Mobile Number of the applicant
f) Current occupation of the applicant
g) Highest Qualification of the applicant
h) Affidavit in the form available at
Note :
a) All the above issued documents should be self attested
b) In case the applicant is a foreigner a copy of passport is mandatory and the other documents should be attested by be apostilled and notorized in the country to which the applicant belongs.
Step 2: Obtain a DSC
DSC simply means digital signature certificate. The DSC is required for filing of incorporation forms as well as filing of other forms which form a part of compliance.
Documents required for obtaining DSC
a) The same set of self attested documents are required which are required for DIN
Step 3: checking for name availability and filing a form for name availability with the mca21:
The next step after obtaining the DSC and DIN is checking for name availability. The availability of the proposed name can be checked at http://www.mca.gov.in/DCAPortalWeb/dca/MyMCALogin.do?method=setDefaultProperty&mode=16 . After the company names are available a form 1A has to be filed with MCA21. The form discloses six proposed names of the company in the order of their preference and also discloses the significance of each of such names. While selecting such names it is always advisable to refer to the name availability guidelines, 2011 available at
Step 4: Drafting of Moa and AOA
The next step is drafting of Moa and Aoa. Moa is the fundamental constitution of the company and it covers all the aims and objects of the company and the ways and areas in which the company would operate. AOA on the other hand is the document which deals with the internal matters of the company. The drafting of Moa and Aoa is quite a technical matter and therefore it is advisable that legal consultancy should be taken in this regard.
Step 5: Filing of forms with the ROC (Form 1 , Form 18 and Form 32)
After the company name has been approved next comes the step of filing various forms with the Roc (Registrar of companies)
The attachments to various forms are listed as under:
Form 1 : MOA and Aoa , Declaration from first promoters in pursuance of Circular No 11/2013 . Format for the declaration is available at
Form 18: Proof of registered address, if the address is owned by a director and not taken on lease by the company a Noc from such director, if the premises has been taken on lease an noc from the owner of the premises
Form 32: No attachments
Step 6 : Payment of Roc fees and Stamp Duty
The ROC fees and the Stamp Duty fees can be calculated by using this link http://www.mca.gov.in/DCAPortalWeb/dca/MyMCALogin.do?method=setDefaultProperty&mode=15 . Once the form is filed through the MCA portal the requisite fees is supposed to be paid .
Step 7: Scrutiny of documents by Roc and clearing objections
After the forms and the various attachments have been filed the ROC will go through the documents and will clear the forms if they have no objections. If the documents are not proper the Roc can raise certain objections which can be later cleared by providing the relevant information. Once the scrutiny of documents is over and the documents are found to be adequate by the Roc , the certificate of incorporation can be downloaded from the transaction status page of MCA21.
Step 8: issuance of certificate of incorporation
After the scrutiny of documents the Roc will issue the certificate of incorporation .Then the company can commence its business and operations .