Hon’ble President has given his assent to Companies (Amendment) Ordinance, 2018 with effect from 02nd November 2018. Companies (Amendment) Ordinance, 2018 amends 31 Provisions of Companies Act, 2013.
The recommendation of the Union Cabinet for promulgation of the Companies Amendment (Ordinance), 2018 has been assented to by the President of India. The Ordinance, which has been promulgated today is based on the recommendations of the Committee appointed by the Government to review offences under the Companies Act, 2013.
The twin objectives of the Ordinance are promotion of Ease of Doing Business along with better corporate compliance. The main amendments are as under;
i. Shifting of jurisdiction of 16 types of corporate offences from the special courts to in-house adjudication, which is expected to reduce the case load of Special Courts by over 60%, thereby enabling them to concentrate on serious corporate offences. With this amendment the scope of in-house adjudication has gone up from 18 Sections at present to 34 Sections of the Act.
ii. The penalty for small companies and one person companies has been reduced to half of that applicable to normal companies.
iii. Instituting a transparent and technology driven in-house adjudication mechanism on an online platform and publication of the orders on the website.
iv. Strengthening in-house adjudication mechanism by necessitating a concomitant order for making good the default at the time of levying penalty, to achieve the ultimate aim of achieving better compliance.
v. Declogging the NCLT by:
a. enlarging the pecuniary jurisdiction of Regional Director by enhancing the limit up to Rs. 25 Lakh as against earlier limit of Rs. 5 Lakh under Section 441 of the Act;
b. vesting in the Central Government the power to approve the alteration in the financial year of a company under section 2(41); and
c. vesting the Central Government the power to approve cases of conversion of public companies into private companies.
vi. Recommendations related to corporate compliance and corporate governance include re-introduction of declaration of commencement of business provision to better tackle the menace of ‘shell companies’; greater disclosures with respect to public deposits; greater accountability with respect to filing documents related to creation, modification and satisfaction of charges; non-maintenance of registered office to trigger de-registration process; and holding of directorships beyond permissible limits to trigger disqualification of such directors. Text of Companies (Amendment) Ordinance, 2018 is as follows:-
MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE
(Legislative Department)
New Delhi, the 2nd November, 2018/Kartika 11, 1940 (Saka)
THE COMPANIES (AMENDMENT) ORDINANCE, 2018
No 9 OF 2018
Promulgated by the President in the Sixty-ninth Year of the Republic of India.
An Ordinance further to amend the Companies Act, 2013.
WHEREAS Parliament is not in session and the President is satisfied that circumstances exist which render it necessary for him to take immediate action;
Now, THEREFORE, in exercise of the powers conferred by clause (1) of article 123 of the Constitution, the President is pleased to promulgate the following Ordinance:-
1. Short title and commencement.
(1) This Ordinance may be called the Companies (Amendment) Ordinance, 2018.
(2) It shall come into force at once.
2. Amendment of section 2.
In section 2 of the Companies Act, 2013 (hereinafter referred to as the principal Act), in clause (41),—
(a) for the first proviso, the following provisos shall be substituted, namely:—
“Provided that where a company or body corporate, which is a holding company or a subsidiary or associate company of a company incorporated outside India and is required to follow a different financial year for consolidation of its accounts outside India, the Central Government may, on an application made by that company or body corporate in such form and manner as may be prescribed, allow any period as its financial year, whether or not that period is a year:
Provided further that any application pending before the Tribunal as on the date of commencement of the Companies (Amendment) Ordinance, 2018, shall be disposed of by the Tribunal in accordance with the provisions applicable to it before such commencement”;
(b) in the second proviso, for the words “Provided further that”, the words “Provided also that” shall be substituted.
3. Insertion of new section 10A.
After section 10 of the principal Act, the following section shall be inserted, namely:—
“10A.(1) A company incorporated after the commencement of the Companies (Amendment) Ordinance, 2018 and having a share capital shall not commence any business or exercise any borrowing powers unless—
(a) a declaration is filed by a director within a period of one hundred and eighty days of the date of incorporation of the company in such form and verified in such manner as may be prescribed, with the Registrar that every subscriber to the memorandum has paid the value of the shares agreed to be taken by him on the date of making of such declaration; and
(b) the company has filed with the Registrar a verification of its registered office as provided in sub-section (2) of section 12.
(2) If any default is made in complying with the requirements of this section, the company shall be liable to a penalty of fifty thousand rupees and every officer who is in default shall be liable to a penalty of one thousand rupees for each day during which such default continues but not exceeding an amount of one lakh rupees.
(3) Where no declaration has been filed with the Registrar under clause (a) of sub-section (1) within a period of one hundred and eighty days of the date of incorporation of the company and the Registrar has reasonable cause to believe that the company is not carrying on any business or operations, he may, without prejudice to the provisions of sub-section (2), initiate action for the removal of the name of the company from the register of companies under Chapter XVIII.
4. Amendment of Section 12.
In section 12 of the principal Act, after sub-section (8), the following sub-section shall be inserted, namely:—
“(9) If the Registrar has reasonable cause to believe that the company is not carrying on any business or operations, he may cause a physical verification of the registered office of the company in such manner as may be prescribed and if any default is found to be made in complying with the requirements of sub-section (1), he may without prejudice to the provisions of sub-section (8), initiate action for the removal of the name of the company from the register of companies under Chapter XVIII.”.
5. Amendment of section 14.
In section 14 of the principal Act,—
(i) in sub-section (1), for the second proviso, the following provisos shall be substituted, namely:—
“Provided further that any alteration having the effect of conversion of a public company into a private company shall not be valid unless it is approved by an order of the Central Government on an application made in such form and manner as may be prescribed:
Provided also that any application pending before the Tribunal, as on the date of commencement of the Companies (Amendment) Ordinance, 2018, shall be disposed of by the Tribunal in accordance with the provisions applicable to it before such commencement.”;
(ii) in sub-section (2), for the word “Tribunal”, the words “Central Government” shall be substituted.
6. Amendment of section 53.
In section 53 of the principal Act, for sub-section (3), the following sub-section shall be substituted, namely:—
“(3) Where any company fails to comply with the provisions of this section, such company and every officer who is in default shall be liable to a penalty which may extend to an amount equal to the amount raised through the issue of shares at a discount or five lakh rupees, whichever is less, and the company shall also be liable to refund all monies received with interest at the rate of twelve per cent. per annum from the date of issue of such shares to the persons to whom such shares have been issued.”.
7. Amendment of section 64.
In section 64 of the principal Act, for sub-section (2), the following sub-section shall be substituted, namely:—
“(2) Where any company fails to comply with the provisions of sub-section (1), such company and every officer who is in default shall be liable to a penalty of one thousand rupees for each day during which such default continues, or five lakh rupees whichever is less.”.
8. Amendment of section 77.
In section 77 of the principal Act, in sub-section (1), for the first and second provisos, the following provisos shall be substituted, namely:—
“Provided that the Registrar may, on an application by the company, allow such registration to be made—
(a) in case of charges created before the commencement of the Companies (Amendment) Ordinance, 2018, within a period of three hundred days of such creation; or
(b) in case of charges created on or after the commencement of the Companies (Amendment) Ordinance, 2018, within a period of sixty days of such creation, on payment of such additional fees as may be prescribed:
Provided further that if the registration is not made within the period specified—
(a) in clause (a) to the first proviso, the registration of the charge shall be made within six months from the date of commencement of the Companies (Amendment) Ordinance, 2018, on payment of such additional fees as may be prescribed and different fees may be prescribed for different classes of companies;
(b) in clause (b) to the first proviso, the Registrar may, on an application, allow such registration to be made within a further period of sixty days after payment of such advalorem fees as may be prescribed.”.
9. Amendment of section 86.
Section 86 of the principal Act shall be numbered as sub-section (1) thereof and after sub-section (1) as so numbered, the following sub-section shall be inserted, namely:—
“(2) If any person wilfully furnishes any false or incorrect information or knowingly suppresses any material information, required to be registered in accordance with the provisions of section 77, he shall be liable for action under section 447.”.
10. substitution of new section for section 87.
For section 87 of the principal Act, the following section shall be substituted, namely:—
Rectification by Central Government in Register of charges.
“87. The Central Government on being satisfied that —
(a) the omission to give intimation to the Registrar of the payment or satisfaction of a charge, within the time required under this Chapter; or
(b) the omission or misstatement of any particulars with respect to any such charge or modification or with respect to any memorandum of satisfaction or other entry made in pursuance of section 82 or section 83,
was accidental or due to inadvertence or some other sufficient cause or it is not of a nature to prejudice the position of creditors or shareholders of the company, it may, on the application of the company or any person interested and on such terms and conditions as the Central Government deems just and expedient, direct that the time for the giving of intimation of payment or satisfaction shall be extended or, as the case may require, that the omission or misstatement shall be rectified.”.
11. Amendment of section 90.
In section 90 of the principal Act,—
(i) for sub-section (9), the following sub-section shall be substituted, namely:—
“(9) The company or the person aggrieved by the order of the Tribunal may make an application to the Tribunal for relaxation or lifting of the restrictions placed under sub-section (8), within a period of one year from the date of such order:
Provided that if no such application has been filed within a period of one year from the date of the order under sub-section (8), such shares shall be transferred to the authority constituted under sub-section (5) of section 125, in such manner as may be prescribed;
(ii) in sub-section (10),—
(a) after the word “punishable”, the words “with imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year or” shall be inserted;
(b) after the words “ten lakh rupees”, the words “or with both” shall be inserted.
12. Amendment of section 92.
In section 92 of the principal Act, for sub-section (5), the following sub-section shall be substituted, namely:—
“(5) If any company fails to file its annual return under sub-section (4), before the expiry of the period specified therein, such company and its every officer who is in default shall be liable to a penalty of fifty thousand rupees and in case of continuing failure, with further penalty of one hundred rupees for each day during which such failure continues, subject to a maximum of five lakh rupees.”.
13. Amendment of section 102.
In section 102 of the principal Act, for sub-section (5), the following sub-section shall be substituted, namely:—
“(5) Without prejudice to the provisions of sub-section (4), if any default is made in complying with the provisions of this section, every promoter, director, manager or other key managerial personnel of the company who is in default shall be liable to a penalty of fifty thousand rupees or five times the amount of benefit accruing to the promoter, director, manager or other key managerial personnel or any of his relatives, whichever is higher.”.
14. Amendment of section 105.
In section 105 of the principal Act, in sub-section (3), for the words “punishable with fine which may extend to five thousand rupees”, the words “liable to a penalty of five thousand rupees” shall be substituted.
15. Amendment of section 117.
In section 117 of the principal Act, for sub-section (2), the following sub-section shall be substituted, namely:—
“(2) If any company fails to file the resolution or the agreement under sub-section (1) before the expiry of the period specified therein, such company shall be liable to a penalty of one lakh rupees and in case of continuing failure, with further penalty of five hundred rupees for each day after the first during which such failure continues, subject to a maximum of twenty-five lakh rupees and every officer of the company who is in default including liquidator of the company, if any, shall be liable to a penalty of fifty thousand rupees and in case of continuing failure, with further penalty of five hundred rupees for each day after the first during which such failure continues, subject to a maximum of five lakh rupees.”.
16. Amendment of section 121.
In section 121 of the principal Act, for sub-section (3), Amendment of the following sub-section shall be substituted, namely:—
“(3) If the company fails to file the report under sub-section (2) before the expiry of the period specified therein, such company shall be liable to a penalty of one lakh rupees and in case of continuing failure, with further penalty of five hundred rupees for each day after the first during which such failure continues, subject to a maximum of five lakh rupees and every officer of the company who is in default shall be liable to a penalty which shall not be less than twenty-five thousand rupees and in case of continuing failure, with further penalty of five hundred rupees for each day after the first during which such failure continues, subject to a maximum of one lakh rupees.”.
17. Amendment of section 137.
In section 137 of the principal Act, in sub-section (3),—
(a) for the words “punishable with fine”, the words “liable to a penalty” shall be substituted;
(b) for the words “punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months or with fine which shall not be less than one lakh rupees but which may extend to five lakh rupees or with both”, the words “shall be liable to a penalty of one lakh rupees and in case of continuing failure, with further penalty of one hundred rupees for each day after the first during which such failure continues, subject to a maximum of five lakh rupees” shall be substituted.
18. Amendment of section 140.
In section 140 of the principal Act, for sub-section (3), the following sub-section shall be substituted, namely:—
“(3) If the auditor does not comply with the provisions of sub-section (2), he or it shall be liable to a penalty of fifty thousand rupees or an amount equal to the remuneration of the auditor, whichever is less, and in case of continuing failure, with further penalty of five hundred rupees for each day after the first during which such failure continues, subject to a maximum of five lakh rupees.”.
19. Amendment of section 157.
In section 157 of the principal Act, for sub-section (2), the following sub-section shall be substituted, namely:—
“(2) If any company fails to furnish the Director Identification Number under sub-section (1), such company shall be liable to a penalty of twenty-five thousand rupees and in case of continuing failure, with further penalty of one hundred rupees for each day after the first during which such failure continues, subject to a maximum of one lakh rupees, and every officer of the company who is in default shall be liable to a penalty of not less than twenty-five thousand rupees and in case of continuing failure, with further penalty of one hundred rupees for each day after the first during which such failure continues, subject to a maximum of one lakh rupees.”.
20. Amendment of section 159.
For section 159 of the principal Act, the following section shall be substituted, namely:—
Penalty for default of certain Provision
“159. If any individual or director of a company makes any default in complying with any of the provisions of section 152, section 155 and section 156, such individual or director of the company shall be liable to a penalty which may extend to fifty thousand rupees and where the default is a continuing one, with a further penalty which may extend to five hundred rupees for each day after the first during which such default continues.”.
21. Amendment of section 164.
In section 164 of the principal Act, in sub-section (1), after clause (h), the following clause shall be inserted, namely:—
“(i) he has not complied with the provisions of sub-section (1) of section 165.”.
22. Amendment of section 165.
In section 165 of the principal Act, in sub-section (6), for the portion beginning with “punishable with fine” and ending with “contravention continues”, the words “liable to a penalty of five thousand rupees for each day after the first during which such contravention continues” shall be substituted.
23. Amendment of section 191.
In section 191 of the principal Act, for sub-section (5), the following sub-section shall be substituted, namely:—
“(5) If a director of the company makes any default in complying with the provisions of this section, such director shall be liable to a penalty of one lakh rupees.”.
24. Amendment of section 197.
In section 197 of the principal Act,—
(a) sub-section (7) shall be omitted;
(b) for sub-section (15), the following sub-section shall be substituted, namely:—
“(15) If any person makes any default in complying with the provisions of this section, he shall be liable to a penalty of one lakh rupees and where any default has been made by a company, the company shall be liable to a penalty of five lakh rupees.”.
25. Amendment of section 203.
In section 203 of the principal Act, for sub-section (5), the following sub-section shall be substituted, namely:—
“(5) If any company makes any default in complying with the provisions of this section, such company shall be liable to a penalty of five lakh rupees and every director and key managerial personnel of the company who is in default shall be liable to a penalty of fifty thousand rupees and where the default is a continuing one, with a further penalty of one thousand rupees for each day after the first during which such default continues but not exceeding five lakh rupees.”.
26. Amendment of section 238.
In section 238 of the principal Act, in sub-section (3), for the words “punishable with fine which shall not be less than twenty-five thousand rupees but which may extend to five lakh rupees”, the words “liable to a penalty of one lakh rupees” shall be substituted.
27. Amendment of section 248.
In section 248 of the principal Act, in sub-section (1), — Amendment of section 248.
(a) in clause (c), for the word and figures “section 455,”, the words and figures “section 455; or” shall be substituted;
(b) after clause (c) and before the long line, the following clauses shall be inserted, namely:—
“(d) the subscribers to the memorandum have not paid the subscription which they had undertaken to pay at the time of incorporation of a company and a declaration to this effect has not been filed within one hundred and eighty days of its incorporation under subsection (1) of section 10A; or
(e) the company is not carrying on any business or operations, as revealed after the physical verification carried out under sub-section (9) of section 12.”.
28. Amendment of section 441.
In section 441 of the principal Act,—
(a)in sub-section (1), in clause (b), for the words “does not exceed five lakh rupees”, the words “does not exceed twenty-five lakh rupees” shall be substituted;
(b) for sub-section (6), the following sub-section shall be substituted, namely:—
“(6) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, any offence which is punishable under this Act with imprisonment only or with imprisonment and also with fine shall not be compoundable.”.
29. Amendment of section 446B.
In section 446B of the principal Act, for the portion beginning with “punishable with fine” and ending with “specified in such sections”, the words “liable to a penalty which shall not be more than one half of the penalty specified in such sections” shall be substituted.
30. Amendment of section 447.
In section 447 of the principal Act, in the second proviso, for the words “twenty lakh rupees”, the words “fifty lakh rupees” shall be substituted.
31. Amendment of section 454.
In section 454 of the principal Act, —
(i) for sub-section (3), the following sub-section shall be substituted, namely: —
“(3) The adjudicating officer may, by an order—
(a) impose the penalty on the company, the officer who is in default, or any other person, as the case may be, stating therein any non-compliance or default under the relevant provisions of this Act; and
(b) direct such company, or officer who is in default, or any other person, as the case may be, to rectify the default, wherever he considers fit.”;
(ii) in sub-section (8), —
(a) in clause (i), for the words “does not pay the penalty imposed by the adjudicating officer or the Regional Director”, the words, brackets and figures “fails to comply with the order made under sub-section (3) or sub-section (7), as the case may be,” shall be substituted;
(b) in clause (ii), for the words “does not pay the penalty”, the words, brackets and figures “fails to comply with the order made under sub-section (3) or sub-section (7), as the case may be,” shall be substituted.
32. Insertion of a new section 454A.
After section 454 of the principal Act, the following section shall be inserted, namely:—
Penalty for repeated default.
“454A. Where a company or an officer of a company or any other person having already been subjected to penalty for default under any provisions of this Act, again commits such default within a period of three years from the date of order imposing such penalty passed by the adjudicating officer or the Regional Director, as the case may be, it or he shall be liable for the second or subsequent defaults for an amount equal to twice the amount of penalty provided for such default under the relevant provisions of this Act.”.
RAM NATH KOVIND,
President.
DR. G. NARAYANA RAJU,
Secretary to the Govt. of India.
