New Delhi: The government has extended the deadlines for companies to file their financial statements and annual returns for the financial year 2025-26 without paying additional fees, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) said in a circular, IANS reported on October 25.

Source: IANS

Under General Circular No. 05/2026, dated October 24, 2026, companies can file financial statements through Form AOC-4 and its variants — including consolidated financial statements, XBRL format and applicable NBFC forms — by December 31, 2026, without additional fees. The deadline for annual returns through Forms MGT-7 and MGT-7A has been extended to January 31, 2027.

Source: MCA General Circular No. 05/2026 via TaxGuru

31 Dec 2026Last date for FY26 financial statements (AOC-4 forms) without additional fees
31 Jan 2027Last date for FY26 annual returns (MGT-7 / MGT-7A) without additional fees

The ministry said the decision followed representations from stakeholders seeking more time to complete statutory filings. The Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI) had sought an extension until December 31, 2026, flagging frequent downtime and slow response times on the MCA-21 Version 3 portal, IANS reported.

The circular clarifies that the relaxation does not extend the statutory deadline for holding Annual General Meetings (AGMs). Filings made after the relaxation period will attract applicable fees, including additional fees calculated from the original statutory due date, according to the circular.