Post-Incorporation Checklist — Your First Filings
Incorporation is just the start. A new Pvt Ltd must hold its first board meeting and appoint an auditor within 30 days, file ADT-1 within 15 days of that, issue share certificates within 60 days, and file INC-20A within 180 days — miss it and it's ₹50,000 + ₹1,000/day and strike-off risk. An LLP is lighter: file the LLP agreement (Form 3) within 30 days, no INC-20A or auditor at the outset. Pick your entity below for a personalised, deadline-tagged checklist you can tick off.
Build Your Post-Incorporation Checklist
Personalised by entity type, with statutory deadlines. Tick items off as you go.
How to Use the Checklist
- Pick your entity type — a Pvt Ltd, OPC and LLP have materially different first-filing duties.
- Tick the situation boxes — hiring employees and needing GST add the relevant registrations.
- Optionally enter your date of incorporation — each task then shows its actual statutory due date.
- Generate the checklist, then tick items off as you complete them; the progress bar tracks how far along you are.
CA Tip: The two that catch founders out are INC-20A (180 days, but needs the bank account + subscription money first) and the first auditor (30 days). Sequence the bank account early so INC-20A isn't blocked. To budget the ongoing side, use the annual compliance cost estimator.
Key Post-Incorporation Deadlines (Company)
| Task | Deadline (from incorporation) |
|---|---|
| First board meeting | Within 30 days |
| Appoint first auditor (Sec 139(6)) | Within 30 days |
| File ADT-1 (auditor intimation) | Within 15 days of appointment |
| Open bank account + deposit subscription | As early as possible |
| Issue share certificates | Within 60 days |
| File INC-20A (commencement) | Within 180 days |
| Registered office intimation (INC-22, if needed) | Within 30 days |
| DIR-3 KYC (each director) | By 30 September annually |
See Patron's post-incorporation compliance guide and the dedicated INC-20A filing walkthrough.
Need Help with Post-Incorporation Compliance?
Patron Accounting LLP supports founders completing their first post-incorporation filings for a new company or LLP — for Pune, Mumbai, Delhi, Gurugram and pan-India clients.
LLP vs Company — Different First Steps
The post-incorporation duties diverge sharply by structure:
- Pvt Ltd / OPC: first board meeting, first auditor + ADT-1, share certificates, INC-20A, statutory registers, MBP-1/DIR-8 disclosures.
- LLP: the headline task is filing the LLP agreement in Form 3 within 30 days of incorporation. No INC-20A, no statutory auditor at the outset (unless turnover > ₹40L or contribution > ₹25L), no board meetings, no share certificates.
Both then open a bank account, hold PAN/TAN, take applicable registrations, and follow their annual cycle — see the Pvt Ltd compliance and LLP compliance pages. Still deciding between the two? Use the Pvt Ltd vs LLP tool.
What It Costs to Miss These
These aren't soft deadlines — several carry heavy penalties and director-level exposure:
- INC-20A: ₹50,000 on the company + ₹1,000/day per officer in default (max ₹1 lakh), and the ROC can strike the company off under Section 248.
- Annual filings (AOC-4 / MGT-7): ₹100 per day per form, with no upper cap — and directors risk disqualification after three years of non-filing.
- DIR-3 KYC: a missed KYC deactivates the DIN and costs ₹5,000 to reactivate.
Note: Deadlines and penalties are set by the Companies Act / LLP Act and change by notification; some steps depend on your specific facts. This is an educational planning aid — confirm your exact obligations with a CA or CS.
Beyond the First 180 Days — the First-Year Roadmap
The tasks above get you legally operational, but the first year keeps going. Once the immediate filings are done, the company settles into an annual rhythm administered by the MCA: a minimum of four board meetings spaced no more than 120 days apart, the first annual general meeting, and the year-end filings of AOC-4 (financial statements) and MGT-7 or MGT-7A (annual return) after the AGM. Alongside the MCA cycle sits the income-tax calendar run by the income-tax department — advance tax, TDS returns where applicable, and the company's own ITR — and the year-end statutory audit, which the first auditor you appointed will conduct under standards issued by the ICAI.
If you indicated you'll hire, the labour registrations feed their own ongoing returns: Provident Fund and ESI filings administered through the EPFO become monthly obligations once you cross the thresholds. And if your business has an innovative or scalable angle, this is also the natural moment to consider DPIIT recognition through the Startup India portal, since the benefits compound from early in the entity's life.
The practical takeaway is that the checklist above is the on-ramp, not the whole journey — building a simple compliance calendar in the first month, while the filings are fresh, is the single best way to avoid the per-day penalties that accrue silently when a deadline is missed.
Tip: Turn this into a recurring plan with the compliance calendar generator, and budget the year with the annual compliance cost estimator.
Tax & Labour Registrations to Consider
Beyond the MCA filings, most new businesses need one or more of these depending on activity, turnover and headcount:
- GST — on crossing the turnover threshold, or for inter-state / e-commerce supplies; many register voluntarily. See GST registration.
- Professional Tax — in states that levy it, often within 30 days of hiring. See PT compliance.
- PF & ESI — mandatory on crossing the employee thresholds. See ESIC compliance.
- Shops & Establishment — commonly required locally for premises and staff.
- DPIIT recognition — optional but valuable for startups; check eligibility with the DPIIT eligibility checker.