CCFS 2026: How to Clear Your Company's Pending MCA Filings Before August 31

Update (9 July 2026): MCA General Circular No. 03/2026 dated 8 July 2026 has extended the CCFS-2026 deadline from 15 July 2026 to 31 August 2026. This article has been updated accordingly.

What is CCFS 2026?

The Ministry of Corporate Affairs launched the Companies Compliance Facilitation Scheme 2026 (CCFS-2026) to give defaulting companies a one-time window to regularise overdue annual filings at a fraction of the normal penalty.

The scheme runs from 15 April 2026 to 31 August 2026. After that, the full late fee resumes with no concession.

The headline number: 90% of accumulated late fees are waived. A company that owes ₹2,00,000 in penalties pays only ₹20,000 under the scheme.

Which forms are covered?

CCFS 2026 covers the most common annual filing defaults for Indian companies:

If your company has missed any of these for one or more years, CCFS 2026 applies.

What exactly is waived — and what is not?

It is worth being precise here because the scheme has two components:

Waived: The additional late fee that accumulates when a filing is submitted after the due date. This is the penalty component that compounds over time.

Not waived: The normal or base filing fee for each form. This is payable in full, as it would be for any timely filing.

In practice, for companies with multiple defaulting years, the additional late fee is far larger than the base fee. The waiver is meaningful.

Why do companies end up in default?

Most annual filing defaults are not deliberate. They tend to happen in three situations:

Dormant companies that are still registered. A company was incorporated, used briefly, and then left running without formal activity. No one thinks about the ROC filings because the company has no business — but the MCA filing obligation never stops.

Handover gaps between CAs or CSs. When a company changes its professional advisor without a proper handover, annual filings can fall through the cracks. Each missed year adds another late fee.

Growth periods where compliance gets deprioritised. Founders building a product or closing a round often push compliance to the back. By the time it surfaces, there are two or three years of defaults stacked up.

What happens if you miss the August 31 deadline?

After CCFS 2026 closes:

• The full late fee resumes immediately.
• Directors of companies that have defaulted on annual filings for three consecutive years face disqualification under Section 164(2) of the Companies Act, 2013.
• The ROC can initiate strike-off proceedings for persistent non-filers.
• A company in default cannot easily open bank accounts, onboard investors, or pass a due diligence check.

None of these are hypothetical — they happen to companies that ignore the ROC calendar for too long.

Who is not eligible?

CCFS 2026 excludes:

• Companies already on the MCA strike-off list
• Companies that have already applied for dormancy or voluntary strike-off
• Formally dissolved companies
• Companies under active prosecution for specified offences

For everyone else — including companies with one, two, or three defaulting years — the scheme is available.

How to use CCFS 2026 before the deadline

The process has four steps:

• Audit the defaults. Pull the company's MCA21 filing history and identify every pending form across every defaulting year.
• Calculate the fee. Compute the government late fee payable at the CCFS concessional rate (base fee + 10% of the additional late fee).
• Prepare the forms. Gather audited financials, board minutes, director records, and auditor details for each defaulting year and prepare the MCA forms.
• File before 31 August 2026. Submit in the correct sequence on MCA21, pay the government fees, and collect the SRNs as proof of filing.

For most companies with one to three defaulting years, this can be completed in five to ten working days once documents are in hand.

The cost of waiting versus acting now

The scheme closes in 36 days from today. There is no indication MCA will extend it. Companies that act now get the 90% waiver. Companies that wait pay the full amount — or face consequences that go beyond fees.

If your company has pending MCA filings, this is the cheapest and cleanest way to clear them.

We handle end-to-end CCFS 2026 filings. We audit the defaults, calculate the fee, prepare the forms, and file on MCA21 before the deadline. Get in touch to start.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the CCFS 2026 scheme?

The Condonation of Delay Scheme 2026 (CCFS 2026) is an MCA amnesty window allowing companies to file overdue annual returns (MGT-7/MGT-7A) and financial statements (AOC-4/AOC-4 XBRL) for previous financial years with reduced penalties. The scheme waives additional fees for delayed filing, provided all pending documents are filed before the scheme deadline of 31 August 2026.

Which companies are eligible for CCFS 2026?

Companies that have been marked "Active-Non-Compliant" or have pending annual filings from previous years are eligible. Companies already struck off under Section 248 or those under liquidation are generally not eligible. The scheme applies to all forms of companies — private limited, public limited, OPC, and Section 8 companies.

What happens if I don't file before the CCFS deadline?

After the scheme expires, normal additional fees of ₹100 per day per form resume. More critically, continued non-filing risks: strike-off proceedings by the Registrar under Section 248, director disqualification under Section 164(2)(a) for 5 years, and inability to incorporate or serve as director in any new company.

Does CCFS 2026 restore disqualified directors?

Filing pending documents under CCFS can help in applying for restoration of disqualified directors, but disqualification is not automatically lifted. Directors must separately apply to the NCLT or relevant authority for removal of disqualification after bringing the company into compliance. The scheme provides the necessary compliance foundation for such applications.

What is the filing sequence for clearing pending MCA compliances?

File in chronological order: earliest pending financial year first. For each year: (1) hold or regularise the AGM, (2) file AOC-4 (financial statements), (3) file MGT-7A (annual return), (4) file DIR-3 KYC for all directors. Each subsequent year's filing depends on the previous year being current. Start immediately — backlogs compound quickly.

I'm CA Harun Raaj, Visakhapatnam. If any of this affects you or your business, reach out — I'd be glad to help.

---

See Also

• Lending Between Your Own Group Companies: Section 185 or Section 186? What the Companies Act Actually Requires
• "We charge our UK parent whatever is convenient": What arm's-length pricing actually requires
• Leaving Form AOC-2 blank: What the Companies Act actually requires for related-party disclosure

Need help with this?

Our team handles the paperwork. You focus on your business.