Charges Filing on MCA (Form CHG-1 / CHG-4)

Sections 77, 78 and 82 of the Companies Act, 2013 require every company to register with the Registrar of Companies any charge created on its property, assets or undertaking — whether located in India or outside — within 30 days of creation. Section 77(1) places the primary obligation on the company; Section 78 permits the charge-holder to apply for registration if the company fails to do so. An unregistered charge is void against the liquidator and other creditors of the company under Section 77(3), though the underlying debt obligation between the parties survives.

The Companies (Registration of Charges) Rules, 2014 prescribe the applicable forms: Form CHG-1 for creation or modification of a charge other than one securing debentures, Form CHG-9 for creation or modification of a charge for debentures (including a debenture trust deed), and Form CHG-4 for intimating satisfaction of a charge, to be filed within 30 days of the date of payment or satisfaction under Section 82.

Where the 30-day window for creation/modification is missed, Section 87 allows an application to the Central Government (delegated to the Regional Director) for condonation of delay and registration, generally permissible up to 300 days from the date of creation with additional fees on a slab basis under the Companies (Registration Offices and Fees) Rules, 2014; delays beyond 300 days require condonation by the National Company Law Tribunal.

Charges filing on the MCA is the statutory registration of the security interests a company creates over its assets. Under Section 77 of the Companies Act 2013, a company must register any charge it creates on its property or assets with the Registrar of Companies within 30 days of creation, in Form CHG-1. When the charge is repaid in full, the company must report the satisfaction of the charge in Form CHG-4 under Section 82. The public MCA record of charges is how lenders, buyers and creditors know what is encumbered and what is clean.

What makes the filing critical is Section 77(3): a charge not registered in time is void against the liquidator and other creditors of the company. A bank that lent against a hypothecation that was never registered holds a security that does not survive the company's insolvency — which is why every financial institution conditions disbursement on charge registration. The registration is not a formality between the company and the Registrar; it is the perfection of the lender's security.

Late filing has a price ladder built into the statute. Section 78 allows the company to apply for registration where the 30-day window was missed, and the additional fee regime of Section 403 applies to belated filings. In an insolvency, the consequences are sharper — an unregistered charge ranks behind the claims it was meant to secure.

This service is for companies creating, modifying or discharging charges — bank loans, equipment finance, working capital facilities and inter-corporate borrowings. We prepare and file Form CHG-1 within the 30-day window of Section 77, handle modifications, file Form CHG-4 for satisfaction of the charge under Section 82, and keep the MCA encumbrance record accurate for the next facility.