Form 23ACA is a legacy web form filed under the Companies Act, 1956, used by a company to file its profit and loss account and other documents with the Registrar of Companies. It is governed by Section 220 of the Companies Act, 1956 read with Rule 7B.

The form must be filed with mandatory attachments within the prescribed time period after the AGM is held or was supposed to be held, whichever is earlier. Form 23ACA is a linked filing accessible only after Form 23AC has been submitted, and several of its fields (financial year, auditor’s report signing date, CIN, Schedule VI applicability, industry type, previous reporting year) must exactly match the corresponding particulars entered in the linked Form 23AC.

Note: Form 23ACA relates to the repealed Companies Act, 1956. It remains relevant only for historical/pending compliance under that Act; profit and loss filings under the current regime are made as part of Form AOC-4 under the Companies Act, 2013.

Who Should File Form 23ACA / When is it Filed

Every company that has submitted Form 23AC for a financial year must correspondingly file Form 23ACA within the prescribed time period after the AGM is held or was due to be held, whichever is earlier — Form 23ACA can only be accessed once the linked Form 23AC has been submitted.

Important Checkpoints Before Filing

  • Applicant must be registered as a Business User on the MCA portal; company must hold a valid CIN
  • The signing authority must hold a valid, non-expired, non-revoked DSC, registered against the DIN/PAN/Membership number provided
  • Form 23ACA can be accessed only if the status of the linked Form 23AC is ‘Submitted’
  • Filing is not allowed if the ‘Financial year’ and the auditor’s report signing date (field 3b) entered differ from those in the linked Form 23AC
  • CIN, ‘Whether Schedule VI is applicable’ (field 4a), and ‘Type of industry’ (field 4b) must match the particulars entered in the linked Form 23AC
  • The ‘Previous reporting year’ dates entered must match those in the linked Form 23AC
  • If any other annual filing webform (20B/21A/23ACA-XBRL/66) is validated but not filed, proceeding with this webform nullifies the other’s validation
  • The practicing professional certifying the form must not be debarred
  • CIN status must not be Strike Off, Amalgamated, Converted to LLP, Dormant, Dissolved, Liquidated, Not available for eFiling, Under process of Strike off, Under Liquidation, Captured, or To be Migrated
  • ITC and NPCS codes required for certain fields are available on the MCA-XBRL portal under ‘Important Downloads’

Step-by-Step Filing Process

  1. Ensure the linked Form 23AC has already been submitted for the same financial year
  2. Access the MCA homepage and login with valid credentials
  3. Select MCA Services → Company e-Filing → Companies Act 1956 Forms → Form-23ACA
  4. Enter CIN information (must match the linked Form 23AC)
  5. Fill up the application, ensuring financial year, auditor’s report date, Schedule VI applicability, industry type, and previous reporting year match Form 23AC
  6. Save the webform as a draft (optional)
  7. Submit the webform and note the SRN
  8. Affix the DSC
  9. Upload the DSC-affixed PDF on MCA portal
  10. Receive acknowledgement

Signing Requirements

  • Digitally signed by an authorised signatory with a valid, non-expired, non-revoked DSC registered against their DIN/PAN/Membership number
  • Certification by a practicing Company Secretary, Chartered Accountant, or Cost Accountant, as applicable

Fee Structure

The Instruction Kit marks the fee-rules section as not applicable — Form 23ACA does not carry an independent fee; it follows the fee already paid on the linked Form 23AC.

Processing Mode

Form 23ACA is processed in STP mode — taken on record electronically without further processing. There is no provision for resubmission.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q1. Can Form 23ACA be filed independently? No — it is a linked filing accessible only after the corresponding Form 23AC has been submitted.

Q2. Is there a separate fee for Form 23ACA? No — the fee-rules section is marked not applicable; it follows the fee paid on the linked Form 23AC.

Q3. What details must match between Form 23AC and Form 23ACA? CIN, financial year, auditor’s report signing date, Schedule VI applicability, type of industry, and previous reporting year.

Q4. What is the filing deadline? Within the prescribed time period after the AGM is held or was due to be held, whichever is earlier — aligned with the Form 23AC deadline.

Q5. Is Form 23ACA processed automatically? Yes, it is processed in STP mode with no provision for resubmission.

Disclaimer

This article is based on the official Instruction Kit published by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA), Government of India. While every effort has been made to ensure accuracy, the content is intended for general guidance purposes only. MCA forms, rules, and fee structures are subject to change through amendments to the Companies Act, 2013 or notifications issued thereunder.

In case of any inconsistency or doubt, readers are advised to refer to the official MCA helpkit and resources available on MCA website.