Chartered Accountant · ICAI M.No. 153926 · FRN 136869W
What it is
The yearly snapshot of the company’s structure and changes, separate from the financials in AOC-4.
60 days of AGM; MGT-7A for small/OPC
Small companies and OPCs file the abridged MGT-7A.
What it captures and who signs
MGT-7 is a structured snapshot of the company as at the financial year-end: its registered office and principal activities, the pattern of shareholding and any transfers during the year, the directors and key managerial personnel and changes among them, details of meetings held, remuneration, and any penalties or compounding. Small companies and one-person companies file the shorter MGT-7A. The return is filed within 60 days of the AGM and is certified by a director; certain companies also need certification by a practising company secretary in Form MGT-8. Because it draws on the registers of members and directors, those records need to be current and consistent with the DIR-12 and share-transfer filings made during the year. A frequent error is a shareholding pattern in MGT-7 that doesn’t match the register, or that doesn’t reconcile with the prior year’s return after an unrecorded transfer. Keeping the statutory registers updated as events happen, rather than reconstructing them at year-end, is what makes MGT-7 quick to prepare and accurate — and keeps it consistent with the financials filed in AOC-4.