Short answer: registration takes 7 to 15 working days once your documents are in order. You need two directors and two shareholders (the same two people can be both), PAN and Aadhaar for each, one recent address proof each, and a utility bill plus NOC for the registered office. Cost is government fees plus stamp duty — which vary by state and by authorised capital — plus a professional fee. Anyone quoting one flat all-India number is quoting an incomplete one.
Who this is for
You are starting something and you have decided a Private Limited company is the right structure. If you have not decided yet, stop here — read Pvt Ltd vs LLP vs OPC or use the free entity chooser first. Registering the wrong structure is easy to do and expensive to undo.
If you are raising investment or issuing ESOPs, a Private Limited is almost certainly right, and you can carry on.
What you get
- Certificate of Incorporation with your CIN
- PAN and TAN for the company
- DIN for each director
- Digital Signature Certificate for each director
- Memorandum and Articles of Association
- Form INC-20A filed — the commencement of business declaration
- Share certificates issued to subscribers
- First board meeting documentation and first auditor appointment
That INC-20A line matters more than it looks. See the section below.
The process, step by step
1. Digital Signature Certificates — 1 to 2 days
Every proposed director needs a DSC before anything can be filed. This is video-KYC based now, so it moves quickly, but it cannot be skipped or shared.
2. Name reservation — 1 to 3 days
Filed through SPICe+ Part A. Your name must not be identical or deceptively similar to an existing company or a registered trademark — that second one catches people out constantly.
Always submit a second choice. Budget for one rejection; most first-time applicants get one, and a fresh application means paying the fee again.
3. Incorporation filing — 2 to 5 days
SPICe+ Part B, carrying the MOA, AOA, director declarations (DIR-2), and the INC-9 declaration. PAN, TAN, EPFO, ESIC and the bank account request are bundled into the same filing.
4. Certificate of Incorporation — 1 to 3 days
Issued by the ROC. Your company legally exists from the date on that certificate.
5. Post-incorporation — the part that gets missed
Covered in its own section below, because it is where most founders come unstuck.
Realistic total: 7 to 15 working days. MCA processing times fluctuate and a rejected name adds to it. Anyone promising a fixed number of days is promising something outside their control.
Documents you need
Full detail is in the document checklist. In short:
Every director and shareholder
- PAN card (mandatory for Indian nationals)
- Aadhaar card
- One photo ID — passport, voter ID or driving licence
- One address proof — bank statement or utility bill, dated within the last two months
- Passport-size photograph
- Personal email and mobile, because OTPs go directly to them
Registered office
- Recent utility bill for the premises, again within two months
- Rent agreement or ownership proof
- NOC from the property owner
A residential address is perfectly acceptable as a registered office.
Foreign or NRI directors need a passport in place of PAN, and all documents notarised and apostilled in the country of origin. Apostille takes weeks in some jurisdictions — start it before anything else.
> The single most common cause of delay is an address proof older than two months. Check the date before you send it.
What it costs
Your total is made of four things, and any quote that does not separate them is hiding something:
| Component | What drives it |
|---|---|
| Government fees | Your authorised capital |
| Stamp duty | A state subject — the same company costs different amounts in UP and Maharashtra |
| DSC | One per director |
| Professional fee | Ours. Fixed, and in writing, before any work starts |
Because stamp duty is state-specific and government fees scale with authorised capital, there is no honest single all-India figure. What we will give you is the exact split between government fees and our fee, in writing, before you pay anything.
Ask every firm you speak to — including us — for that split. If they will not put it in writing, that tells you something worth knowing.
One related point: set your authorised capital sensibly. You pay government fees on it, so setting it needlessly high costs money at incorporation for no benefit — but raising it later is its own filing and its own fee. A little above where you realistically expect to be is right.
After incorporation — three obligations start immediately
Getting the certificate is not the finish line. Plenty of low-cost packages stop exactly there.
- Form INC-20A — declaration of commencement of business, within 180 days of incorporation under section 10A. Until it is filed you cannot legally begin operations or borrow money. Non-filing carries ₹50,000 on the company plus ₹1,000 per day on each officer in default, capped at ₹1,00,000.
- First auditor — appointed by the Board within 30 days of incorporation, under section 139(6).
- First board meeting — within 30 days of incorporation, under section 173(1).
Then the annual cycle begins: AOC-4, MGT-7, ADT-1 and DIR-3 KYC. Delayed annual filings carry an additional fee of ₹100 per day, per form, under section 403 read with the Companies (Registration Offices and Fees) Rules, 2014, with effect from 1 July 2018 — and there is no upper cap on it.
Ask any provider what happens after the certificate, before you pay them.
Why us
A Company Secretary, a Chartered Accountant and a practising advocate work under one roof. You are not coordinating between three firms to solve one problem, and nobody can tell you the ROC filing was someone else’s job.
Fixed scope, written deliverables, and deadlines tracked rather than remembered.
Not sure where you stand?
Already incorporated and unsure what you owe the ROC? The free compliance deadline check turns your incorporation date into your full filing schedule and shows what is already overdue.
Ask us on WhatsApp — tell us your state and intended authorised capital and we will send the exact figure.
Frequently asked questions
How many people do I need?
Two directors and two shareholders. The same two people can hold both roles, so two people is enough.
Can I register from a different city to where I will operate?
Yes. Your registered office determines your ROC and stamp duty, not where you do business. We work with founders across India from Varanasi and Lucknow.
How long does it really take?
7 to 15 working days with documents in order. A rejected name adds to it, which is why a second choice matters.
Do I need a commercial address?
No. A residential address works, with a recent utility bill and an NOC from the owner.
What is the minimum capital?
There is no prescribed minimum paid-up capital for a private company. You can start small. Authorised capital is a separate number and affects your government fees.
What if I already have a company and just need compliance help?
That is most of what we do. See annual compliance.
Written by CS Anchal Rai, Partner at Vittara Global Advisory LLP. General information, not professional advice. Rules change — confirm for your specific case before acting.
