AOC-4 is the e-form every Indian company files with the Registrar of Companies to submit its audited financial statements — balance sheet, profit and loss, auditor's report and board's report. It is due within 30 days of the AGM. Late filing attracts an additional fee of ₹100 per day with no upper cap.
In practice the sequence is: finish the statutory audit, hold the AGM (by 30 September for a March year-end), then file AOC-4 within 30 days — so typically by late October. Companies with consolidated accounts also file AOC-4 CFS, and certain classes of companies (listed and larger companies) must file in XBRL format instead of the plain form. The form needs the director's DSC and, for most companies, a practising professional's certification.
For an MSME owner the real work sits upstream: books closed, audit signed and AGM held on time. If your bookkeeping runs behind, the whole chain slips and the ₹100-a-day meter starts. Because the fee is per day per form and uncapped, a company that ignores it for a year owes more in additional fees than most firms charge for the entire annual compliance.
Common mistake: treating AOC-4 and the income-tax return as interchangeable. They are separate filings to separate regulators — a company must file both, and the ROC does not care that your ITR went in on time. Even a dormant company with zero revenue must file AOC-4 every year until it is formally struck off.
More Company & ROC terms
Reviewed to the law in force in FY 2026-27. General information, not advice — confirm the position for your facts before acting.