Commencement of business, etc
Section 10A of the Companies Act, 2013 deals with commencement of business, etc. A company incorporated after the commencement of the Companies (Amendment) Act, 2019 and having a share capital shall not commence any business or exercise any borrowing powers unless-- (a) a declaration is filed by a director within a period of one hundred and eighty days of the date of incorporati The Act came into force on 01 Apr 2014.
1[10A. Commencement of business, etc.-- (1) A company incorporated after the commencement of the Companies (Amendment) Act, 2019 and having a share capital shall not commence any business or exercise any borrowing powers unless--
(a) a declaration is filed by a director within a period of one hundred and eighty days of the date of incorporation of the company in such form and verified in such manner as may be prescribed, with the Registrar that every subscriber to the memorandum has paid the value of the shares agreed to be taken by him on the date of making of such declaration; and
(b) the company has filed with the Registrar a verification of its registered office as provided in sub-section (2) of section 12.
(2) If any default is made in complying with the requirements of this section, the company shall be liable to a penalty of fifty thousand rupees and every officer who is in default shall be liable to a penalty of one thousand rupees for each day during which such default continues but not exceeding an amount of one lakh rupees.
(3) Where no declaration has been filed with the Registrar under clause (a) of sub-section (1) within a period of one hundred and eighty days of the date of incorporation of the company and the Registrar has reasonable cause to believe that the company is not carrying on any business or operations, he may, without prejudice to the provisions of sub-section (2), initiate action for the removal of the name of the company from the register of companies under Chapter XVIII.]
Section 10A, The Companies Act, 2013 (Act 18 of 2013).
Cross-references
Extracted from the operative text of the enactments themselves. Every destination below exists in our corpus.
This section refers to
Related judgements & precedents
These are some judgments that construed this section, and hold precedence value. They hold authority on how to read, interpret and use this section.
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BEE HOMES REALTY PRIVATE LIMITED vs REGISTRAR OF COMPANIES
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Non-filing of the declaration for commencement of business in Form INC-20A within 180 days of incorporation, as required by Section 10A(1), gave the Registrar reasonable cause to believe that the subscribers had not paid the subscription money and that the company was not carrying on business, and so to proceed under Section 248 and strike the name off the register. Where, however, the subscription money had in fact been received within time and only the declaration was inadvertently not filed, and the Registrar's report disclosed no adverse observation, the Tribunal held it a fit case for restoration under Section 252(1), subject to costs and to filing all overdue returns within 30 days.
On this section: It shows what a Section 10A(1) default actually produces in practice: the omission of the INC-20A declaration is treated as the Registrar's ground for believing the company has not commenced business and for striking it off, and the company must come to the Tribunal under Section 252 to undo that consequence.
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Nash Swimming Pool Experts Private Limited vs Union of India
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Where the adjudicating officer had imposed a penalty of Rs.50,000 on the company and Rs.10,000 on its defaulting officer under Section 454(3) for failure to file the declaration of commencement of business within 180 days of incorporation, and the Regional Director rejected the appeal as barred by the 60-day limit in Section 454(6), the Court set that rejection aside: applying the Supreme Court's order excluding 15.03.2020 to 02.10.2021 from limitation, the appeal was within time, and the Regional Director was directed to decide it on merits.
On this section: It confirms the enforcement route for a Section 10A default: the penalty is imposed by adjudication under Section 454 and the company's remedy is an appeal to the Regional Director, whose limitation is subject to the Supreme Court's pandemic exclusion order.
The holding above is the ratio decidendi as extracted from the judgment by eCourts India, reproduced unaltered — it is a rendering of the court's reasoning, not a substitute for its words. Read the order itself before relying on it.
Judgments citing this section
These may be obiter dicta or a precedent, for you to study. These are the judgments where this section is quoted.
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… The Respondent – HCL Technologies Ltd. is a company registered under the Companies Act, 1956 and engaged in the business of development and export of computer softwares and rendering technical services. (b) The Respondent has shown gross income from business at Rs. 267,01,76,529/- while claiming deductions under Section 10A of the IT Act to the tune of Rs. 273,45,39,379/- showing a net loss of Rs. 6,43,62,850/-. The Respondent filed its return of income for the Assessment Year 2004-05 on 01.11.2004 declaring the undisclosed income at Rs. 91,25,68,114/-. Thereafter, on 31.03.2005, a revised return of income for Rs. 91,16,99,060/- was …
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… The Respondent – HCL Technologies Ltd. is a company registered under the Companies Act, 1956 and engaged in the business of development and export of computer softwares and rendering technical services. (b) The Respondent has shown gross income from business at Rs. 267,01,76,529/- while claiming deductions under Section 10A of the IT Act to the tune of Rs. 273,45,39,379/- showing a net loss of Rs. 6,43,62,850/-. The Respondent filed its return of income for the Assessment Year 2004-05 on 01.11.2004 declaring the undisclosed income at Rs. 91,25,68,114/-. Thereafter, on 31.03.2005, a revised return of income for Rs. 91,16,99,060/- was …
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… The Respondent – HCL Technologies Ltd. is a company registered under the Companies Act, 1956 and engaged in the business of development and export of computer softwares and rendering technical services. (b) The Respondent has shown gross income from business at Rs. 267,01,76,529/- while claiming deductions under Section 10A of the IT Act to the tune of Rs. 273,45,39,379/- showing a net loss of Rs. 6,43,62,850/-. The Respondent filed its return of income for the Assessment Year 2004-05 on 01.11.2004 declaring the undisclosed income at Rs. 91,25,68,114/-. Thereafter, on 31.03.2005, a revised return of income for Rs. 91,16,99,060/- was …
Made under this section, and citing it
2 instruments state that it was made under this provision — the power to make it comes from here, so a change to any of them changes what this section requires in practice. Newest first.
Another 2 instruments name this provision in its title or its text without being made under it.
Questions about Section 10A
What have the courts held on Section 10A of the Companies Act?
BEE HOMES REALTY PRIVATE LIMITED vs REGISTRAR OF COMPANIES (08 Feb 2024) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: It shows what a Section 10A(1) default actually produces in practice: the omission of the INC-20A declaration is treated as the Registrar's ground for believing the company has not commenced business and for striking it off, and the company must come to the Tribunal under Section 252 to undo that consequence. Another 1 judgment on this section is set out below. They run from 2021 to 2024.
How do I find court cases under Section 10A of the Companies Act?
In judgments and charge sheets this section is written several ways, and each form finds a different set of orders. These search the full text of every order eCourtsIndia holds, best matches first: Companies Act 10A, section 10A Companies Act, section 10A of the Companies Act. People searching for it also type companies act 2013 section 10a. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 2 reported judgments on this section are set out on this page, beginning with BEE HOMES REALTY PRIVATE LIMITED vs REGISTRAR OF COMPANIES (08 Feb 2024).
What should I read with Section 10A of the Companies Act, and has it changed?
Its own text turns on section 12 (Registered office of company), so none of them can safely be read on its own. 1 other provision in this corpus refers back to it. The rules and notifications made under it are where it actually bites, and there are 2: most recently Companies (Incorporation) Amendment Rules 2022 (2022), then Companies (Incorporation) 4th Amendment Rules,2018 (2018).
When did Section 10A of the Companies Act come into force?
Section 10A of the Companies Act, cited as Companies Act 10A, came into force on 01 Apr 2014, having been enacted on 29 Aug 2013. It is in force as at the date shown on this page.
Other sections of this Act
- 2. Definitions5089 words
- 143. Powers and duties of auditors and auditing standards1867 words
- 230. Power to compromise or make arrangements with creditors and members1432 words
- 232. Merger and amalgamation of companies1416 words
- 149. Company to have Board of Directors1403 words
- 217. Procedure, powers, etc., of inspectors1390 words
Source and method. Compiled from the enactments of Parliament and of the State legislatures as published on India Code, and republished together with commentary and other original matter under section 52(1)(q)(ii) of the Copyright Act, 1957. Structured, cross-referenced and maintained by eCourtsIndia. Text as in force on 14 Oct 2026. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.