MCA, by way of a Notification dated August 18, 2022, has amended the Companies (Incorporation) Rules, 2014, by inserting a new Rule 25B for physical verification of the registered office of a company. This amendment inter alia provides that the Registrar must visit the registered office of a company based on information available on the MCA 21 portal and it may cause such physical verification in the presence of two independent witness of the locality where the registered office is situated and may also seek assistance of the local police for such verification, if required. The Registrar must also cross verify the details of the documents in support of the address available on the MCA 21 portal with the duly authenticated supporting documents, to be collected at the time of physical verification from the occupant of the property, evidencing such address to be the registered office address. A report of such physical verification in a prescribed format will also be required to be prepared by the Registrar.

Where the registered office of the company is found to be not capable of receiving and acknowledging all communications and notices, the Registrar must send a notice to the company and all the directors of the company, of his intention to remove the name of the company from the Register of Companies and requesting them to send their representations along with copies of relevant documents, if any, within a period of thirty days from the date of the notice before taking further actions in accordance with the provisions of Section 248 of the Companies Act, 2013 (this relates to the power of Registrar to remove the name of a company from the Register of Companies).

Certain consequential changes have also been made pursuant to another Notification dated August 18, 2022, whereby MCA has amended the Companies (Removal of Names of Companies from the Registrar of Companies) Rules, 2016, to incorporate “company is not carrying any business as revealed after physical verification of its registered office” as an additional ground for striking off the name of a company in certain e-forms being Form No. STK-1 (Notice by Registrar for removal of name of a company from the Register of Companies) and well as Forms No. STK-5 and STK – 5A (public notice).