RM24 - Information, Statistics and MSME Reporting Orders

Chapter orientation

Why a one-section chapter needs enterprise-grade controls

Section 405 is short, but unusually broad. It allows the Central Government to ask for structured information about a company's constitution or working, set the deadline, verify the answer from records, inspect supporting documents and penalise both non-compliance and materially incorrect or incomplete information.

Not a survey request

Once a valid order is published, the information duty is statutory. Internal data gaps or portal difficulty do not by themselves suspend the obligation.

Not limited to annual filings

The Government may seek one-time, event-based, periodic or class-specific data.

Truth is a separate obligation

Timely filing does not protect a company that omits a material supplier, amount, transaction category or qualification.

Foreign companies are included

The section extends to a foreign company only in relation to the business it carries on in India.

The compliance question is never only "Was a form filed?" It is: Was the correct entity, period, population, amount, classification and explanation furnished on time and supported by records?

Section 405 architecture

Five sub-sections - one complete information-enforcement chain

Sub-section	Legal function	Professional question
405(1)	Power to require information/statistics	Who is covered, what data is required and by when?
405(2)	Gazette publication and deemed requirement date	What is the legal start date and precise wording of the order?
405(3)	Verification through records, inspection and further data	Can every reported figure be reproduced from source evidence?
405(4)	Penalty for failure or materially wrong/incomplete data	Who was responsible, how long did failure continue and was error material?
405(5)	Limited extension to foreign companies	Does the requested data relate to the foreign company's Indian business?

Full Bare Act

Section 405 - operative text

405. Power of Central Government to direct companies to furnish information or statistics.- (1) The Central Government may, by order, require companies generally, or any class of companies, or any company, to furnish such information or statistics with regard to their or its constitution or working, and within such time, as may be specified in the order. (2) Every order under sub-section (1) shall be published in the Official Gazette and may be addressed to companies generally or to any class of companies, in such manner, as the Central Government may think fit and the date of such publication shall be deemed to be the date on which requirement for information or statistics is made on such companies or class of companies, as the case may be. (3) For the purpose of satisfying itself that any information or statistics furnished by a company or companies in pursuance of any order under sub-section (1) is correct and complete, the Central Government may by order require such company or companies to produce such records or documents in its possession or allow inspection thereof by such officer or furnish such further information as that Government may consider necessary. (4) If any company fails to comply with an order made under sub-section (1) or sub-section (3), or furnishes any information or statistics which is incorrect or incomplete in any material respect, the company and every officer of the company who is in default, shall be liable to a penalty of twenty thousand rupees and in case of continuing failure, with a further penalty of one thousand rupees for each day after the first during which such failure continues, subject to a maximum of three lakh rupees. (5) Where a foreign company carries on business in India, all references to a company in this section shall be deemed to include references to the foreign company in relation, and only in relation, to such business.

Current penalty text: sub-section (4) was substituted with effect from 21 December 2020. Older books showing imprisonment or a different fine structure should not be used for current compliance.

Section 405(1)

Power to require information or statistics

Finin2min decoding: The Central Government may address an order to every company, a defined class, or a named company. The subject can concern either constitution (ownership, capital, governance, control, structure) or working (operations, payments, employment, financing, transactions, performance or other business data).

Breadth of addressee

An order can apply economy-wide or only to companies meeting an industry, size, ownership, transaction or payment condition.

Breadth of format

The order can prescribe an electronic form, structured table, attachment, return period and certification method.

Deadline is part of law

The time stated in the order is not an advisory target. A delayed response can trigger a continuing-failure calculation.

Applicability memo

For every order, document the legal entity population, trigger, relevant period, exclusions, data owner and approving officer.

Example: A manufacturing company buys components from several suppliers. A Section 405 order applies only if the statutory conditions defining a specified company are met. The finance team should not decide applicability merely from an ERP label such as "MSME vendor".

Section 405(2)

Official Gazette publication and deemed date

Finin2min decoding: Publication in the Official Gazette gives the order its formal legal trigger. The publication date is deemed to be the date on which the requirement is made for companies generally or the relevant class.

Control	Why it matters
Preserve Gazette copy	Portal instruction kits can change; the Gazette is the primary legal instrument.
Record publication and effective date	The order may commence on publication or specify another date.
Do not rely only on email alerts	An MCA message can aid compliance but cannot replace analysis of the legal order.
Build a change log	Track amendments to the trigger, form, period, fields, due date and signatory.

Board-level control: Compliance teams should maintain a statutory-orders register showing the notification number, publication date, covered entities, business owner, first reporting period and recurring due date.

Section 405(3)

Verification, production, inspection and further information

Finin2min decoding: Filing is not the end of the process. To test whether information is correct and complete, the Government may require production of records, allow an officer to inspect them, or demand further information.

Reperformance test

A reviewer should be able to recreate the return from the frozen source dataset and mapping logic.

Inspection readiness

Supplier certificates, contracts, invoices, acceptance records, dispute evidence, payment proof and ledger extracts should be indexed.

Version control

Keep the exact Excel/template imported, validation report, final PDF, DSC sign-off and SRN.

Correction protocol

If an error is found, assess materiality, legal correction route, regulator communication and impact on prior periods.

Data-room warning: A spreadsheet without source links is not a defensible working paper. For every material total, retain transaction-level detail and an evidence reference.

Section 405(4)

Penalty for default or materially wrong information

Liability can arise through three independent routes: failure to comply with the original information order, failure to comply with a verification order, or furnishing information that is incorrect or incomplete in a material respect.

Person	Initial penalty	Continuing failure	Maximum
Company	Rs 20,000	Rs 1,000 per day after the first	Rs 3,00,000
Every officer in default	Rs 20,000	Rs 1,000 per day after the first	Rs 3,00,000 each

Illustrative statutory formula = Rs 20,000 + (continuing days after first x Rs 1,000), capped at Rs 3,00,000 per liable person

Materiality is not a licence for casual errors. A field may be material because of amount, supplier identity, classification, repeated omission, regulatory purpose or the way it changes the applicability conclusion.

Officer-in-default defence file: retain assignment of responsibility, escalation records, data certifications, review notes and proof of prompt remediation. Title alone does not answer every liability question, but absent governance evidence personal exposure is harder to contest.

Section 405(5)

Foreign companies carrying on business in India

Finin2min decoding: A foreign company carrying on business in India is treated as a company for Section 405, but only for information connected with that Indian business.

India-only boundary

Do not automatically include global operations, global vendors or worldwide revenue unless the order and legal nexus require it.

FCRN and local books

The reporting team should reconcile the foreign company's Indian place-of-business records, local bank/payment data and Indian statutory accounts.

Shared-service risk

Global ERP data may mix India and non-India transactions. Legal-entity and branch filters must be tested.

Authorised representative

Confirm who may sign the prescribed form and retain authority documentation.

Example: A foreign company has an Indian project office and offshore headquarters. A supplier invoice booked offshore but economically relating to the Indian project requires a careful nexus analysis; geography of payment alone is not determinative.

Implementation framework

Section 405 order versus ordinary Companies Act filings

Instrument	Legal origin	Example	Section 405?
Gazette order under Section 405	Specific Government information power	MSME Form I order	Yes
Act + Companies Rules	Specific substantive section and rule	AOC-4, MGT-7, PAS-3	No, unless separately ordered
Deposit Rules	Companies (Acceptance of Deposits) Rules	DPT-3	No
Regulator query / notice	Inspection, inquiry or another statutory power	Case-specific information notice	Depends on cited legal power
Portal advisory	Administrative guidance	Downtime or filing instruction	Not by itself a Section 405 order

Correction to a common misconception: DPT-3 is a data return, but it does not arise under Section 405. The source provision, rule or Gazette order must be identified for each filing.

MSME Form I

2019 principal order and 2024 amendment

The most important recurring use of Section 405 is the Specified Companies (Furnishing of information about payment to micro and small enterprise suppliers) Order, 2019.

Instrument	Key effect
S.O. 368(E), 22 January 2019	Created the one-time and half-yearly MSME Form I reporting framework for specified companies.
S.O. 2751(E), 15 July 2024	Inserted a proviso limiting periodic filing to specified companies having payments pending to a micro or small enterprise for more than 45 days; substituted the form.
Current half-year periods	April-September and October-March.
Current statutory due dates	31 October and 30 April respectively.

Legal-file pack: retain both the principal order and amendment order. Reading only the revised e-form can miss the legal trigger; reading only the order can miss the expanded data fields in the revised form.

Trigger versus form fields: the 2024 proviso limits recurring filing to a specified company having payments pending to a micro or small enterprise for more than 45 days from acceptance/deemed acceptance. The substituted form also classifies payment behaviour, including payments made after 45 days. Document applicability and data population separately.

MSME Form I decision tree

Who should file the half-yearly return?

1. Buyer is a company

The order is company-specific; LLPs and partnerships are not brought in merely because they are buyers.

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2. Supplier is micro or small

Medium enterprises do not trigger this form. Validate current classification evidence.

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3. Goods or services accepted

Identify acceptance or deemed-acceptance date from commercial evidence.

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4. Payment pending beyond 45 days

The 2024 proviso is framed around pending payments exceeding 45 days.

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5. Prepare entire form dataset

Use the revised form's categories and retain the legal interpretation adopted.

Conservative control position: The 2024 proviso focuses on companies having payments pending beyond 45 days, while the substituted form expressly asks to report amounts due beyond 45 days or liquidated after 45 days. Companies should document how they reconcile the trigger wording with the form's reporting breadth and obtain advice for borderline fact patterns.

Supplier classification

Current micro, small and medium thresholds from 1 April 2025

Category	Investment in plant/machinery or equipment	Turnover	MSME Form I relevance
Micro	Not more than Rs 2.5 crore	Not more than Rs 10 crore	Included
Small	Not more than Rs 25 crore	Not more than Rs 100 crore	Included
Medium	Not more than Rs 125 crore	Not more than Rs 500 crore	Not included in MSME Form I trigger

Both tests matter: classification is based on the notified composite criteria and linked Government data. Do not classify a supplier from turnover alone, old certificates, a purchase-order label or a self-written email.

Vendor-master evidence: retain Udyam Registration Number, enterprise name, PAN/GST linkage, classification, effective date, reclassification date and the date on which evidence was obtained.

Supplier-status controls

Udyam evidence, effective dates and legal population

A reliable MSME Form I population begins before invoice processing. Procurement and accounts payable must capture the supplier's legally relevant status at onboarding and refresh it at least annually and upon notification of a change.

Legal identity match

Match Udyam name and PAN to the contracting and invoicing entity. A group company's certificate cannot be borrowed.

Effective-date control

Do not assume a later registration or reclassification automatically rewrites the legal status of earlier supplies.

Enterprise versus trader issue

Analyse the nature of supplier activity and current legal position; do not rely only on a portal category.

Declaration with warranty

Vendor declarations should require prompt notice of status changes and indemnity for knowingly false information, without replacing independent validation.

Example: A supplier submits a micro-enterprise certificate in February after invoices were accepted in the preceding April. The company should not simply mark the entire historical ledger as micro. It should analyse the legal status and effective date applicable to each reporting population.

Payment clock

Acceptance, deemed acceptance, appointed day and 45-day maximum

The 45-day test is not a simple invoice-date ageing report. It starts from acceptance or deemed acceptance under the MSMED framework and interacts with written objections and the agreed credit period.

Concept	Operational meaning
Acceptance	Actual acceptance of goods or services.
Deemed acceptance	Where no written objection is raised within the statutory window, acceptance is deemed under the MSMED framework.
Appointed day	The day immediately after expiry of 15 days from acceptance or deemed acceptance.
Written agreement	Payment can be set by agreement, but the agreed period cannot exceed 45 days from acceptance or deemed acceptance.
Dispute evidence	A generic ERP hold or oral complaint is not equivalent to a properly evidenced written objection.

Age for control testing = reporting/payment date - legally supportable acceptance or deemed-acceptance date

Common error: ageing every invoice from invoice date can overstate or understate delays. Record goods receipt, service completion, acceptance, written objection, resolution and payment separately.

Revised MSME Form I

What the substituted form asks companies to report

Data block	Required information / control
Company information	CIN/FCRN, company name, registered office, email and PAN.
Return period	Periodic half-yearly return with start and end dates.
Supplier identity	MSE supplier name and PAN.
Paid within 45 days	Counts and amounts, split between TReDS and other payment modes.
Paid after 45 days	Counts and amounts.
Outstanding 45 days or less	Counts and amounts.
Outstanding more than 45 days	Counts and amounts.
Reason	Reason for delay in payment / outstanding amount.
Declaration and signature	Truth-and-correctness declaration by permitted authorised signatory.
Attachments	Optional supporting attachment; preserve the imported Excel template and final data file.

Form-design implication: The revised form is broader than a single overdue total. It requires transaction population, timing buckets and payment-mode data. A closing AP ageing report alone will not populate it correctly.

MSME Form I framework

Applicability, clock and data controls

Compliance calendar

Half-year cut-off, review and filing timetable

Reporting half-year	Cut-off date	Statutory due date	Recommended internal milestones
1 April to 30 September	30 September	31 October	Freeze data by 5 Oct; vendor status by 10 Oct; finance review by 18 Oct; sign-off by 25 Oct.
1 October to 31 March	31 March	30 April	Freeze data by 5 Apr; vendor status by 10 Apr; finance review by 18 Apr; sign-off by 25 Apr.

Calendar governance: Configure due dates by legal entity, not by business unit. A group with 30 companies may need 30 separate applicability conclusions and returns.

Holiday/portal risk: Do not schedule final sign-off on the statutory due date. Filing remains the company's responsibility even when source data is dispersed across locations.

Data architecture

Minimum transaction-level fields for a defensible return

Domain	Minimum fields
Vendor master	Vendor ID, legal name, PAN, GSTIN, Udyam number, classification, effective dates, validation evidence.
Contract/PO	Goods/service type, agreed payment term, business owner, acceptance mechanism, TReDS eligibility.
Invoice	Invoice number/date, amount, tax, receipt date, legal entity, supplier ID.
Acceptance	GRN/service-entry date, acceptance date, written-objection date, dispute resolution date.
Payment	Payment date, amount, mode, TReDS flag, partial-payment allocation, bank reference.
Reporting	Age bucket, reason code, free-text explanation, inclusion/exclusion rationale, form row ID.
Evidence	Document link, preparer, reviewer, extraction timestamp and version hash/reference.

The reportable unit is not "vendor balance" alone. It is the supplier-invoice-acceptance-payment chain, mapped to the legal entity and reporting period.

Reconciliation framework

From sub-ledger to statutory return

1. Extract full AP population

Include paid and unpaid transactions for identified micro/small suppliers.

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2. Validate supplier status

Resolve mismatches and effective-date exceptions.

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3. Compute legal ageing

Use acceptance/deemed acceptance, not blindly invoice date.

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4. Map form buckets

Within 45, after 45, outstanding within 45, outstanding beyond 45, TReDS/other.

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5. Reconcile and explain

Tie to AP, GL, financial-statement disclosures and prior return movements.

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6. Approve and archive

Owner certifications, signatory approval, imported file, final form and SRN.

Reconciliation	Expected result
Opening overdue + new reportable invoices - payments/credits = closing overdue	No unexplained movement.
Supplier-level rows to form totals	Exact match.
Form total to Section 22 MSMED disclosure	Difference explained by scope, timing, presentation or accounting basis.
Prior-half-year closing to current opening	Changes supported by payment, credit note, dispute or status evidence.

Reason-for-delay field

How to write explanations that are truthful and useful

Weak wording	Why weak	Better control approach
Administrative delay	Generic and non-verifiable.	Use coded root cause: invoice mismatch, quality dispute, approval lapse, cash-flow hold, system block; add ageing owner.
Under process	Does not explain why statutory time elapsed.	State actual workflow stage and corrective action.
Vendor issue	May wrongly shift responsibility.	Describe the documented issue and written communication date.
Dispute	Not enough without evidence.	Link written objection, nature of dispute and resolution status.
Payment made subsequently	Does not cure historical delay.	Report correct bucket and payment date; explain subsequent clearance separately.

Disclosure risk: The reason field can become evidence in supplier disputes, audit, board review or adjudication. It should be factual, consistent with records and professionally reviewed.

Connected but separate obligations

MSME Form I versus accounting, tax and payment-law consequences

Requirement	Source	What it does
MSME Form I	Section 405 order	Half-yearly corporate information return.
Payment within maximum period	MSMED Act	Creates substantive buyer payment obligation.
Compound interest	MSMED Act	Consequence of delayed payment, generally at the statutory multiple of the RBI bank rate.
Annual financial-statement disclosure	MSMED Act Section 22 + accounting presentation	Discloses principal and interest information in annual accounts.
Income-tax deduction timing	Income-tax law	Separate tax treatment of specified payments; test current applicable provision and year.
TReDS / onboarding requirements	RBI/MCA or other applicable framework	Separate financing/onboarding obligation for notified enterprises.

Single source of truth: Use one MSE sub-ledger to feed statutory return, interest computation, annual disclosure, tax working and supplier-payment dashboard, while preserving each law's different scope and cut-off.

End-to-end filing workflow

Operational playbook for each legal entity

Stage	Owner	Evidence
1. Applicability	Company Secretary / legal	Signed applicability memo and Gazette order.
2. Vendor classification	Procurement + master-data team	Udyam validation and exception log.
3. Transaction extraction	Accounts payable / IT	Frozen report with extraction parameters.
4. Legal ageing	Finance + business owner	Acceptance/dispute/payment mapping.
5. Reconciliation	Financial controller	AP, GL, financial-disclosure and prior-period tie-out.
6. Review	CS/legal + CFO	Review checklist, material exceptions and legal interpretation.
7. Sign and file	Authorised signatory	DSC authority, final form, SRN and challan.
8. Post-filing	Compliance owner	Master-data update, board dashboard and remediation tracker.

Maker-checker rule: The person extracting the report should not be the only reviewer of supplier status, acceptance date, formula logic and final form totals.

Declaration and accountability

What the authorised signatory is actually certifying

The revised form contains a truth-and-correctness declaration. Signing is not a ceremonial DSC step. The signatory should receive a documented certification pack.

Legal certification

The entity is or is not a specified company under the current order.

Data certification

Population is complete; supplier classification, ageing and amounts were checked.

Reconciliation certification

Totals agree to defined ledgers and differences are documented.

Exception certification

Known disputes, overrides, manual entries and subsequent events are disclosed to the signatory.

Do not sign a black box: An imported spreadsheet prepared by a consultant or shared-service centre does not reduce management responsibility. The company must understand the logic and be able to reproduce the return.

Adjudication and enforcement

How a Section 405 default typically progresses

1. Default detected

Non-filing, late filing, verification failure or material inconsistency.

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2. Show-cause / adjudication

Registrar or adjudicating officer seeks explanation and responsibility.

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3. Evidence and hearing

Company demonstrates applicability, filing, cause, officer roles and remediation.

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4. Penalty order

Penalty calculated under current Section 405(4), subject to facts and statutory relief.

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5. Appeal / compliance

Appeal under the Act where available; file/correct return and close root cause.

2026 enforcement signal: ICSI's February 2026 digest reports multiple ROC Coimbatore orders involving delayed MSME Form I filings by Natrinai Ventures Limited. For periods with delays ranging from roughly three months to more than three years, the reported orders imposed the statutory maximum of Rs 3 lakh each on the company and relevant directors.

Lesson: Separate half-years can produce separate proceedings. A later filing may stop continuing default, but does not erase the historical delay.

Audit and governance interface

What auditors, secretarial teams and boards should test

Reviewer	Key procedures
Statutory auditor	Understand MSE population, test Section 22 disclosures and interest, evaluate completeness and control deficiencies.
Secretarial auditor	Check Section 405 order applicability, due dates, SRNs, delayed filings and board-level compliance systems.
Internal auditor	Test vendor onboarding, ageing logic, manual overrides, dispute evidence and root causes for delayed payments.
Audit Committee	Review recurring overdue exposures, control failures, liquidity causes and supplier-concentration risk.
Board	Monitor compliance posture, officer accountability and remediation where delays are systemic.

No false comfort: A nil return or non-filing conclusion should be supported by a documented population test, not an email stating "finance confirmed no MSME dues".

Internal control matrix

Preventive and detective controls

Risk	Preventive control	Detective control	Evidence
Wrong supplier class	Validated Udyam onboarding and annual refresh	Exception report for missing/expired evidence	Supplier-status register
Wrong ageing start	Contractual acceptance workflow	Sample compare ERP date to GRN/service evidence	Acceptance test sheet
Unrecorded disputes	Mandatory written-dispute ticket	Aged disputed-invoice review	Dispute log and correspondence
Partial-payment error	Invoice-level allocation logic	Recalculate sampled allocations	Payment-allocation file
Omitted legal entity	Group compliance calendar	Entity-to-return reconciliation	Entity coverage memo
Late filing	T-30/T-15/T-5 milestones	Daily overdue escalation	Calendar and escalation log
Material error	Four-eye form review	Post-filing analytical review	Signed checklist
Unsupported reason	Standard reason codes + owner approval	Review free text against evidence	Reason-code register

Practical case bank

Ten decisions a finance or compliance professional should make

1. Medium supplier only

Facts: A company has Rs 5 crore overdue for 80 days to an enterprise classified as medium.

Answer: The transaction does not trigger MSME Form I because the order concerns micro and small suppliers, though other contractual and accounting obligations remain.

2. Micro supplier paid on day 60

Facts: The company paid a micro supplier after 60 days, and no amount is pending at half-year end.

Answer: The 2024 proviso and revised form must be read together. The form expressly captures amounts liquidated after 45 days. Document the legal position and reporting approach; do not silently exclude.

3. Old Udyam certificate

Facts: The supplier's certificate shows small status two years ago.

Answer: Refresh classification for the relevant period. Current thresholds/status and effective dates matter.

4. Invoice-date ageing

Facts: ERP shows 50 days from invoice but goods were accepted 20 days later.

Answer: Recompute from acceptance/deemed acceptance with evidence; invoice date alone is not conclusive.

5. Oral quality complaint

Facts: Business says goods were disputed but no written objection exists.

Answer: Do not automatically reset the clock. Assess deemed acceptance and preserve the legal conclusion.

6. Nil AP balance

Facts: All invoices were cleared before 31 March, but several were paid after 45 days.

Answer: A closing-balance-only report is incomplete for the revised form, which asks for paid-after-45-day data.

7. Foreign project office

Facts: A foreign company carries on business through an Indian project office.

Answer: Section 405 can apply to the foreign company for its Indian business; use FCRN and India-specific records.

8. Portal filed with wrong PAN

Facts: The form was on time but one supplier PAN is wrong and amount is material.

Answer: Timeliness does not cure material incorrectness. Assess correction and regulator communication.

9. Group filing

Facts: Parent files one consolidated return for five subsidiaries.

Answer: Each company is a separate statutory person unless the form/order provides otherwise. Perform entity-level filing.

10. DPT-3 confusion

Facts: Finance assumes every information return is under Section 405.

Answer: Incorrect. DPT-3 arises under the deposit rules. Identify the legal source of every form.

Professional checklist

MSME Form I close and filing checklist

Applicability

Current Gazette orders reviewed
All group legal entities screened
Micro/small status validated
Pending-over-45-day trigger tested
Borderline interpretation documented

Data

Complete supplier and invoice population
Acceptance/deemed-acceptance evidence
Written disputes separately mapped
Payments and TReDS mode captured
Partial payments allocated

Review

Form buckets recalculated
Supplier PAN and name checked
AP/GL/form reconciliation complete
Reasons supported and approved
Prior-period movement explained

Filing and archive

Correct half-year selected
Permitted signatory and DSC verified
Imported template retained
SRN and final PDF archived
Exceptions moved to remediation tracker

Finin2min Q&A

Rapid answers for finance, legal and examination use

Q1. Does every company file MSME Form I?

No. The periodic filing trigger is limited by the specified-company framework and the 2024 proviso.

Q2. Are medium enterprises included?

No. The recurring order is for micro and small enterprise suppliers.

Q3. Is invoice date always day zero?

No. The legal clock is based on acceptance or deemed acceptance.

Q4. Can the agreed credit period be 90 days?

It may be contractual, but the MSMED statutory maximum relevant to delayed payment cannot exceed 45 days.

Q5. Does payment before half-year end always remove the transaction?

Not necessarily. The revised form expressly contains a paid-after-45-days bucket.

Q6. Is a nil filing mandatory?

The 2024 proviso is framed around companies having pending payments beyond 45 days. Document the applicability conclusion from the current order and form.

Q7. Can one return cover a corporate group?

No, each company is a separate reporting person unless the law expressly provides consolidation.

Q8. Does an SRN prove accuracy?

No. The form is taken on file based on the company's statement of correctness.

Q9. Can the Government ask for supporting records?

Yes, under Section 405(3).

Q10. What is the current maximum penalty?

Rs 3 lakh for the company and Rs 3 lakh for each officer in default, subject to the statutory facts.

Q11. Is DPT-3 a Section 405 return?

No. It arises under the Companies (Acceptance of Deposits) Rules.

Q12. Should old thresholds be used?

No. Current MSE classification thresholds apply from 1 April 2025, with effective-date analysis for the reporting facts.

Final revision framework

Section 405 in one page

GAZETTE ORDER -> APPLICABILITY -> DATA POPULATION -> RECONCILIATION -> AUTHORISED CERTIFICATION -> FILING -> VERIFICATION -> ENFORCEMENT

Remember	Rule
Power	Government may require all, a class, or one company to furnish constitution/working information.
Start date	Gazette publication is the deemed requirement date for general/class orders.
Verification	Records, inspection and further information may be required.
Penalty	Rs 20,000 + Rs 1,000/day, capped at Rs 3 lakh each.
Foreign company	Included only for Indian business.
MSME Form I	Half-yearly: 30 April and 31 October.
Supplier scope	Micro and small only.
Ageing	Acceptance/deemed acceptance; agreement cannot exceed 45 days.
Core evidence	Udyam + invoice + acceptance + dispute + payment + reconciliation + SRN.

Finin2min rule: Never sign an information return unless the company can defend the legal population, recreate every number and produce the underlying records.

Source register

Primary legal and current enforcement references

Companies Act, 2013 - India Code PDF (Section 405)
https://www.indiacode.nic.in/bitstream/123456789/2114/5/A2013-18.pdf

Specified Companies (Furnishing of information about payment to micro and small enterprise suppliers) Order, 2019 - S.O. 368(E)
Official Gazette S.O. 368(E), 22 January 2019 - MCA/Gazette repository

Specified Companies Amendment Order, 2024 - S.O. 2751(E)
Official Gazette S.O. 2751(E), 15 July 2024 - MCA/Gazette repository

Substituted MSME Form I, 15 July 2024
Current MCA MSME Form I and instruction kit

Revised MSME classification notification S.O. 1364(E), effective 1 April 2025
https://www.dcmsme.gov.in/Notification-S.O-no-1364-E-dated-21.03.2025-Revised-Definition.pdf

Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Act, 2006
https://samadhaan.msme.gov.in/WriteReadData/DocumentFile/MSMED2006act.pdf

ICSI Chartered Secretary, February 2026 - gist of adjudication orders
https://www.icsi.edu/media/webmodules/CSJ/Feb2026/36.pdf

Update discipline: This package is Reviewed through 28 June 2026. Before filing, verify the current Gazette order, form version, MCA instruction kit, portal validations and supplier classification evidence.