Allotment of shares · Goa

Increasing paid-up capital.

Paid-up capital only moves one way: by issuing shares and allotting them. Which route you use decides everything that follows — the resolution, whether a registered valuer is needed, whether an offer letter has to go out before a single rupee is received, and how many days you have to file the return of allotment. Choosing the route after the money has arrived is how a straightforward funding round becomes a compounding penalty.

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Overview

There is no such thing as simply putting money in.

Money transferred by a promoter into the company's account is not capital. Until shares are allotted against it, it is a liability — and if the paperwork that should have preceded it does not exist, it can be treated as a deposit, which brings an entirely different and considerably less pleasant set of rules with it.

The sequence runs the other way round from the way most founders imagine. The company decides the route, passes the resolution the route requires, obtains a valuation where one is needed, issues the offer, receives the money into the correct bank account, allots within the permitted window, and only then files the return of allotment. Every one of those steps has a deadline attached, and several of them cannot be performed retrospectively.

Two preconditions sit above all of it. First, headroom: no company can allot shares beyond its authorized capital, so where the ceiling is short, it has to be raised first through a separate resolution and an SH-7 filing.

Second, form of holding: private companies other than small companies are now required under Rule 9B to issue and hold their securities only in dematerialised form. For a company inside that net, a fresh allotment cannot be made in physical certificates at all — an ISIN, a registrar and a depository connection have to be in place before the allotment, not after. Whether your company falls inside the rule is worth settling before the round, not during it.

Routes

Four ways paid-up capital increases.

They are not interchangeable. Who can subscribe determines which one is available to you.

Comparing the four allotment routes
RouteWho can subscribeApproval and valuationReturn of allotment
Rights issue
Section 62(1)(a)
Existing shareholders, in proportion to their holding Board resolution; letter of offer with an offer period of not less than 15 and not more than 30 days, shortened only with the consent the Act permits. No registered valuer report required PAS-3 within 30 days of allotment
Private placement
Sections 42 and 62(1)(c)
Identified persons only, subject to the annual cap on the number of persons Special resolution; valuation report from a registered valuer; PAS-4 offer letter to identified persons; money only through banking channels into a separate account PAS-3 within 15 days of allotment; MGT-14 within 30 days of the resolution
Bonus issue
Section 63
Existing shareholders, out of free reserves, securities premium or the capital redemption reserve Authorised by the articles; board recommendation and members' approval. Not permitted out of revaluation reserve, and not in lieu of dividend PAS-3 within 30 days of allotment
ESOP allotment
Section 62(1)(b)
Employees, directors and officers covered by an approved scheme, on exercise Members' approval of the scheme; private companies are permitted a relaxed resolution requirement. Register of employee stock options maintained PAS-3 within 30 days of allotment

A fifth situation behaves like an allotment without being an offer: conversion of a loan or of convertible instruments into equity, where the terms of conversion were approved by a special resolution before the money was accepted. Where that prior approval does not exist, the conversion cannot simply be minuted after the fact.

The real risk

Eight ways an allotment goes wrong.

These are the findings that turn up in due diligence, and most of them cannot be cured afterwards.

01

The money arrived before the offer went out

In a private placement the offer letter has to reach the identified person before that person pays. Money received first, with the paperwork constructed afterwards to match, defeats the entire scheme of Section 42 — and depending on the facts, the receipt can be characterised as a deposit rather than share application money.

Most serious
02

There was no headroom in the authorized capital

An allotment that takes issued capital above the authorized ceiling is not valid. The ceiling has to be raised first, by resolution and SH-7. Discovering this on the day of allotment costs weeks, because the increase has its own notice period.

Very common
03

Application money was taken in cash

Money against a private placement must come through banking channels, from the bank account of the person subscribing, into a separate bank account opened for the purpose — and it cannot be used for anything until allotment is made. Cash, third-party transfers and use of the funds in the interim are each independently problematic.

Serious
04

Allotment slipped past sixty days

Where money is received under a private placement, the shares have to be allotted within sixty days. If they are not, the money must be repaid within fifteen days of the expiry of that period, and interest runs after that. There is no provision for simply allotting late.

Common
05

No valuation, or a stale one

A preferential allotment requires a valuation report from a registered valuer, and the price at which shares are issued has to be supportable on the date of issue. A report obtained months earlier, or a price set by agreement without any report, exposes both the company and the subscriber to consequences under the income-tax provisions dealing with issue above and below fair value.

Frequently missed
06

PAS-3 filed late, or not at all

The return of allotment is due within fifteen days for a private placement and thirty days in the ordinary case. Until it is filed, the allotment is not on the record — and the company cannot use the money raised. Late filing attracts penalty on the company and on every officer in default.

Common
07

Share certificates were never issued

Certificates are due within two months of allotment, under the common seal or signed as the rules require, and stamp duty is payable on them under state law. Companies that complete the filing and then never issue certificates leave every subsequent transfer resting on nothing.

Overlooked
08

A non-resident subscribed and nothing was reported

Where the subscriber is a person resident outside India, the allotment is a foreign direct investment. Pricing has to satisfy the FEMA guidelines and the allotment has to be reported through the FIRMS portal within thirty days. Late reporting carries a late submission fee, and the exposure sits on the company, not the investor.

Cross-border
Deliverables

What you receive.

The complete allotment file — the documents an investor's counsel will ask for two years from now.

Route selectionWhich of the four routes fits, with the consequences of each set out
Headroom checkAuthorized capital tested against the proposed allotment before anything starts
Board and members' resolutionsDrafted with the explanatory statement the route requires
Offer documentsLetter of offer for a rights issue, or PAS-4 and the record of identified persons for a placement
Valuation coordinatedRegistered valuer engaged and the report timed to the allotment, not to the meeting
Banking instructionsThe separate account, the permitted sources of funds and the restriction on use
Allotment and PAS-3Board allotment resolution and the return filed inside the applicable window
MGT-14 where requiredFiled within 30 days of any special resolution
Certificates and registersShare certificates, stamp duty, register of members and the allotment register updated
FEMA reportingPricing check and the FIRMS filing where any subscriber is non-resident
The process

From decision to updated register.

Set out for a private placement, the most demanding of the four routes. A rights issue follows the same shape with fewer steps.

01

Structure and headroom

The route is chosen against who is subscribing and why. Authorized capital is tested against the proposed issue, and where the ceiling is short, the increase is built into the same meeting rather than run as a separate exercise weeks later.

Day 1–2
02

Valuation

A registered valuer is engaged and the report obtained before the price is fixed. Where a non-resident is subscribing, the price is also tested against the FEMA pricing guidelines, which set a floor that the commercial negotiation cannot go below.

Day 2–7
03

Board meeting and general meeting

The board approves the placement and the list of identified persons and calls the general meeting. Members pass the special resolution approving the offer. MGT-14 is filed within thirty days of the resolution.

Day 7–12
04

Offer letter and receipt of money

PAS-4 is issued to the identified persons and the record of the offer is maintained. Money is received only through banking channels, from each subscriber's own account, into the separate bank account opened for the issue, and is not touched until allotment.

Day 12–25
05

Allotment

The board allots within sixty days of receipt of the money. The allotment resolution, the list of allottees and the entries in the register of members and the register of allotments are all made on the date of allotment, not reconstructed later.

Within 60 days
06

Filing, certificates and reporting

PAS-3 is filed within fifteen days of allotment with the list of allottees. Share certificates are issued within two months and stamped. Where a subscriber is non-resident, the FIRMS reporting is completed within thirty days of the allotment.

Day 25–45
What we need from you

Four things to start.

The current capital position

What the ceiling is, what is issued, and who holds it today.

  • Memorandum and articles as they currently stand
  • Authorized, issued and paid-up capital
  • Shareholding pattern with face value and premium history

Who is putting money in

This single answer decides the route, the resolution and half the deadlines.

  • Existing shareholders, outside investors, employees, or a mix
  • Whether any subscriber is resident outside India
  • Whether an existing loan is being converted

The commercial terms

The numbers as agreed, before they are tested against valuation and pricing rules.

  • Amount, price per share and premium
  • Class of shares — equity, or preference with its own conditions
  • Any closing date fixed in a term sheet

Whether money has already moved

Uncomfortable but essential. It changes the advice completely, and it is far better dealt with at the start.

  • Any amount already received, and when
  • Which account it went into, and whether it has been used
  • Any earlier allotment where PAS-3 was not filed
Local note

What this looks like in Goa.

Loan conversion

The most common increase in the state is a director's or promoter's accumulated unsecured loan being converted into equity before an audit or a bank sanction. It works, but only where the terms of conversion were approved before the money was accepted — which is exactly the document that usually does not exist.

Hospitality partners

Bringing an operating partner into a resort or restaurant company is a preferential allotment to an identified person, not an informal arrangement. Valuation, offer letter and a separate account all apply even when the parties have known each other for twenty years.

Non-resident promoters

Goa companies frequently have promoters or relatives resident overseas. The moment one of them subscribes, FEMA pricing and FIRMS reporting apply, and the reporting obligation sits on the company.

Seasonal cash flow

Money often comes into the company mid-season out of urgency and gets regularised afterwards. That order of operations is the source of most of the defects on this page. A standing facility, properly documented, is a far cheaper answer.

Dematerialised holding

Where the company is inside the Rule 9B net, allotment in physical certificates is not available. The ISIN and depository connection have to exist before the round, and putting that in place takes weeks rather than days.

Questions

Paid-up capital, answered.

How does a company increase its paid-up capital?

Only by issuing shares and allotting them. There are four routes:

  1. Rights issue — to existing shareholders in proportion to their holding
  2. Private placement or preferential allotment — to identified persons, with a valuation report and a special resolution
  3. Bonus issue — capitalising free reserves, securities premium or the capital redemption reserve
  4. ESOP allotment — on exercise of options under an approved scheme

Each has its own resolution, its own documents and its own filing deadline. Transferring money into the company's account is none of these — until shares are allotted against it, the money is a liability, not capital.

Do we need to increase authorized capital first?

Only if there is not enough headroom. Issued capital can never exceed authorized capital, so the test is whether the proposed allotment fits under the existing ceiling.

Where it does not, the authorized capital has to be raised first — a members' resolution and Form SH-7. It is usually planned into the same general meeting as the allotment approval, so members deal with both at one sitting instead of meeting twice.

What is the deadline for filing PAS-3?

Fifteen days from the date of allotment where the shares were issued by private placement, and thirty days in the ordinary case, including a rights issue and a bonus issue.

The return is filed with the complete list of allottees. Until it is filed, the company is not permitted to use the money raised through the placement. Late filing attracts penalty on the company and on every officer in default, and the amount grows with the delay.

Can a promoter just transfer money and get shares later?

Not safely, and this is the most common defect we see. In a private placement the offer letter must reach the identified person before that person pays, the money must come through banking channels from that person's own account into a separate bank account opened for the issue, and it cannot be used for anything until allotment is made.

Money received first and documented afterwards risks being treated as a deposit rather than share application money, which brings a different regime entirely. Where money has already moved, say so at the outset — the options narrow but they are better than pretending the sequence was correct.

Is a valuation report always required?

For a preferential allotment or private placement, yes — a report from a registered valuer, and the price has to be supportable on the date of issue rather than on a date months earlier.

For a rights issue to existing shareholders in proportion to their holdings, no registered valuer report is required under the Companies Act, because nobody's proportionate position changes. Income-tax consequences can still arise where shares are issued above or below fair value, so the pricing is worth testing even where the Act does not compel a report. Where a non-resident subscribes, the FEMA pricing guidelines apply on top and set a floor.

What happens if shares are not allotted within 60 days?

Money received under a private placement has to result in an allotment within sixty days. If it does not, the company must repay it within fifteen days of the expiry of that period. Beyond that, interest runs on the amount held.

There is no mechanism to simply allot late and treat the delay as procedural. Where the sixty days are approaching and the allotment is not ready, the correct action is to repay and start again cleanly — unattractive, but far cheaper than the alternative.

When must share certificates be issued?

Within two months of allotment. Certificates are signed as the rules require, entered in the register of members, and stamped — stamp duty on share certificates is a state charge, payable under the Goa Stamp Act for a company registered here.

Where the company is required to hold securities in dematerialised form, certificates are not issued at all; the shares are credited to the allottee's demat account instead, which requires the ISIN and depository arrangements to be in place before the allotment.

What if the investor is not resident in India?

The allotment is foreign direct investment and two additional layers apply. The sector has to permit the investment on the terms proposed, the price cannot be below the floor set by the FEMA pricing guidelines, and the allotment has to be reported through the FIRMS portal within thirty days.

Late reporting attracts a late submission fee that increases with the delay, and the obligation sits on the Indian company rather than on the investor. Where an overseas subscriber is involved, this is planned at the start of the round, not at the end.

Can a director's loan be converted into shares?

Yes, but the conditions are stricter than most people expect. Conversion of a loan into equity is permitted where the terms of conversion were approved by a special resolution before the loan was accepted.

Where money was taken as a plain unsecured loan with no such approval, it cannot be converted simply by passing a resolution now. The practical answer is usually a repayment followed by a properly structured fresh subscription, or a rights issue, depending on the numbers — and the choice is worth taking advice on before anything is minuted.

How long does an allotment take?

A rights issue runs roughly twenty-five to thirty-five days, most of it the mandatory offer period. A private placement runs thirty to forty-five days from instruction, driven by the valuation and the general meeting notice.

Where the authorized capital also has to be increased, add the notice period for that resolution unless it is combined into the same meeting. A closing date fixed in a term sheet should be worked backwards from at least six weeks out.

Start here

Tell us who is putting money in, before it moves.

The current capital position, who is subscribing and the amount is enough to begin. You will get the route, the deadlines and the documents needed back the same day — and if money has already come in, say so; it changes the advice, not the willingness to help.

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