The government has allowed directors to submit requisite KYC details by paying a reduced fee of Rs 500 till October 5, providing leeway for lakhs of directors who failed to comply with the requirement.
Around 21 lakh directors failed to submit the requisite details when the deadline set by the Corporate Affairs Ministry ended on September 15.
Now, directors can submit the information by paying Rs 500 till October 5, according to a notification issued by the ministry on September 20.
The ministry has completed de-activation of the Director Identification Numbers (DINs) of individuals who did not submit the DIR-3 KYC (Know Your Customer) form by the initial deadline.
DIN is a unique number allotted to individuals who are eligible to have directorship on the boards of registered companies.
The de-activated DINs would be re-activated by paying the requisite fee. For the 15-day period, the fee amount has been reduced to Rs 500 from Rs 5,000.
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"From October 6, 2018, onwards, a fee of Rs 5,000 becomes payable for re-activation (of DINs)," the ministry said in a notice on its website.
About the 15-day window with a lower fee, the Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI) said discussions with the ministry have yielded positive results as it has granted a further extension with reduced fee of Rs 500.
"We are hopeful that this further extension shall provide much needed relief to the stakeholders. The stakeholders are advised to utilise the extended time for filing the said form," ICSI President Makarand Lele said in a statement.
He also said that an ICSI delegation had presented the difficulties faced by stakeholders before Corporate Affairs Minister Arun Jaitley, Minister of State for Corporate Affairs P P Chaudhary and Corporate Affairs Secretary Injeti Srinivas about issues related to KYC compliances.
ICSI is the apex body of company secretaries.
In June, the ministry decided to carry out KYC process for all directors.
Out of 33 lakh active directors, only around 12.15 lakh directors completed the KYC process by September 15. Around 21 lakh individuals failed to ensure compliance, an official had said.