Company Name Change Process in India: Overview
Changing your company's name in India means filing a sequence of five MCA actions: board
resolution, RUN name reservation, special resolution at an EGM, Form MGT-14,
and Form INC-24. After that, the Registrar of Companies issues a fresh
Certificate of Incorporation. Miss any one filing or document, and the Registrar either rejects
the application outright or sends it back for resubmission, which can add weeks to what should
be a 30-to-45-day process.
This guide walks a Private Limited Company, LLP, or director through every stage of that process
on the MCA V3 portal, with the exact forms, realistic fee ranges, document checklists, and the
compliance updates that come after your new Certificate of Incorporation arrives.
Typical Timeline
30–45 Working Days
RUN Name Validity
60 Days
Key Takeaways
A name change runs through four MCA filings in order: RUN, Form MGT-14, Form
INC-24, and a fresh Certificate of Incorporation (Form INC-25).
Shareholders must approve the new name by special resolution under Section 13,
requiring at least 75% voting support at an Extraordinary General Meeting.
Your CIN never changes, only the name. Every contract, licence, and registration
tied to the CIN stays legally valid.
RUN name approval for an existing company changing its name stays valid for 60
days, three times longer than the 20-day window given to a brand-new
incorporation.
PAN, TAN, GST registration, and bank accounts all need separate update applications
after the new Certificate of Incorporation is issued. The MCA filing alone does not
update them automatically.
What Changing a Company's Name Actually Involves
Section 13 of the Companies Act, 2013 treats a name change as an alteration to your company's
Memorandum of Association. The name clause in your MOA is the first line any lender, vendor, or
government department checks, so the law requires the same level of shareholder consent you
would need to alter your company's objects or registered office state.
Your Corporate Identity Number stays exactly the same before and after the change. That single
fact resolves most of the anxiety directors have going into this process: your company is not
becoming a new legal entity, it is the same entity wearing a new name. Existing loan agreements,
leases, vendor contracts, and litigation all continue under the same CIN. You will typically
send counterparties a notification referencing the old and new names together, rather than
renegotiating anything.
A name change is voluntary in most cases: a rebrand, a shift in business focus, a merger that
calls for a shared identity, or simply dropping wording that no longer fits. It can also be
directed by the Registrar under Section 16 if your existing name too closely resembles another
registered company or infringes a trademark. In that case the window to act is shorter and
non-negotiable.
If your plan involves
a brand-new entity rather than renaming an existing one, you would be looking at a fresh
private limited company registration
instead of this process.
Who This Process Applies To
Any Private Limited Company, Public Limited Company, One Person Company, or Section 8 Company
registered under the Companies Act follows the RUN → MGT-14 → INC-24 sequence described here.
LLPs follow a parallel but separate route, since they are governed by the LLP Act, 2008 rather
than the Companies Act.
| Entity |
Name Reservation |
Name Change Filing |
Governing Law |
| Private / Public Limited, OPC, Section 8 |
RUN |
MGT-14, then INC-24 |
Companies Act, 2013 |
| LLP |
RUN-LLP |
Form 5 |
LLP Act, 2008 |
If your entity is an LLP and you are also behind on yearly filings, sort that out through
LLP annual compliance
before you touch the name change, because the Registrar's portal checks for pending defaults
before it lets certain filings through.
Practical gate across entity types: a company with overdue annual returns or
financial statements on record often finds its INC-24 application stalled or queried by the ROC.
Clearing pending
ROC annual return filings
first saves you a second trip through the process.
Documents You Need Before You File Anything
Gather these before you touch the MCA portal. Missing even one is the single biggest reason RUN
or INC-24 applications bounce back for resubmission.
| Document |
Purpose / Note |
| Board resolution |
Approves the proposed name(s) and authorises the RUN filing
|
| Two proposed names, in order of preference |
RUN allows up to two per application |
| Digital Signature Certificate |
Of the authorised director or company secretary |
| EGM notice with explanatory statement |
Explanatory statement under Section 102 |
| Certified copy of the special resolution |
Passed at the EGM |
| Minutes of the EGM |
Attached to INC-24 |
| Altered MOA and AOA |
Reflecting the new name |
| RUN approval letter / SRN |
Service Request Number of the approved name |
| Form MGT-14 SRN |
Once filed |
| Director's declaration |
States the genuine reason for the change (Rule 29, Companies (Incorporation)
Rules, 2014)
|
| Existing Certificate of Incorporation and PAN |
Of the company |
Company Name Change: Step-by-Step on MCA V3
| Step |
Action |
Form |
Typical Timing |
| 1 |
Board approves proposed name(s), authorises RUN filing and EGM notice
|
Board Resolution |
Day 1 |
| 2 |
Reserve the new name |
RUN |
Day 2–5 (name valid 60 days) |
| 3 |
Hold EGM, pass special resolution (75% majority) |
None (internal meeting) |
Day 10–21 |
| 4 |
File the special resolution with the Registrar |
MGT-14 |
Within 30 days of the EGM |
| 5 |
Apply for Central Government approval of the name change
|
INC-24 |
Promptly after MGT-14 is processed |
| 6 |
ROC approves and issues a fresh Certificate of Incorporation
|
INC-25 |
10–20 days after INC-24 |
1
Pass the Board Resolution
The board meets first and does three things in one resolution: approves one or two
proposed names, authorises a director or CS to file the RUN application, and calls the
Extraordinary General Meeting. This resolution is not filed anywhere by itself. It is
the internal authority that lets everything downstream happen, and it belongs in your
minutes book.
2
Reserve the Name Through RUN
RUN (Reserve Unique Name) is the MCA V3 web service for an existing company reserving a
new name. Submit your CIN, up to two proposed names in order of preference, and pay the
₹1,000 government fee. The Central Registration Centre checks the names against the
company and LLP register and registered trademarks, and rejects anything identical or
deceptively similar, or anything implying a government connection without approval. Once
approved, the name stays reserved for 60 days. If both names are rejected, you resubmit;
RUN gives one free resubmission per application, after which a fresh application and fee
apply.
3
Hold the EGM and Pass the Special Resolution
Convene the EGM on the notice period the board authorised (commonly 21 days, or shorter
if 95% of members consent in writing). The special resolution under Section 13 needs at
least 75% of votes cast in favour. A plain majority does not clear this bar. This is
where the new name clause formally replaces the old one in the MOA and AOA, subject to
the Registrar's later approval.
4
File Form MGT-14
MGT-14 registers the special resolution with the Registrar. It is proof that
shareholders validly approved the resolution, not the name-change application itself.
File within 30 days of the EGM, attaching the certified resolution, the EGM notice and
explanatory statement, and the altered MOA and AOA. Late filing fees run per day of
delay with no fixed ceiling, so calendar this deadline the moment the EGM concludes.
5
File Form INC-24
INC-24 is the actual application for approval of the name change. It references both the
RUN SRN and the MGT-14 SRN, carries the director's declaration on the reason for the
change, and attaches the EGM minutes and altered MOA/AOA. No separate statutory deadline
is fixed for INC-24, but file promptly so your 60-day RUN reservation does not run out
mid-process.
6
Receive the Fresh Certificate of Incorporation
Once the Registrar is satisfied, it issues a fresh Certificate of Incorporation (Form
INC-25) in the new name. Your CIN carries over unchanged. This certificate is what makes
the name change legally effective, not the EGM and not the MGT-14 filing.
Government Fees and Realistic Timeline
Expect three separate fee lines, and budget for the top of each range rather than the bottom.
| Filing |
Government Fee |
Note |
| RUN |
₹1,000 flat |
Non-refundable, regardless of company size |
| MGT-14 |
About ₹200 to ₹600 |
Authorised-capital slab: roughly ₹200 for capital under ₹1 lakh, rising in steps
to ₹600 for capital above ₹1 crore
|
| INC-24 |
Varies by capital and company type |
Publicly quoted figures range from capital-slab pricing similar to MGT-14 up to
flat fees in the ₹1,000–₹20,000 band for larger authorised capital. Confirm the
exact amount the MCA V3 portal calculates at the time of filing
|
INC-24 is the fee most
likely to have changed by the time you file. Do not budget against any fixed number quoted
online, ours included. The MCA V3 portal shows the exact amount for your authorised capital and
company type.
Realistic End-to-End Timeline
A realistic end-to-end window runs 30 to 45 working days:
3 to 5 working days
RUN approval typically clears.
20 to 25 days
EGM notice period and MGT-14 filing.
10 to 15 working days
INC-24 approval once filed clean.
Companies that get queried by the ROC on documentation, the most common cause of delay, can see
this stretch to 60 days or more.
Post Name-Change Compliance: What to Update and Where
The fresh Certificate of Incorporation is the beginning of your compliance work, not the end of
it. None of the following update automatically just because MCA records show the new name.
| Item |
What to Do |
| PAN and TAN |
File a correction request with the Income Tax Department's PAN service,
attaching the new Certificate of Incorporation. The PAN number does not change,
only the name linked to it.
|
| GST registration |
Apply for a core field amendment on the GST portal within the prescribed window.
GSTIN stays the same, but every invoice issued after the change must show the
new legal name. If GST registration is still pending for any entity in your
group, see
New GST Registration Online.
|
| Bank accounts |
Banks typically ask for the new Certificate of Incorporation, a board resolution
authorising the name update, and updated KYC before they reissue chequebooks and
update records.
|
| MOA and AOA |
Printed and stored copies need the new name clause. The alteration was already
drafted for MGT-14, so this is mostly about circulating updated copies.
|
| Statutory registers and common seal |
Update the register of members, register of directors, and your company seal if
you use one.
|
| Licences, trademarks and registrations |
Trade licences, import-export code, professional tax, PF and ESI registration,
and any trademark filed under the old name each need a separate update
application.
|
| Letterheads, invoices, website, signage |
Not a legal filing, but the most visible change, and one many companies
under-prioritise.
|
| Contracts and agreements |
Existing contracts stay valid under the same CIN. Send a short notification
letter to counterparties referencing both names instead of a full amendment.
|
Common Mistakes That Delay or Derail a Name Change
| Mistake |
Why It Hurts |
|
Filing RUN without checking the trademark register
|
MCA checks its own company and LLP database automatically, but a name clashing
with a registered trademark in an unrelated field can still trigger a rejection
or a dispute after approval.
|
|
Letting the special resolution fall short of 75%
|
An ordinary majority is not enough. A Section 13 name change specifically
requires special-resolution status.
|
| Missing the 30-day MGT-14 deadline |
Per-day late fees with no cap make this the costliest deadline in the sequence.
|
|
Filing INC-24 against a company with pending ROC defaults
|
Overdue annual filings are a common reason the Registrar queries or holds up the
application.
|
| Letting the 60-day RUN window lapse |
An expired reservation cannot be renewed. You reapply from scratch, with a fresh
fee and the risk that someone else reserves the name.
|
Frequently Asked Questions
Got questions? Find clear answers from our CA / CS compliance team:
No. The Corporate Identity Number stays identical before and after approval. Only
the name linked to that CIN changes, which is also why existing contracts, licences,
and litigation continue without being reissued.
Most companies complete the full sequence (RUN, EGM, MGT-14, INC-24, and the fresh
Certificate of Incorporation) in 30 to 45 working days when documentation is clean
on the first attempt. Add 15 to 20 days if the ROC raises a query on any filing.
No. The board can only approve the proposed name and authorise the RUN filing. The
actual decision requires a special resolution passed by shareholders at an EGM with
at least 75% approval, under Section 13.
You get one free resubmission on the same application if either of your two proposed
names is rejected. If both fail on resubmission too, you file a fresh RUN
application with a new ₹1,000 fee.
No. Your existing PAN is retained. You file a correction request with the Income Tax
Department to update the name shown against that PAN, using your new Certificate of
Incorporation as proof.
Yes. GST registration needs its own core field amendment application on the GST
portal after the ROC approves your name change. Your GSTIN does not change, but
invoices issued under the old legal name after the change date can create compliance
issues.
RUN is used by an existing company changing its name. SPICe+ Part A reserves a name
for a brand-new company at incorporation. Validity also differs: 60 days for RUN
name-change reservations versus 20 days for new-incorporation reservations.
60 days from the date of approval, because an existing company needs time to hold an
EGM, pass the special resolution, and complete the MGT-14 and INC-24 filings.
Shareholder approval through a special resolution is compulsory under Section 13 for
any voluntary company name change. The board's role is limited to initiating the
process and recommending the name.
No. LLPs follow a separate track under the LLP Act: RUN-LLP for name reservation and
Form 5 for the formal name change filing with the Registrar.
They remain valid, since the CIN underlying the agreement has not changed. Standard
practice is to send counterparties a notification referencing both the old and new
names rather than renegotiating.
There is no statutory notice requirement to external parties, but it is standard
commercial practice to notify active vendors, customers, and lenders in writing once
the Certificate of Incorporation is issued, so their records match yours for
invoicing and payment.
It is a frequent cause of delay or rejection at the INC-24 stage. Clearing overdue
annual returns and financial statements before filing RUN avoids this bottleneck.
Yes. A registered trademark is a separate asset from your company name. Updating the
proprietor's name needs its own application with the Trade Marks Registry.
Published figures vary by source and by your company's authorised capital and type,
from capital-slab pricing similar to other MCA forms up to flat fees for larger
companies. Confirm the exact figure the MCA V3 portal calculates before filing.
Yes, if your company has active PF or ESI registration, both need a name-update
application with EPFO and ESIC once the new Certificate of Incorporation is issued.
There is no fixed statutory transition window for a voluntary name change. Best
practice is to update letterheads, invoices, and your website promptly once the new
Certificate is in hand, since invoices and formal communication after that date
should show the new legal name.