FAQS ON FILING THE CAR FORM WITH MCA
Dear
Professional Colleague:
As all
of you are aware that Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) issued advisory on
preventive measures to contain spread of COVID-19 to all Chairman, Managing
Director and Chief Executive Officer. With respect of it, they will deploy
“Company Affirmation of Readiness towards COVID-19 (CAR) web-based form on 23rd
March, 2020 to ensure that “work from home” policy is followed by all the LLPs
and Companies to show their readiness against fight with COVID-19.
As per
the said advisory, all Companies /LLPs are expected and strongly advised to put
in place an immediate plan to implement the “Work from home” policy in their
headquarters and field offices, to the maximum extent possible, as a temporary
measure till 31st March, 2020. Even with the essential staff on duty, staggered
timings may be followed, so as to minimize physical interaction.
Therefore,
in our view, what matters is the preparedness itself, not so much the task of
having the so-called policy or the filing of the form itself.
However,
the country has a few lakhs of companies, and the affirmation of preparedness
by filing this form will be expected from all the companies. Hence, there is
understandably a barrage of questions from clients and others.
Hope
all stakeholders will get answer of their query from following FAQs :-
1.
Which
entities have to fill this form?*
All
Indian companies, foreign companies, LLPs and foreign LLPs
2.
What
is the due date?*
The CAR form has to be filed w.e.f. 23rd
March, 2020. While no clear due date has been mentioned to file the form,
however, since the current work from advisory is till 31st March, 2020,
therefore, it is presumed that the said form should be filed before that.
3.
Is
this form statutory?*
This form has emanated from the advisory
issued by MCA and not from any circular or notification. To that extent, it is
not statutory. However, it is highly recommended to file this form to enable
the Ministry to gather data on the preparedness to tackle COVID-19 by
corporates.
4.
What
are the steps being suggested through the Advisory?
Companies and LLPs are being advised to
put in place an immediate plan to implement a ‘work from home’ policy as a
temporary measure.
5.
Whether
there is any penalty for non-filing of this form?*
Form has been deployed as a purely
confidence building measure to assess the
readiness of the companies to deal with COVID-19 Threat in India. As such no
penalty or enforcement related action is applicable. Stakeholders may at their
convenience file this form. It is purely voluntary as part of our contribution
towards joining the movement to fight against the spread of the disease. Since
the portal may experience heavy load, it would indicate 'Busy' alert whenever
peak traffic is reached.
6.
What
are the key details to be filled in the form?*
It’s
a simple web-based form containing the following details:
a) CIN/
FCRN/ LLPIN/ FLLPIN
b) Name
of the company/ foreign company/ LLP/ Foreign LLP (Prefilled)
c) Whether
the company/ LLP is in compliance of COVID 19 Guidelines? – Yes or No
d) Authorized
Signatory of the company/ LLP: DIN/ PAN/ Membership No. of the Authorised
Signatory
e) Mobile
No. (Pre-filled, if available in the database, else can be manually entered)
f) OTP
(received on the mobile number instantly)
7.
What
is the object of having such a plan?
The object of having such a plan is to
ensure social distancing as advised by WHO and other public health authorities
in the recent outbreak of COVID-19 which is required for preventing the rapid
spread and transmission of the disease at community level.
8.
Who
is authorized to file the form and are any Digital signatures required?*
Any authorized signatory of the entity
(being the Director / KMP / CS) having a valid DIN/ PAN / Membership number and
who is currently associated with the said entity on MCA portal can file this
form. No digital signatures are required to fill this form. However, this form
is available to all Registered Users and Business Users, post login at the MCA
portal, by the name COVID-19 (under MCA services).
9.
Is
there any fee for filing the form?*
There is no filing fee and no SRN will be
generated. After filing the form, just an email acknowledgement will be
received by the Company mail id and at the mail id of the authorized signatory.
10. What do “COVID-19 guidelines” mean (as
mentioned in the form)?*
COVID-19 guidelines have not been defined
anywhere. There are no separate COVID-19 guidelines for Corporates except for
the advisory issued by the MCA, available at the MCA home page, advising the
corporates to offer work from home to its employees in the headquarters as well
as field offices.
11. What all does a work from home policy
include?
As we said above, we are not envisaging
this to be a formal document. However, please do consider the following:
• Who
all can be permitted to work from home – for those who have to be present,
whether there is rotational or staggered presence?
• What
will be the weekly and daily working hours?
• Whether
necessary equipment or software is in place for working from home?
• Whether
there will be any revision in compensation and benefits paid to the employees?
• Whether
employees have adequate internet connection required for the job?
• What
level of dedication and concentration is expected from employees during working
hours?
• What
will be the method of marking attendance or absence?
• Who
will review work of whom and how?
• Revision
in employees code of conduct
• How
to maintain and ensure confidentiality of information
• Installation
of necessary software for group discussions or meetings
• To
educate remote employees on basic security policies as for example use of VPN
is a secure channel and better than public network
• Establishment
of virtual employee allowance or reimbursements for expenses such as internet,
phone, electricity and other utilities
• Strict
adherence to do’s and don’ts issued by public health authorities from time to
time
• Date
of implementation of this policy- with immediate effect till 31st March, 2020
(tentative date, maybe extended depending upon the situation)
12. Do I mandatorily need to offer work from
home to all employees?*
It is expected and strongly advised to
Corporates to offer work from home to all employees. In case an essential staff
is required on duty, staggered timings may be followed, so as to minimize
physical interaction. Therefore, to that extent is it not mandatory to offer
work from home to all employee, although it is highly recommended. However,
every one (including all corporates) will have to follow the state / city
lock-down orders, travel advisories etc. issued by the appropriate authorities
from time to time.
13. My company does not have any permanent
employees. Am I still required to adhere to this policy?
If there are no permanent employees, it
is all peace as far as your company is concerned. Go and file the form and say
you have taken necessary steps.
14. What if employees at certain locations
are working from home, while others are not?*
If any Corporate has offered work from
home for employees, wherever it is possible, and has made other alternate
arrangements to ensure the safety, security and minimum physical interaction of
the other staff, the said Corporate may file “Yes” in the CAR form to report
preparedness to tackle COVID-19 pandemic.
I am
sure this information will help all of us in advising our Boards / Managements
/ Clients appropriately and comply in letter and spirit.
DISCLAIMER: THE
ARTICLE IS BASED ON THE RELEVANT PROVISIONS AND AS PER THE INFORMATION EXISTING
AT THE TIME OF THE PREPARATION. IN NO EVENT I SHALL BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT
AND INDIRECT RESULT FROM THIS ARTICLE. THIS IS ONLY A KNOWLEDGE SHARING
INITIATIVE.
THE AUTHOR – CS DEEPAK
SETH (ASSOCIATE PARTNER HELPINGHANDS PROFESSIONALS LLP) AND CAN BE REACHED AT CONTACTHHPRO@GMAIL.COM
OR 9910248911.
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