What is Corporate Identification Number (CIN)? A Detailed Guide

A CIN stands for Corporate Identification Number. It is an identification number that is unique in nature and is assigned to those companies who are registered in India. The assigning authority for A Corporate Identification Number is the Registrar of Companies(ROC).

The Corporate Identification Number is provided to the companies by the Registrar of Companies at the time of issuing their registration certificates. The Corporate Identification Number  is quite essential as it needs to be mentioned in all the forms(mainly in audits and reports) that are submitted to the Ministry of Corporate Affairs(MCA).

Introduction to Corporate Identification Number

A Corporate Identification Number is an alpha-numeric code that is issued to those companies who are registered by the Registrar of Companies within the country. It is a 21-digit code that is unique in nature. A Corporate Identification Number is provided to the following types of registered companies:

• Private Limited Companies(PLCs)
• One Person Companies(OPCs)
• Companies that work under the Government of India
• Companies working under the State Government
• The companies under the Not-For-Profit Section 8
• Nidhi Companies, etc.

However, the Corporate Identification Number can not be issued to Limited Liability Partnerships that are registered within the country. In case of LLPs, the registrar of Companies issues a LLPIN(a.k.a. Limited Liability Partnership Identification Number) which is a unique 7-digit identification number for the Limited Liability Partnership.

Why is Corporate Identification Number Important?

Corporate Identification Number is very important as it helps in tracking all the activities that are performed by a company from its registration by the ROC. A Corporate Identification Number is also needed to be mentioned on all the transactions that are done with the particular ROC.

The Corporate Identification Number which is 21-digits long has a unique meaning to itself and can be easily decoded. This helps in obtaining general or primary information about the company.

The Corporate Identification Number is unique in nature and is used in order to track the company for various types of information that the ROC/ MCA has. The Corporate Identification Number generally helps in identifying the company and also contains some basic information related to the company that is registered under the ROC.  “L01631KA2010PTC096843” is an example of a Corporate Identification Number.

The Corporate Identification Number can be broken down into six different parts. Each part conveys a different kind of information about the company. These parts are explained below:

Section-1: ”L”-the first element

The first element represents whether a company is listed or unlisted on the Indian Stock Market. If a company is listed with the Indian Stock Market, then the element ”L” will be present in the starting. However, in case the company is not listed under the Indian Stock Market, the Corporate Identification Number would start with the element “U.”

Section-2: “01631”- the next five digits

The next five digits that are present in the Corporate Identification Number are responsible for representing the economic activity of that company or the industry to which the company belongs. The Ministry of Corporate Affairs is liable to provide a unique number to every type of economic activity or industry.

Section-3: “KA”- the next two elements

The next two elements reveal the Indian State to which that belongs and is registered. For example, “KA” is used for Karnataka, “DL” is used for Delhi and many more. IT works in the same way as the car registration number works.

Section-4: “2010”- the next four digits

The next four digits reveal the year in which the company was incorporated.

Section-5:”PTC”- the next three elements

The next three letters are used to represent the classification of the company. They are responsible for identifying whether a company is a private limited company or a public limited company. If these three characters in the Corporate Identification Number are “FTC”, then it means that the company is a subsidiary of a foreign company and if these three characters are “GOI”, then it would mean that the company belongs to the Government of India.

Section-6: “096843”- the last six digits

             The remaining digits of the Corporate Identification Number represent the registration                   number of the company which is made available by the Registrar of Companies.

Short-forms used in Corporate Identification Number

The following short forms are used in the Corporate Identification Number under Section-5:

• FLC: Financial Lease Company as a Public Limited
• FTC: Subsidiary of a foreign company as a Private Limited
• GAP: General Association Public
• GAT: General Association Private
• GOI: Company governed by the Government of India
• NPL: Not-for-profit License Company
• OPC: One Person Company
• PLC: Public Limited Company
• PTC: Private Limited Company
• SGC: Companies owned by the State Government
• ULL: Public Limited Companies having Unlimited Liability
• ULT: Private Limited Companies having Unlimited Liability

Uses of a Corporate Identification Number

A corporate identification number needs to be mentioned on various documents by a company. These are listed below:

• On Bills, receipts and invoices
• On notices
• On memos
• On letterheads
• On Annual Reports and Audits
• On Submitting every e-Form on the Portal of MCA
• On the official Publications of a company
• On any other publications of the company

Penalties levied for non-compliance with CIN

In case a company does not work according to the above-mentioned requirements, then a penalty of Rs. 1000 a day will be levied on that company and on all its members. But, the maximum amount of penalty for the default is Rs. 100000.

When to change your Corporate Identification Number?

The Corporate Identification Number that is provided to a company which is registered within the country can be changed in some specific cases. These cases are listed below:

• If the listing status of the company is changed
• If the location of the registered office of the company is changed
• If the sector of working of the company is changed.