You have the certificate. Here is what comes next.

First 30 days

Under the 2026 rules the first-month filing load dropped from four or five items to one or two — but the ones that remain are the ones with consequences.

• Open the company current account, using the incorporation certificate, PAN and board resolution
• Deposit the subscription money each shareholder committed to in the MOA
• File the commencement of business declaration — trading before this is filed is not permitted
• Set up a registered email and keep the registered office address current

First 90 days

Nothing here is urgent in the way a filing deadline is, which is exactly why it gets skipped and becomes expensive later.

• Appoint an auditor — this is a statutory requirement, not optional
• Start proper books from day one rather than reconstructing them at year end
• Decide on GST: register if you will cross the threshold, sell across state lines, or need to invoice business customers
• Register for EPFO and ESIC when you actually put someone on payroll
• Apply for DPIIT recognition if you qualify — it is free and unlocks the Section 80-IAC tax holiday
• Consider trademarking your name; incorporating it does not protect it

Put the annual dates in a calendar now

AOC-4, MGT-7 and DIR-3 KYC come round every year, and the late fee is charged per day rather than as a flat penalty — which is how a forgotten filing quietly becomes a five-figure problem.

Our compliance calendar lists the current-year dates for companies, LLPs and OPCs.

The mistake that costs the most

Treating the incorporation certificate as the finish line. The company now exists as a legal person with its own obligations, and those obligations run whether or not the business is trading. A dormant company with no revenue still files.