The CIN is allotted by the Registrar of Companies to help track information about a business following incorporation. In this article, we will outline the fundamentals of CIN and its usage.
A company registration number, also known as a Corporate Identity Number or Company Identification Number (CIN), is a unique identification number assigned by the Registrar of Company (ROC). In simple terms, the CIN is a special code that contains a company’s identification as well as other extra information about its organization.
Entities That Obtain a CIN
The Corporate Identity Number is a 21-digit alphanumeric code/number that is issued to all categories of companies incorporated in India, namely,
- Private Limited Companies
- One Person Company
- Limited Companies
- Nidhi Company
- Section 8 Company
The CIN is allotted through the Registrar of Companies (ROC) located in various states all over the country. One can access information about a company through this exclusive number that is provided by the ROC.
Information Revealed By the CIN
Broadly speaking, the CIN provides us with four crucial pieces of information about a company. They are
- Year of incorporation (example: 2016)
- State code (example: KL – Kerala)
- Type of company (example: PTC – private limited)
- Listing status (example: U – unlisted)
This basic information can also be found on the certificate of incorporation.
Breaking Down the Information Contained in the CIN
A deeper analysis of a company’s CIN number indicates that it is a 21-digit alphanumeric code that can be bifurcated into six distinct sections:
1. Stock Market Listing Status
The first character of the code reveals whether the company is ‘Listed’ in the stock market or is ‘Unlisted’. It depicts Stock Market Listing status through the letter ‘L’ when listed and the letter ‘U’ when unlisted.
2. Categorization of Economic Activity
The next five numeric digits categorize the economic activity of the company. Further, this categorization depends upon the economic activity undertaken by the establishment.
It is categorized as follows:
Section → Division → Group → Class → Sub-class
Common industry codes used in CIN’s are as follows-
- Hospitals: 85110
- Retail sale of construction materials: 52341
- Dairy and cattle farming: 01211
- Manufacture of mineral water: 15543
- Manufacture of all types of textile garments and clothing accessories: 18101
- Real estate activities on a fee or contractual basis: 70200
- Freight transport by motor vehicles: 60231
If you can’t find your industry code in the given list, get in touch with our experts right away for further assistance.
3. State Code
The next two letters in the CIN represent the state code of the company’s registered office as per the ROC.
4. Year of Incorporation
The next four numeric digits in the CIN depict the year of incorporation
5. Type of Company
The next three letters in the code represent the type of company, as to whether it is a public or private limited, etc.
Common abbreviations used in this section are
- FLC: financial lease company as a public limited
- GAP: General Association public
- FTC: a subsidiary of a foreign company as a private limited company registration
- GAT: General Association private
- GOI: companies owned by the Government of India
- PLC: Public Limited Company
- NPL: for-profit license company
- PTC: private limited company
- ULL: a public limited company with unlimited liability
- SGC: companies owned by the state government
- ULT: private company with unlimited liability
6. Company Registration Number
The last six digits in the CIN indicate the registration number of the company. Likewise, the registration number includes the ROC code of the registered entity as well.
Importance of the CIN
Following the incorporation of a business, the concerned ROC issues a certificate containing the Corporate Identification Number (CIN number. or CIN Code).
Every company is required to provide its unique Company CIN number. while corresponding with the MCA, most notably during form submissions, audits and reports. Additionally, the CIN number should be on the company’s letterheads, memoranda, bills, notifications, and official publications as a reference.
Process of Obtaining a CIN
Once you decide the type of company you want to incorporate, the steps involved in obtaining a CIN are as follows-
- Acquire a Digital Signature (DSC)
- Acquire the Director Identification Number (DIN)
- Complete the new user registration
- Undergo the company incorporation procedure
- Incorporate the company
Additionally, on submission of the company incorporation forms, the MCA will review and approve the application for the company. Once all the information in the application is verified, the CIN is allotted.
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