Key Regulatory & Legal Updates in December 2025
- Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA)
- Small company threshold change
MCA, through Companies (Specification of Definition Details) Amendment Rules, 2025, has notified the increase in the definition of small companies from Rs. 2 Crore to Rs. 10 Crores as paid-up capital and from Rs. 20 crore to Rs. 100 crore as turnover effective on December 1st, 2025 as a measure to promote compliance and reduce the regulatory burden on small businesses.
Read More: https://www.mca.gov.in/content/mca/global/en/home.html
- Annual filing fee relief
With latest MCA General Circular No. 08/2025, MCA has Provided additional time / fee relaxation for filing annual forms (AOC-4, MGT-7 / 7A) on revised MCA-21 forms up to 31st January, 2026.
Read More: https://www.mca.gov.in/content/mca/global/en/home.html
- Director Compliance Relief
The Ministry of Corporate Affairs eased KYC filing norms under the Companies Act, 2013, reducing the requirement for directors from annual to once every three years. This is intended to reduce compliance burden and improve ease of doing business.
Read More: https://www.mca.gov.in/content/mca/global/en/home.html
- Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI)
- SEBI LODR (Sixth Amendment), 2025
Major changes relate to — Alignment with new RTA Regulations, updated terminology, and enhanced disclosure requirements.
Read More: https://www.sebi.gov.in/
- SEBI Board Decisions (December 17)
SEBI’s board approved revisions to Stockbroker Regulations, initiatives to reduce IPO documentation requirements, and revamp mutual fund expense frameworks.
Read More: https://www.sebi.gov.in/
- SEBI (Substantial Acquisition of Shares and Takeovers) Amendment, 2025
SEBI issued Takeover Code amendments (effective 2 January 2026) introducing a formal definition of “valuer” and requiring independent registered valuers for certain open offers and valuation cases.
Read More: https://www.sebi.gov.in/
- SEBI (Registrars to an Issue and Share Transfer Agents) Regulations, 2025
A new set of regulations for Registrars to an Issue and Share Transfer Agents was published in mid-December, prompting consequential LODR changes.
Read More: https://www.sebi.gov.in/
- Securities Markets Code Bill, 2025
With objective to simplifying securities regulation and strengthening SEBI’s powers, Securities Markets Code Bill, 2025 was introduced in Parliament to consolidate SEBI Act, SCRA, and Depositories Act into a single code.
Read More: https://www.sebi.gov.in/
- Reserve Bank of India (RBI)
- KYC Directions
RBI issued amended KYC Directions thru RBI (All India Financial Institutions – Know Your Customer) Amendment Directions, 2025 under its powers to regulate All India Financial Institutions, integrating standards with the Central KYC Records Registry (CKYCR) framework.
Read More: https://www.rbi.org.in/