DIN eKYC (DIR-3 KYC)
Every director who held a DIN on 31 March must complete KYC by 30 September. Miss it and the DIN is deactivated and a ₹5,000 fee applies — per director, with no waiver. We file it in a day.
Starts at ₹499 per director, if filed before the due date
What is DIR-3 KYC?
DIR-3 KYC is the annual identity verification every holder of a Director Identification Number must complete with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs. It applies to anyone who held a DIN as at 31 March of a financial year, and it is due by 30 September of the same year.
It applies whether or not you are currently a director of anything. If a DIN was ever allotted to you and it has not been surrendered, you file. Dormant DINs, DINs held by people who resigned years ago, DINs allotted for a company that was never incorporated — all of them need annual KYC.
There are two routes. If this is your first KYC, or any detail on record has changed, you file the full eForm DIR-3 KYC. If nothing has changed since your last filing, you complete DIR-3 KYC-WEB, which is a simple OTP re-verification. Both are free if filed on time.
Why this one matters more than it looks
You cannot be appointed, cannot sign any ROC form, and cannot be counted towards the minimum director requirement until it is restored.
A five-director board that misses the date pays ₹25,000, not ₹5,000. There is no proportionality and no waiver for a one-day delay.
AOC-4 and MGT-7A must be signed by a director with an active DIN. A deactivated DIN in September cascades into late annual filing penalties in October.
There is no government fee for a timely filing. The entire cost of getting this wrong is self-inflicted.
Resigned directors and holders of unused DINs are still required to file, and are the group that most often forgets.
Paying ₹5,000 and filing reactivates the DIN, but not on the day you need it. Deadlines rarely wait.
Documents required
Always required
- DIN of the director
- PAN, with the name exactly as it appears in the income-tax database
- Aadhaar or passport as identity proof
- Personal mobile number, not previously used for another DIN
- Personal email address, not previously used for another DIN
- Class 3 digital signature certificate of the director
For foreign nationals and NRIs
- Passport, apostilled or consularised as applicable
- Overseas address proof, duly attested
- Foreign mobile number is acceptable for OTP verification
Certification
- The eForm must be certified by a practising chartered accountant, company secretary or cost accountant
Not sure which package fits?
A specialist will map your situation to the right plan in one call.
How we file it
- Check what you needDay 1
We confirm whether you require the full eForm or the simpler WEB re-verification, and check your DSC is valid and registered.
- Verify the detailsDay 1
PAN name matching is the most common failure point. We check it against the income-tax database before filing, not after rejection.
- OTP verificationDay 1
Mobile and email OTPs are verified in the form. Both must be unique to you across all DINs.
- Sign and certifyDay 1
You sign with your DSC; our practising professional certifies and files it on the MCA portal.
- SRN and confirmationSame day
You receive the challan and SRN confirming a live DIN, and we calendar next year’s date.
Transparent pricing
Single Director
₹499
one DIN, filed on time
- eForm or WEB, whichever applies
- PAN name verification
- DSC signing support
- Professional certification
- Multiple directors
- Deactivated DIN restoration
Board Pack
₹1,799
up to 5 directors
- Everything in Single Director
- Up to 5 directors covered
- Board-wide status check
- Next-year reminders for all
- Deactivated DIN restoration
Restoration
₹1,499
per director, DIN already deactivated
- Deactivated DIN restoration
- eForm filing with late fee
- Status confirmation
- Knock-on filing review
- Next-year reminders
Professional fees only, exclusive of GST. There is no government fee for a timely filing. Restoration of a deactivated DIN carries a statutory fee of ₹5,000 per director, payable to the MCA at actuals.
eForm or WEB — which applies to you?
| Your situation | What to file | Government fee |
|---|---|---|
| First KYC after your DIN was allotted | eForm DIR-3 KYC | Nil if on time |
| Mobile, email, address or any detail has changed | eForm DIR-3 KYC | Nil if on time |
| Nothing has changed since your last KYC | DIR-3 KYC-WEB | Nil if on time |
| You missed the 30 September deadline | eForm DIR-3 KYC | ₹5,000 per director |
A DIN allotted during the year does not need KYC until the following cycle — the test is whether you held the DIN on 31 March. If you are unsure which route applies, we check your MCA record before filing.
Where DIR-3 KYC filings actually fail
PAN name mismatch
The name in the form is validated character by character against the income-tax database. A missing middle name, an initial where the database holds a full name, or a spelling variation causes outright rejection. We verify this first, because a rejection close to 30 September is how directors end up paying ₹5,000.
Mobile and email must be unique to you
The system will not accept a mobile number or email address already used for another director’s KYC. Company secretaries who filed several directors using an office email address discover this immediately. Each director needs their own personal contact details.
An expired DSC on the day of filing
The form must be signed with the director’s own valid Class 3 certificate. Directors who sign nothing else all year routinely find their DSC expired. Getting a fresh one takes about half an hour, but only if you discover it before the deadline rather than on it.
Resigned directors still have to file
Resigning from a company does not surrender your DIN. Unless you formally surrender it in Form DIR-5, the KYC obligation continues every year. This is the most common source of unexpected ₹5,000 demands.
There is no partial relief
The fee is ₹5,000 whether you are one day late or eleven months late, and it applies to each director individually. The Ministry has not offered a general amnesty for DIR-3 KYC in recent cycles, so it should not be planned for.
Filings are made on the Ministry of Corporate Affairs portal under Rule 12A of the Companies (Appointment and Qualification of Directors) Rules, 2014.
If your DIN is already deactivated
Nothing is lost permanently. You file the eForm DIR-3 KYC with the ₹5,000 fee and the DIN is reactivated, usually within a day or two of approval. The number itself never changes.
What needs checking is what the deactivation blocked in the meantime. If annual filings fell due while the DIN was inactive, those are now late and carry their own per-day penalties. If a director was appointed or resigned during the period, the DIR-12 may have failed. We review the knock-on effects as part of restoration rather than fixing them one demand at a time.
If you genuinely no longer need the DIN — you are not a director anywhere and do not intend to be — surrendering it in Form DIR-5 ends the annual obligation for good.
Frequently asked questions
Who has to file DIR-3 KYC?
Every person who held a Director Identification Number as at 31 March of the financial year, whether or not they are currently a director of any company. Dormant DINs and DINs held by people who resigned years ago are included.
What is the DIR-3 KYC due date?
30 September each year, for DINs held as at the preceding 31 March. Filing on or before that date is free; filing afterwards costs ₹5,000 per director.
What happens if I miss it?
The DIN is marked deactivated for non-filing of DIR-3 KYC. You cannot sign any ROC form or be appointed as a director until it is restored by filing with the ₹5,000 fee.
What is the difference between DIR-3 KYC and DIR-3 KYC-WEB?
The eForm is used for your first KYC or whenever any detail has changed. WEB is a simpler OTP re-verification available only when nothing has changed since your last filing.
Do I need a DSC?
Yes, for the eForm. The director signs with their own Class 3 digital signature and a practising CA, CS or cost accountant certifies the form. WEB verification uses OTP alone.
I have resigned as a director. Do I still file?
Yes, unless you have formally surrendered the DIN in Form DIR-5. Holding an unused DIN carries the same annual KYC obligation as an active directorship.
Official references
The statutory sources behind this page. We keep our guidance aligned to them — verify anything time-sensitive directly.
- Ministry of Corporate AffairsCompanies Act filings, forms and fee schedules
- Income Tax DepartmentReturns, forms, rates and e-filing utilities
Content on this page is reviewed by a chartered accountant or advocate at LexVerge LLP. It is general guidance, not advice on your specific facts.