Last updated: May 21st, 2018 6:13 PM

Share Certificate

Share certificate serves as an important document for shareholders to prove ownership in a company. Share certificate must be issued by a company after incorporation to its shareholders on receipt of money for capital. Further, in case of issue of additional shares or transfer of shares, share certificates are again issued by the company. In this article, we look at the share certificate format in India and procedure for issue of share certificate.

Procedure for Issue of Share Certificate

The latest MCA notification with procedure for issue of share certificate is Notification for Amendment in Schedule I of the Companies Act, 2013 -dated 10.04.2018. A copy of the notification is reproduced below for reference. According to the notification, a share certificate should specify the share and the amount of paid-up capital it relates to. Further, the share certificate must be signed by a minimum of two Directors of the company or by a Director and a company secretary. The signature fo the Director can be affixed with a digital signature or printed by means of a machine, equipment or other mechanical means such as engraving in metal or lithography. However, affixing Directors Signature by means of a rubber stamp is not allowed. In case a common seal is placed on the share certificate, it must be affixed in the presence of the person who signed the share certificate. However, it is no longer required to affix the common seal of the company and is optional. Know more about procedure for share transfer.

Share Certificate Format

A share certificate format acceptable in India is attached below for reference. In the share certificate format provided below, the company name and its registered office address would be printed at the top. The face value of each share, the amount paid-up and the name of the shareholder would also be printed along with the number of shares issued. [caption id="attachment_44301" align="aligncenter" width="827"] Share Certificate Format