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Selling a private limited company is not the same as closing one

Most owners who want out start by asking how to strike the company off. That is usually the expensive answer. A running company with a clean filing history, a GST number and an operating history is worth something to somebody — and the buyer saves eighteen months of incorporation, licences and track record by taking yours.

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Listing is on buysellprivatelimited.com, our marketplace for Indian private limited companies. EaseValue handles the legal and tax side of the deal itself.

The two ways a company changes hands

Almost every private company sale in India is one of these. Which one you pick changes the tax, the paperwork and what the buyer inherits — so it is worth being clear before you talk price.

Most common
Share transfer

You sell your shares. The company itself carries on unchanged — same CIN, same PAN, same GST number, same bank account, same contracts. The buyer steps into your shoes, which is exactly what they are paying for. It also means they inherit the company's history, including anything unpleasant in it.

When the buyer wants the business, not the shell
Business / slump sale

The company sells its undertaking — machinery, stock, customers, staff — and you keep the shell. The buyer avoids inheriting old liabilities. The tax treatment is different, GST may apply to the transfer, and the agreement has to be drafted with more care.

A buyer who is nervous about your past will push for a business sale. A buyer who wants your GST registration, your licences or your years of filings will push for a share transfer.

What a serious buyer will ask for

Every deal that falls apart, falls apart here. Get these together before you list and you will negotiate from a much better position — and you will not spend six weeks producing documents while the buyer cools off.

The one that catches people out: unfiled ROC forms and an unsatisfied charge from a loan you repaid years ago. Both are visible to any buyer on the public MCA record in about five minutes, and both make your company look neglected. Clearing them before you list is usually cheap and always worth it.

Tax on the sale

Selling shares is a capital gains event for you personally, and how much you pay turns on how long you have held the shares and what the shares are actually worth — not simply what you agreed with the buyer. Unlisted shares have their own valuation rules, and a price materially below fair value can be taxed as income in the buyer's hands as well as taxed as a gain in yours.

This is the part where a number on a napkin costs real money. We will tell you what the sale looks like after tax before you sign anything, and where the structure can legitimately be improved.

What actually has to be filed

A share transfer is not done when the money arrives. Until these are complete the buyer does not have clean title and the register still shows you as a member.

How long it takes

From a signed term sheet, a clean company with its filings up to date usually completes in three to six weeks. Diligence is the long pole, and the delay is almost always waiting on documents from the seller. A company with ROC defaults or an open tax matter takes longer, because the buyer will want those closed — or the price cut — before completion.

Where we fit, and where the portal fits

buysellprivatelimited.com

Our marketplace. List the company, describe it, and reach buyers who are specifically looking for a running Indian private limited. Free to list.

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EaseValue

The deal itself — getting your filings clean before you list, the diligence pack, the tax position, SH-4 and stamping, DIR-12 and the handover of registers.

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Common questions

Can I sell a company that has not filed its ROC returns?
Yes, but expect it to cost you. Unfiled AOC-4 and MGT-7 are visible on the public MCA record, and late filing carries a per-day additional fee that grows the longer it is left. A buyer will either want the defaults cleared before completion or will take the cost off the price — usually with something added for the nuisance. Clearing them first is almost always cheaper.
Is it better to sell the shares or close the company?
If the company is clean and has an operating history, a GST registration or licences that take time to obtain, selling is usually worth more than striking off. If it has never traded, has no registrations worth having and carries liabilities, closing may genuinely be the better answer. We will tell you honestly which one your company is.
Do I need the buyer to be found before I start fixing the filings?
No, and waiting is a mistake. Diligence is where deals die, and the seller who produces a complete pack in the first week keeps the buyer warm. Clean filings also let you ask for more, because the buyer is not pricing in unknown risk.
What happens to my personal guarantees?
They do not disappear because you sold the shares. A personal guarantee you gave to a bank or a landlord stays with you until that lender or landlord releases you. Getting those releases is part of the deal and needs to be in the agreement, not assumed.
Will the company keep its GST number and PAN?
On a share transfer, yes — the company is the same legal person, so CIN, PAN and GST registration carry on. That continuity is often the main thing the buyer is paying for. On a business or slump sale the buyer is buying assets into their own entity, so their own registrations apply.
What is the company worth?
For a small operating company, buyers generally look at sustainable profit, the quality of the customer base, and what the registrations and history save them. For a dormant but clean shell, the value is mostly the time and cost the buyer avoids. There is no single formula, and anyone who gives you one without looking at the accounts is guessing.
Thinking about selling?

Start with a look at where your filings actually stand — that determines both what you can ask for and how fast it can close. Then list it.

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Also read: Buying a private limited company in India. Stamp duty on share transfer, capital gains rates and ROC additional fees change from time to time and some depend on your state — the position above is general, and we will confirm the current numbers for your specific sale before you commit to anything.

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