What is the full form of CS?

Introduction

Company secretary (CS) is an executive personnel of a company that maintains the company's accounts, taxation, legal advisory and auditing. He is also a legal representative of a company. You have to appear for an entrance test and complete the company secretary course to become a company secretary.

A Company secretary has knowledge of business and environment and Law, business economics, accounting and auditing, and different laws etc. It is one of the most reputed job profiles. You can earn an average salary of 6 to 7 lakhs per annum as CS.

Definition of CS

According to the “Companies Act 2013”, A company secretary is a person registered under “Section 2(1)(C) of the Company Secretaries Act 1980” and is appointed by a company to perform the functions of the Company Secretary.

As per the Companies Secretaries Act 1980, a company secretary is a person who is a registered member of the Institute of Company Secretary of India (ICSI).

• A Company Secretary is appointed in a company under “section 203 of the Companies Act 2013”.

• “Rule 8 and 8(A) of the Companies Act 2013,” says that a company public or private with paid-up capital ₹10 Cr or more must have a full-time company secretary.

Role and Responsibilities of a CS

A Company Secretary has some roles and responsibilities in a company. These are as follows;

• A “Company Secretary” must ensure the company's compliance with various laws and ethics.

• He should register and maintain the statutory records, and perform buying and allotment, selling and transfer of company shares.

• A company secretary verifies and submits the tax and returns of the company with proper authentication and procedure. He must maintain and submit the TDS deducted from the employee's salary.

• Some other duties of a company secretary are to build companies image and maintain corporate social responsibilities, intellectual property rights, business policies and strategies.

• He must ensure a healthy relationship between stakeholders, authorities, government and its members.

• A CS work as a business benefactor, auditor, and advising agent for a company.

• A company secretary is legally bound to follow rules and regulations prescribed by the Institute of company secretaries of India.

Career Opportunities for a CS

A person that completes the company secretary has various career opportunities in both government and private sectors. He can also start his firm. He handles companies' legal and analytical duties. A company secretary can earn up to 16 to 17 lakh per annum.

• A CS has several job opportunities in the corporate world.

• He can maintain companies' taxation, audit and legal advisory.

• He also looks after insolvency and bankruptcy, intellectual property rights, GST maintenance etc.

• There are various posts in the government finance and accounting department for a company's secretary.

• There are various blue chip companies which recruit company secretaries in mass for various roles in their companies.

• Companies and stock exchange companies also hire a CS for various administrative jobs in their firm legal advisory, board council, etc.

Qualification and Certification of a CS

The minimum qualification required to become a company secretary is 10+2 in any stream except arts. There are three levels of courses in company secretary foundation, executive and professional. To join the course you have to appear for the CSEET entrance exam conducted by the Institute of Company secretary of India for admission in the program. The exam is conducted twice a year. The minimum age for registration is 17 years and no maximum age criteria.

• Foundational Program − It is a 3.5-year program. It has 4 papers. The minimum period to qualify for this level is eight months but you have to complete it in a maximum of 3 years from the date of registration.

• Executive Program − It has two modules. Each module has four papers. You can appear for the exam after nine months of registration. The minimum time to qualify for the exam is one year and the maximum of five years of registration. You can join this program after graduation or the foundation program.

• Professional Program − You can join a professional program after qualifying executive program. The minimum duration of the program is one year and the maximum is five years after registration.

• One can get the certificate for company secretary after completing an executive and professional program and 15-month training, one can opt for membership from “ICSI under the title Associate Company Secretary (ACS)”.

Conclusion

A CS is a certified member of the “ICSI”. To become a company secretary one has to qualify for a three-level program after the 12th, foundational, executive and professional levels. A company secretary performs various roles in a public and private companies like chief advisory, compliance officer, executive secretary, board advisor, and auditor.

FAQs

Q1. How many days of oral coaching are suggested for the company secretary at different levels?

Ans: You have to complete an oral coaching and training program during your course. For the foundation program, you have to attend 30 lectures of two hours for each subject.

For the executive program, you have to attend 35 lectures of two hours and for the professional program 40 lectures of two hours.

Q2. How many short-term training programs do you have to complete after qualifying the executive program?

Ans: You have to go for a 15-month management training program under a company secretary or with a company. It includes 25 hours of the professional development program.

Q3. What is the fee structure of the foundational and executive programs?

Ans: The fee for the foundational course is 4500/- rupee and the fee for the executive program is different for a different qualified candidate. For CPT-qualified candidates, it's 12500 and for commerce graduates, it's 9000/- rupee.