Can Company Secretaries Advertise in India? ICSI Rules

A Company Secretary in Practice occupies the same regulated space as a CA: you cannot solicit clients or professional work — but the Institute does allow you to make your services known through a controlled write-up. Knowing the difference between a permitted write-up and prohibited solicitation is what keeps you safe.

The starting point: no solicitation

Under the Company Secretaries Act, 1980, a member in practice must not solicit clients or professional work — directly or indirectly — by circular, advertisement, personal communication or interview, or by any other means. That prohibition is the foundation everything else sits on.

What the ICSI does allow: the write-up

The ICSI Guidelines for Advertisement by Company Secretaries, 2020 (effective 1 April 2020, replacing the 2007 guidelines) permit a member or firm to advertise through a write-up setting out the services offered and the particulars of the firm or LLP — subject to the Council's conditions.

What the write-up must not do

• Solicit clients — the write-up informs, it does not chase work.
• Portray supremacy or make tall claims, or undermine other members.
• Contain fabricated or false testimonials or endorsements — the safest course is to avoid client testimonials altogether.
• Use terms like "specialist" or "expert."
• Be indecent, sensational, or anything that brings disrepute to the profession or the Institute.

So what should a PCS actually publish?

1. A factual write-up of your services and firm details, within the guidelines.
2. Genuine educational content — explainers on company law, ROC filings, compliance deadlines and governance — that informs the public rather than solicits them.
3. A dignified professional profile stating your credentials factually.

The same educate-don't-solicit principle runs across the regulated professions — see our companion guide for Chartered Accountants and Cost Accountants (CMAs).