Setting up Business in India – What Foreign Companies Must Know

Foreign companies may set up business in India any kind of one of next manners while retaining its status as being a foreign company:

Liaison Offices – A foreign company can open a liaison office in India to maintain its Indian operations, to promote its business interests, to spread awareness of the company’s products so you can explore further open positions. Liaison offices are not allowed to persevere any business or earn any income in India and all expenses are to borne by remittances from abroad.

Project Offices – The project office is the ideal method for companies to establish a legitimate income opportunity presence in India, if the object is to possess a presence for a smallish period of a period of time. It is essentially a branch office arranged with the limited purpose for executing a specific projects. Foreign companies engaged in turnkey construction or installation normally put in a project office for their operations LLP Incorproation Online in India India.

Branch Offices – Foreign companies engaged in manufacturing and trading activities outside India may open branch offices for write-up of:

oRepresenting the parent company or other foreign companies within a matters in India, like acting as buying and selling agents.

oConducting research, where the parent company is engaged, provided the outcome of this research are made there for Indian companies

oUndertaking export and import trading situations.

oPromoting technical and financial collaborations between Indian and foreign companies.

Trading companies – Foreign companies may invest in trading companies engaged primarily in exports. Such trading companies are treated at par with domestic trading companies in accordance with the trade policy.

The RBI accords automatic approval for foreign equity up to 51 per cent for setting up trading companies engaged primarily in exports. All other proposals, which do not meet the criteria for automatic approval, can be addressed to the Foreign Investment Promotion Board, i.e. “FIPB”.

Wholly owned subsidiaries – Foreign companies may set up a wholly owned subsidiary, which a Indian Company through having an independent legal status, distinct from the parent foreign company.

Under the current foreign investment policy, a wholly owned subsidiary can be established either under the automatic route, generally if the conditions specified therein are complied with (specific high priority industries) or get the approval from the FIPB.

Joint venture companies – Foreign companies may set up a joint venture company i.e. fiscal collaboration with an Indian business house/company in India, could be an Indian Company with an independent legal status, distinct from the parent foreign company.

Under the current foreign investment policy, a joint venture can be established either under the automated route, if the stipulations specified therein are complied with or obtain an approval from the FIPB.

Foreign companies intending to construct any involving office stated previously activities on the part the parent company or foreign trading companies in India for promotion of exports from India in order to be obtain a previous approval of the Reserve Bank by submitting an application in the prescribed form to the Central Office of Reserve Bank. On approval of this cases, permission is granted initially for finding a period of 3 years, prone to the condition that expenses of such office in order to met exclusively out of inward remittances; such offices are not permitted to create any income in Japan.