Setting up Business in India – What Foreign Companies Must Know

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

Liaison Offices – A foreign company can open a liaison office in India to pay attention to its Indian operations, to promote its business interests, to spread awareness belonging to the company’s products so you can explore further avenues. Liaison offices are not allowed to carry on any business or earn any income in India and expenses are in order to become borne by remittances from abroad.

Project Offices – The project office is the ideal method for companies to establish a business presence in India, if the object is to have a presence for constrained period of season. It is essentially a branch office set up with the Limited Liability Partnerhsip Registration in India Online purpose for executing a specific undertaking. Foreign companies engaged in turnkey construction or installation normally established a project office for their operations in India.

Branch Offices – Foreign companies involved in manufacturing and trading activities outside India may open branch offices for extra of:

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

oConducting research, where the parent company is engaged, provided outcomes of this research are made available to Indian companies

oUndertaking export and import trading activity.

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 can be an Indian Company with 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, when 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. monetary collaboration with an Indian business house/company in India, which can 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 set up any form of office already stated activities on the part the parent company or foreign trading companies in India for promotion of exports from India have to obtain an earlier approval of the Reserve Bank by submitting an application in the prescribed form to the Central Office of Reserve Bank. On approval of the cases, permission is granted initially for finding a period of three years, foreclosures the condition that expenses of such office is actually met exclusively out of inward remittances; such offices are not permitted to get any income in Of india.