A year ago in January, Prime Minister Narendra Modi kicked off his government's ambitious Startup India Movement. Back then, the Indian Startup ecosystem rejoiced over the announcement and predicted the initiative as the onset of a golden period for the startup industry. But, more than a year has passed, and young entrepreneurs and startups in the country are still trying to figure out how they can register their startups under the initiative.
Before we get started on the registration process, let's give you a quick recap of what qualifies as a ‘Start-up’ in the eyes of the Indian Government.
According to the Indian government, any Legal entity will be identified as a startup till up to 5 years from the date of its incorporation. Further, its turnover shouldn’t exceed the 25 crores figure in the last 5 financial years. Lastly, the entity should be focused towards development, innovation, deployment, and commercialisation of new products, processes, or services driven by intellectual property or technology.
So, now that we have got ourselves acquainted with the Indian government's definition of a startup, let's understand the 6 step process one has to follow in order to register their startups with Startup India.
The first step involves making sure that your business/ startup is incorporated or registered as a Partnership firm, Private Limited Company or a Limited Liability Partnership, whichever out of the three might be applicable to your business. Unfortunately, a Sole Proprietorship firm is not eligible under the Startup India Scheme.
Once you have filled out all the details asked in the form, you will have to upload all the supporting documents and self-certifications. Make sure all the documents are in PDF format and do not exceed 2 MB in size.
The documents required are as follows:
a) Letter of Recommendation
A letter of recommendation/support needs to be submitted along with the registration form. Any of the following documents will be valid:
(i) A recommendation letter regarding the innovative nature of the business that the startup is doing from an Incubator established in a Indian post-graduate college, in the format that has been specified by Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP); OR
(ii) A recommendation letter regarding the innovative nature of the business that the startup is doing from a Government of India recognized incubator, in the format specified by DIPP; OR
(iii) A letter of support by a Government of India funded incubator which was funded under a specified scheme in order to promote innovation in the country; OR
(iv) A letter of funding of at least 20 per cent in equity by any SEBI registered Private Equity Fund/Accelerator/Angel Network/Incubation Fund/Angel Fund that promotes innovation in business; OR
(v) A letter of funding by Government of India or any State Government of the country as part of a specified scheme to promote innovation in the state; OR
(vi) A document specifying that a patent was filed and duly published in the Indian Patent Office official journal. The patent should be affiliated with the nature of the business that the startup is doing.
b) Incorporation/Registration Certificate
The registration form also requires you to upload the incorporation certificate of your business in the Startup Indian registration process.
c) Description Of The Business Your Startup Is Doing
Along with the form, you also need to attach a brief description that clearly specifies the innovative business that your startup is involved in. Keep the description simple, clear and easy to understand.
In his budget address this year, Finance minister Arun Jaitley altered the policy on tax concessions for startups and said firms incorporated after 31 March 2016 could now avail of a three-year tax holiday in the first seven years of their existence. Prior to this, the rebate could be availed only in the first five years. But, in order to avail this tax rebate, the startup certified by the Inter-Ministerial Board (IMB). Startups which are recognised by Government of India, DIPP can now avail IPR related benefits directly without requirement of any additional certification from the IMB.
a) Your Startup was incorporated/registered in India not before 5 years.
b) Your Startup is registered as a Private Limited Company, Partnership firm or a Limited Liability Partnership
c) Your Startup's Turnover is less than the 25 crore per year figure
d) Your Startup has innovation at its core and is working towards something completely new and innovative or improving an existing technology.
e) Your business is not a product of a split up or a plain reconstruction of an existing business.
Once you have diligently followed Steps 1 to 5, you will instantly get the recognition number for your startup. A certificate of recognition will also be issued but that will happen when all your submitted documents and details are completely verified. In case any of the submitted document is found to be illegal, one will be liable to bear a fine of 50% of your paid up capital of the startup with a minimum fine of Rs. 25,000. So, better be safe than sorry.
A few other key areas that you have to pay your attention to are:
a) Patents, Trademarks and Design Registration
The startup industry is quite dynamic. There's a new startup or innovation coming up every single hour. Hence, in order to make sure that the hard work put in by you gets its due recognition and isn't copied by anyone, you need to make sure your patent, trademarks and design registrations are in line.
For this, one can approach any of the facilitators from the list issued by the Indian government. The best part is, you will only have to pay for the statutory fees, which will give you a 80% reduction in fees.
b) Funding
Funding to a startup is what fuel is to a vehicle. In order to keep it running and go places, you need for it to keep coming. But, Indian startups are having a rough patch when it comes to funding since last year with some even going under the hammer due to lack of funds. Hence, keep a lookout for any Government of India or state government promoted funding programmes. The Government of India has set up a fund called the Fund of Funds for the Indian startups with an initial corpus of INR 2,500 crore and a total corpus of INR 10,000 crore over a period 4 years.
So, get started and register your startup with Startup Indian movement right away.
According to the Indian government, any Legal entity will be identified as a startup till up to 5 years from the date of its incorporation. Further, its turnover shouldn’t exceed the 25 crores figure in the last 5 financial years. Lastly, the entity should be focused towards development, innovation, deployment, and commercialisation of new products, processes, or services driven by intellectual property or technology.
So, now that we have got ourselves acquainted with the Indian government's definition of a startup, let's understand the 6 step process one has to follow in order to register their startups with Startup India.
Step 1: Your Startup Should Be Incorporated
The first step involves making sure that your business/ startup is incorporated or registered as a Partnership firm, Private Limited Company or a Limited Liability Partnership, whichever out of the three might be applicable to your business. Unfortunately, a Sole Proprietorship firm is not eligible under the Startup India Scheme.
Step 2: Log on To Startup India's Official Website
Once you have incorporated your business, you can progress on to the next step that entails logging on to the government's official Startup India website and filling in all the details of your business in the form and uploading the supporting documents and self-certifications whichever are applicable to your business. The entire process is very easy to understand and is completely online.Step 3: Upload Supporting Documents and Self-Certifications
Once you have filled out all the details asked in the form, you will have to upload all the supporting documents and self-certifications. Make sure all the documents are in PDF format and do not exceed 2 MB in size.
The documents required are as follows:
a) Letter of Recommendation
A letter of recommendation/support needs to be submitted along with the registration form. Any of the following documents will be valid:
(i) A recommendation letter regarding the innovative nature of the business that the startup is doing from an Incubator established in a Indian post-graduate college, in the format that has been specified by Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP); OR
(ii) A recommendation letter regarding the innovative nature of the business that the startup is doing from a Government of India recognized incubator, in the format specified by DIPP; OR
(iii) A letter of support by a Government of India funded incubator which was funded under a specified scheme in order to promote innovation in the country; OR
(iv) A letter of funding of at least 20 per cent in equity by any SEBI registered Private Equity Fund/Accelerator/Angel Network/Incubation Fund/Angel Fund that promotes innovation in business; OR
(v) A letter of funding by Government of India or any State Government of the country as part of a specified scheme to promote innovation in the state; OR
(vi) A document specifying that a patent was filed and duly published in the Indian Patent Office official journal. The patent should be affiliated with the nature of the business that the startup is doing.
b) Incorporation/Registration Certificate
The registration form also requires you to upload the incorporation certificate of your business in the Startup Indian registration process.
c) Description Of The Business Your Startup Is Doing
Along with the form, you also need to attach a brief description that clearly specifies the innovative business that your startup is involved in. Keep the description simple, clear and easy to understand.
Step 4: Choose Whether You Want to Avail Tax Benefits
In his budget address this year, Finance minister Arun Jaitley altered the policy on tax concessions for startups and said firms incorporated after 31 March 2016 could now avail of a three-year tax holiday in the first seven years of their existence. Prior to this, the rebate could be availed only in the first five years. But, in order to avail this tax rebate, the startup certified by the Inter-Ministerial Board (IMB). Startups which are recognised by Government of India, DIPP can now avail IPR related benefits directly without requirement of any additional certification from the IMB.
Step 5: Self-Certify You Meet All The Following Conditions:
a) Your Startup was incorporated/registered in India not before 5 years.
b) Your Startup is registered as a Private Limited Company, Partnership firm or a Limited Liability Partnership
c) Your Startup's Turnover is less than the 25 crore per year figure
d) Your Startup has innovation at its core and is working towards something completely new and innovative or improving an existing technology.
e) Your business is not a product of a split up or a plain reconstruction of an existing business.
Step 6: Get Recognition Number
Once you have diligently followed Steps 1 to 5, you will instantly get the recognition number for your startup. A certificate of recognition will also be issued but that will happen when all your submitted documents and details are completely verified. In case any of the submitted document is found to be illegal, one will be liable to bear a fine of 50% of your paid up capital of the startup with a minimum fine of Rs. 25,000. So, better be safe than sorry.
A few other key areas that you have to pay your attention to are:
a) Patents, Trademarks and Design Registration
The startup industry is quite dynamic. There's a new startup or innovation coming up every single hour. Hence, in order to make sure that the hard work put in by you gets its due recognition and isn't copied by anyone, you need to make sure your patent, trademarks and design registrations are in line.
For this, one can approach any of the facilitators from the list issued by the Indian government. The best part is, you will only have to pay for the statutory fees, which will give you a 80% reduction in fees.
b) Funding
Funding to a startup is what fuel is to a vehicle. In order to keep it running and go places, you need for it to keep coming. But, Indian startups are having a rough patch when it comes to funding since last year with some even going under the hammer due to lack of funds. Hence, keep a lookout for any Government of India or state government promoted funding programmes. The Government of India has set up a fund called the Fund of Funds for the Indian startups with an initial corpus of INR 2,500 crore and a total corpus of INR 10,000 crore over a period 4 years.
So, get started and register your startup with Startup Indian movement right away.
For Registering Your Startup Under Govt. of India's 'Start-Up India Scheme' Contact Our Partner Here Or Call Us At - +919762569252
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