Incorporate in India

1. A non-resident individual or foreign entity can invest in India, subject to the FDI Policy except in those sectors/activities which are prohibited.
2. However, an entity of a country, which shares land border with India or where the beneficial owner of an investment into India is situated in or is a citizen of any such country, can invest only under the Government route.
3. Further, a citizen of Pakistan or an entity incorporated in Pakistan can invest, only under the Government route, in sectors/activities other than defence, space, atomic energy and sectors/activities prohibited for foreign investment.
4. In the event of the transfer of ownership of any existing or future FDI in an entity in India, directly or indirectly, resulting in the beneficial ownership falling within the restriction/purview of the points No.2 & 3, such subsequent change in beneficial ownership will also require Government approval.

Investment in India via foreign investment is allowed as per the Consolidated FDI policy, which allows investment via automatic route and government route depending each of the specified sectors.

Except for few sectors which are prohibited for any kind of foreign investment in India as per Category 4 below.

In sectors/ activities not listed above, FDI is permitted up to 100% on the automatic route, subject to applicable laws/regulations; security and other conditionalities.

*Foreign technology collaboration in any form including licensing for franchise, trademark, brand name, management contract is also prohibited for Lottery Business and Gambling and Betting activities

**Real estate business shall not include development of town shops, construction of residential/ commercial premises, roads or bridges and Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) registered and regulated under the SEBI (REITs) Regulations, 2014

For any further queries please refer to the consolidated FDI policy or contact us

The foreign investor or the Indian company does not require any prior approval from the Reserve Bank or Government of India, based on the listed sectors in under the Automatic Route as per the Consolidated FDI Policy.

The foreign investor or the Indian company require the government’s approval to set up business in India. The company will have to file an application through Foreign Investment Facilitation Portal, which facilitates single-window clearance.

The APPROVAL PROCESS for foreign direct investments in India are based on a standards and plan developed by DIPP.

STEP:1
Submission of proposal and uploading document on Foreign Investment Facilitation Portal.

STEP:2
Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) assigns the case to the concerned Ministry within 2 working days.

STEP:3
Submission of physical copies to concerned department is not required in case of digitally signed documents.

STEP:4
For applications not digitally signed, online communication to applicant will be made to submit one signed physical copy of the proposal to the Competent Authority. Applicants are required to submit required documents within 5 days of such intimation.

STEP:5
The proposal is circulated online within 2 days to Reserve Bank of India for review from FEMA perspective. All proposals are shared with Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and Department of Revenue (DoR) for record. Any advice/comments from above mentioned departments are directly shared with concerned Administrative Ministry/Department assigned to decide on the proposal.

STEP:6
Proposals are scrutinized within 1 week and additional information/clarifications, if required, are asked for.

STEP:7
On getting all required information, the Competent Authority is required to give out its decision in next two weeks. Approval/rejection letters are sent online to the applicant, consulted Ministries/Departments and DIPP.

STEP:8
Where total foreign equity inflow is more than Rs 5000 crore, the Competent Authority is required to place the same to Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs for consideration within timelines.

Yes, It is mandatory as per Section 149(3) of the Companies Act 2013 is as follows:

“Every company shall have at least one director who has stayed in India for a total period of not less than one hundred and eighty-two days in the previous calendar year.”