This case study is anonymised at the client’s request. Details that would identify the client are omitted or marked for confirmation.
What was the situation?
A European manufacturer had been supplying the Indian market by invoicing its network of Indian distributors directly from its European parent. It decided to set up an Indian subsidiary to act as its master distributor instead, importing the group’s products into India and selling on to that same distributor network locally, rather than each distributor being invoiced from Europe.
Speed mattered more than anything else. The priority was to get the new entity able to raise its first invoice in India as soon as possible, so imports and local sales could start with as little disruption to the existing distributor relationships as possible.
The subsidiary was to be a wholly owned Indian private limited company. The group had no Indian entity of its own, but it had already identified an India-based individual, who had earlier worked with the group as a consultant, to lead the new entity as its director and head.
What did we do?
ProLead delivered the full set-up: structuring the entity, name approval, director DINs and digital signatures, drafting the charter documents, incorporation, PAN and TAN, registered office, a nominee director (the structure needed a second Indian director, and only one individual had been identified), bank account opening, GST registration and an Import Export Code, all within three weeks. FEMA filings were also handled, completed in due course within their normal statutory deadlines rather than compressed into the three weeks, since they were not what stood between the client and its first invoice.
The work followed the normal incorporation sequence: name reservation, preparation of the parent’s and directors’ documents, incorporation filings, then the post-incorporation steps. A reserved name is valid for 20 days, so the sequence has to be planned around that window. Read the incorporation and registrations service for the standard steps.
What was the result?
The Indian subsidiary was set up in under three weeks, and the bank account was opened within the same window. ProLead’s own benchmark puts a typical foreign-parent set-up at 8 to 12 weeks.
Within that window, the client began importing its products into India, started selling to its distributor network through the new entity, and raised its first invoices from India.
What made it fast?
Several things lined up in this engagement. The client had already decided on its structure, a master distributor entity, before the work started, and had already identified a single India-based individual to lead it, so no time was lost to indecision. A nominee director filled the second-director requirement without waiting to identify and onboard someone else. ProLead also sequenced the work deliberately: everything standing between the client and its first invoice, from name approval through to the bank account, was prioritised, while FEMA filings, which run to their own statutory due dates and were not blocking the client’s ability to invoice, were completed in the normal course afterwards.
Not every set-up will be as fast. Document authentication in your home country and bank account opening are common delays, although the bank account was opened within the three weeks in this engagement. Your timeline will depend on your parent country, structure and sector. See the timeline guide and the cost and timeline page, or book a free consultation.
General information only, not legal or tax advice. Rules and forms change, so confirm the current position with a practising Chartered Accountant or Company Secretary before you act. See our disclaimer.