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How the government is killing Indian Startups

3 pointsby sassyboyabout 14 years ago

1 comment

divtxtabout 14 years ago
Here are some pain points you'll really feel if you're trying to do a micro-ISV.<p>I) Incorporation:<p>- No way for <i>one</i> individual to have limited liability. Sole Proprietorship only.<p>- A 'Private Limited' will cost you INR 20K-40K (USD 400-800), requires at least 2 people and quarterly board meeting filings.<p>- Private Limited minimum capital is INR 100K (USD 2K). Registration cost goes up if you invest more capital.<p>- Bank account pain: minimum balance INR 40K (USD 800), set up can take months to be fully functional.<p>II) Taxes:<p>- VAT registration &#38; monthly filing.<p>- Service tax registration &#38; quarterly filing.<p>- Import Export registration if you're exporting software.<p>- It's not clear if software is a product or service. So you'll do what everyone does - charge users both VAT &#38; service tax!<p>- Since amazon, rackspace etc dont charge you Indian service tax, you'll have to pay it. Add <i>20%</i> to your SaaS hosting costs.<p>- If you hire contractors, <i>you</i> have to withhold &#38; submit their service tax.<p>BTW, from what I've read here and in other forums, stuff like this is a pain in many countries.