Company Registration in India from Singapore

Planning to register a company in India from Singapore? This guide covers why Singapore-based businesses and investors are entering India now, what the Apostille process means for your paperwork, the entry structures available to you, and the practical steps involved in incorporation.

Why Singapore businesses are entering India

India and Singapore have traded under the India–Singapore Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) since 2005, and Singapore remains one of India's most significant sources of foreign investment. Many Singapore-based investors use a Singapore entity as part of their India investment structure — not for the capital gains routing that was common before 2017 (that specific tax treaty benefit was phased out from April 2017), but for the double taxation avoidance agreement's reduced withholding rates on dividends and interest, alongside Singapore's own well-established regulatory and holding company environment. Alongside India's scale, talent pool and expanding industrial base, this makes direct incorporation a well-trodden path for Singapore businesses.

Apostille, not embassy legalisation

Singapore joined the Hague Apostille Convention in 2021, and India has been a member since 2005. In practice, this means documents executed in Singapore for Indian company registration — identity documents, board resolutions, powers of attorney — generally only need an apostille from Singapore's authorities, rather than the more time-consuming embassy legalisation process required for non-member countries.

Choosing your entry structure

Most Singapore companies choose a wholly owned subsidiary — a separate Indian company that gives you full operational control and can trade, hire and generate revenue directly. A Branch Office extends your existing Singapore company into India for permitted activities such as consultancy, export/import or technical support, without incorporating a new entity. A Liaison Office suits businesses that only need a representative presence, for market research or coordinating with Indian partners, without conducting commercial activity. We help you work through which structure — and which holding arrangement — actually fits your plans, rather than defaulting to one.

One requirement that catches many Singapore boards by surprise: under Section 149(3) of the Companies Act, 2013, every Indian company — including a wholly owned subsidiary with 100% Singapore shareholding — needs at least one director who is resident in India for 182 days or more in the financial year, even if the rest of the board is entirely based in Singapore. If your directors will only visit occasionally, this is usually addressed with a professional resident director alongside your own board.

The registration process, step by step

For a subsidiary, incorporation typically involves obtaining a Digital Signature Certificate (DSC) and Director Identification Number (DIN) for your directors, reserving your company name with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, preparing and apostilling the required Singapore director and shareholder documents, filing incorporation documents, and completing post-incorporation steps such as PAN, TAN, a bank account and any applicable GST registration. Branch, Liaison and Project Offices instead go through an RBI-authorised bank rather than the MCA.

Common questions from Singapore businesses

Is Singapore still a useful holding jurisdiction for India investment? Yes, for reasons beyond the old capital gains benefit — reduced DTAA withholding on dividends and interest, and Singapore's regulatory and banking environment, remain genuinely useful. We assess whether a Singapore holding structure fits your specific plans.

Can profits be repatriated back to Singapore? Yes. Dividends are freely repatriable once withholding tax is deducted, at rates that can be reduced under the India–Singapore tax treaty.