Philip Harman The article is informative and provides much-needed information on license requirements for starting the business online. Online business is easy to open and require minimum paperwork compared to conventional retail business done from the stores and malls.
Arguably the most exciting sector of the Indian economy is e -commerce, with more than 11.47 million (and in fact growing) broadband users, the internet is making space into the marketplaces and consumers wallet like never before.
Besides attracting users, this sector is also luring in many young entrepreneurs, who are heading out to take their traditional businesses to a whole new level. The game of e-tailing is on and we can quite easily track the sector budding.
Businesses who are budding up needs to be aware of their obligations towards governments, which they need to comply in the form of various applicable licenses.
Licenses are the legal obligation that every business need to obtain, in order to earn recognition for their company and to save their company from legal chaos or as we have discussed, their legal shield.
Now when it comes to licensing of the online stores, there does not exist any significant difference in licensing from brick–and-mortars. An online store needs to obtain almost the same business licenses as are required by a brick-and-mortar store.
Let us present you some key obligations, or licenses that your business needs to obtain before it actually steps ahead to trade. These are:-
The process includes obtaining an array of licenses, permits, and registrations to operate your business legally and to protect your personal assets and boost your business credibility.
Licenses
The licenses are not general to all. They depend on a number of factors such as a type of business, business structure, geographical location so some business may require all of them while others only a few.
Service Tax Registrations.
As per the rules framed by the Indian government, every service provider has to mandatorily apply for Service Tax Registration if the value of the services rendered by him in a financial year is more than 9 lac per annum. Therefore every business needs to watch out for their state’s Service tax registration in order to be deemed a legal service provider.
Occupation License.
In addition to various business licenses, state authorities also ask for some occupation licenses which are specific to certain professions such as attorneys, architects, hair stylists etc. They need to present their occupation license which certifies their expertise in the concerned field.
Trade License under Shops and Establishment Act.
Any individual, who is commencing a new business, online or offline, needs to get the business registered with the local government unless he is doping with his own name. The government has made necessary for a business to obtain this license.
To ensure that the business applies for licenses, it is made free from any unfair trade practices, following relevant rules, safety measures and guidelines. So all those businesses moving ahead with a plan of getting payment gateways and employing people in the process needs to get registered for this license.
CST/VAT Registration.
Value added tax is required for all business selling good, be it an offline store or an online one. Manufacturers and Traders should obtain VAT Registration if their annual turnover crosses 5 Lakh.
Since the state governments determine it, therefore each state has different VAT regulations based on the type of goods sold. Therefore, it is one of the very important registrations that you need to consider for your online store.
All these compliances are quite essential for a legal birth of your online venture, so let the process be smooth
, convenient and hassle free with LegalRaasta because we know how valuable your licenses and time is.
