NOT Easy to Do Business
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| # | Submitted | User | IP address | It was | Sector / Industry | State / UT | City(desc) | Response-time of officials | Number of documents to be submitted | Availability of information about the process | Overall Rating | It was an attempt to | Other | The problem was | Other cause | Details of experience | Advice for others | Share my story with | Name | Contact no | Privacy Policy | Contact me | Display it | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 | 16 Nov 2016 - 17:47 | Anonymous (not verified) | 203.122.16.122 | Not Easy to Do Business | Restaurant | Maharashtra | Mumbai | 2/5 | 1/5 | 1/5 | 1/5 |
Register the business Get registration and licenses under labour laws |
Can’t find information |
I had a lot of problems starting my restaurant in Mumbai. It was not easy for me to start my business. I tried to register the property, get permissions and licenses under the labour laws. My restaurant serves alcohol and even has hookah. So for me it was all the more difficult. I had to run from pillar to post to get my permits in place. I also had to pay bribe in order ‘to get things done’ at a faster pace. Apart from that once my restaurant started, I had to tip off the policemen in order to keep my business going. Or else for whatever stupid reason and probably an invalid one, my restaurant would have been shut down permanently. This is my experience in Mumbai and I am not aware of other cities in India. The customers, vendors and clients are also at times indifferent. They don’t feel any remorse in wasting someone’s time, energy and indulge in petty cheating at the cost of others. I am sure such instances take place abroad as well but the magnitude would definitely be significantly lesser. |
Be ready to grease the officials’ palms if you do not want any hindrances in the procedure of getting your business set up, registered and inspected. | Keep it Anonymous | Anonymous | - | rayleigh17@gmail.com | I have read and I agree with the Privacy Policy mentioned below | Yes | |||
| 35 | 16 Nov 2016 - 18:03 | Anonymous (not verified) | 203.122.16.122 | Not Easy to Do Business | E-Commerce | Maharashtra | Mumbai | 3/5 | 3/5 | 1/5 | 3/5 |
Register the business Trade outside state/ country |
Submitting the same document to different departments |
The biggest problem is the lack of clarity in the process. I went to the company registrar's office and took a form, filled it and submitted it to the officer. He gave me 'n' number of reasons explaining why they cannot accept the form, and I was given a long list of documents needed for my form to be accepted. Now to get each of these documents, I had run around to different departments of the government. No one offered help at the government office, because they expected a bribe to solve my queries. I collected all my documents from all the offices to submit these documents to the same officer only to know another set of reasons why my form won’t be accepted and another set of documents to be submitted. At this point, I was so frustrated that I asked the officer why he didn’t tell me about these reasons and documents earlier. And he simply smiled and said, I forgot. There will be lot more things you experience when you visit a government office. The officer was busy with some government work, which he was not supposed to be given in the first place. So this is used as an excuse to not meet you but the real reason is that he somehow wants to extract bribe from you. The more frustrated you are, the more he earns. Government employees could find a million reasons to not deal with you or your issue, and there is nothing you can do about it. According to the standard government procedure one can complain to his higher officers but the higher officers are equal partners in taking bribe. All have defined what charges will be taken as a bribe when you want something from them. How do I know about this? I am a son of a government officer (not company's registrar, but another government department) and despite that I tried to register my company honestly. I know both the sides of the coin. My dad tried to fight this as an honest officer when he was young. He has to visit courts till this date because some senior officers framed him in the wrong case. The last case has been running for last 2 years. My dad tried to contact everyone he can above his officers but all told him to shut up and be part of the system or else he will be in jail for sure. If you ask me for a solution, then it's done already in passport offices. TCS is running that department amazingly. The process is exactly described on their website. No local laws affect that procedure. And your turn is decided once you register online. You will surely be able to finish with the procedure in 1 or 2 hours. You know exactly what is needed before going to that department. |
Don't plan on doing business in India. Move abroad! |
Senior Department Officials Keep it Anonymous |
Sanjay Gedam | 8652786590 | gedamsanju@yahoo.com | I have read and I agree with the Privacy Policy mentioned below | Yes | |||
| 38 | 23 Nov 2016 - 17:52 | Prashant | 203.122.16.122 | Not Easy to Do Business | Education | Maharashtra | Mumbai | 4/5 | 3/5 | 3/5 | 3/5 |
Register the business Get electricity connection |
Other | Lot of documents required to register | Initial stage when one is trying out and testing out various other factors, the submission of documents for permission becomes a hindrance. Now with Adhar card, its better. Earlier, ration card, electricity bill, and so many other things were required. Also since none were photo-ids and processes were not computerized back then, it led to lot of corruption, too. | Documents are most important and one must be very meticulous in maintaining them. | Keep it Anonymous | Anonymous | 9833924637 | ajita_avc@rediffmail.com | I have read and I agree with the Privacy Policy mentioned below | Yes | ||
| 51 | 6 Dec 2016 - 17:52 | Anonymous (not verified) | 198.175.68.39 | Easy to Do Business | Robotics/Electronics | Maharashtra | Mumbai | 4/5 | 3/5 | 4/5 | 4/5 | Register the business | We just made a partnership deed and got a PAN card made. That was pretty simple and easy. Once that is done, we were good to go. We did not find it to be a hassle. The number of documents asked was a bit problematic otherwise it was not a problem and the process went very smooth for the three of us (Three of us - school friends are the co-founders in this start-up). | You should catch hold of a good CA or financial adviser who can guide you and help you in the process. | Both | Ankur Gosar | 8147677186 | ankur.gosar@gmail.com | I have read and I agree with the Privacy Policy mentioned below | Yes | ||||
| 54 | 8 Dec 2016 - 22:04 | Anonymous (not verified) | 115.96.27.41 | Not Easy to Do Business | Education | Maharashtra | Mumbai | 2/5 | 3/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 | Register the business | Confusing laws that say different things | There are no clear laws. There are so many laws that say different things. There are conflicting issues. A layman or common man cannot understand the procedure by himself/ herself and will need a lawyer or some expert to deal with the whole process. | Planning in advance is a must. Carry all your documents with you. Carry extra copies with you to be on a safer side. And if possible hire a lawyer or a CA or some expert who can help you out and make the process simpler and easier for you. | Keep it Anonymous | Anonymous | 9821225821 | littleflowersbloom@gmail.com | I have read and I agree with the Privacy Policy mentioned below | Yes | |||
| 57 | 9 Dec 2016 - 17:05 | Prashant | 203.122.16.122 | Not Easy to Do Business | Laundry | Maharashtra | Mumbai | 3/5 | 2/5 | 1/5 | 2/5 |
Register the business Get permits and licenses under environmental laws Get registration and licenses under labour laws Pay taxes File returns under labour laws, environmental laws, tax laws, etc. |
Can’t find information | There is no guide book which can direct you to do things. The procedures and processes are complicated. This leads to unnecessary waste of time and a hole in your pocket. The laws are confusing and one has to research a lot beforehand. | Kindly do a good research of what all is required and where you can get them, it might help. Hiring a lawyer or an expert is utmost advised. | Both | Akshay Karkhanis | 9930754656 | mailaku.akshay@gmail.com | I have read and I agree with the Privacy Policy mentioned below | Keep me updated about responses to my report and experience. | Yes | ||
| 60 | 13 Dec 2016 - 10:51 | Anonymous (not verified) | 1.186.60.46 | Not Easy to Do Business | Service | Maharashtra | Mumbai | 3/5 | 3/5 | 3/5 | 3/5 | Get registration and licenses under labour laws | Confusing laws that say different things | I am an auto driver, I own the autorickshaw and I also have the permit. I am doing this business since almost three decades. It was not so easy to start as you have to understand the laws of RTO. To get the permit for the autorickshaw is a difficult task. You have to run around and make sure you show your face to the concerned officer everyday. But I would say that despite it is difficult you've to try your best to have your own start-up. | Get all the information first and then start your business. A bit of research is required before you start your business. | Keep it Anonymous | Anonymous | 9892792055 | heenathakker0509@gmail.com | I have read and I agree with the Privacy Policy mentioned below | Yes | |||
| 61 | 14 Dec 2016 - 00:44 | Anonymous (not verified) | 58.84.15.130 | Easy to Do Business | Advertising | Maharashtra | Mumbai | 4/5 | 5/5 | 4/5 | 3/5 |
Register the business Other |
Advertising |
The market is really competitive. Having experience in the relative field plays a key part. That is what helped me. Indian market provides an excellent opportunity to start a new business in any particular field of choice. Taking help of experts who can help you register the business has helped me and hence it was easier for me. |
Doing proper homework before beginning anything is absolutely crucial. Take help from an expert. | Keep it Anonymous | Anonymous | 9833088028 | nair.radeesh@gmail.com | I have read and I agree with the Privacy Policy mentioned below | Keep me updated about responses to my report and experience. | Yes | ||
| 68 | 15 Dec 2016 - 13:19 | Prashant | 203.122.16.122 | Not Easy to Do Business | Farming | Maharashtra | Mumbai | 2/5 | 1/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 | Register the business | Other | Documentation was a headache | My experience was not good. I have a farming related activity in Mumbai. Even in a city like Mumbai - city of dreams where people have so many aspirations, doing business is not that easy. Documentation was a big headache. Every time I had to submit some new documents. I had to bribe under the table to get my business registered. | I don't know what advice to give to others. I am new to the business. The only advice is get all your documents in place. | Keep it Anonymous | Anonymous | 9145510501 | abcd@gmail.com | I have read and I agree with the Privacy Policy mentioned below | Keep me updated about responses to my report and experience. | Yes | |
| 74 | 16 Dec 2016 - 11:39 | Prashant | 49.204.110.82 | Not Easy to Do Business | IT | Maharashtra | Mumbai | 1/5 | 1/5 | 1/5 | 1/5 | Register the business | Corrupt officials who asked for bribes |
1) Bribe to complete registration of proprietorship. Didn't have to give bribe for registration of private limited company thankfully. 2) No clarity on taxes. For example, when you pay someone for a service, you have to cut 10% TDS. Now, if that person is Amazon and they are a MNC with offices in India and you pay them for their servers - do you deduct TDS? Amazon wants full payment. I talked to a dozen CAs and even a friend of mine in Indian Revenue Service, all of them had no clue. But they suggested me to pay the TDS just to be safe. So I had to pay Amazon the full amount and then 10% on top of that to Dear Govt of India. 100s of scenarios like this with no clarity. 3) Investment laws are a mess. Angel investments go straight into books of account as income and are taxed. God help you if you ever receive a FDI, I finally returned the money to the investor (it was 5 lakhs), as the amount of running around I had to do was not worth it for that small amount. 4) Terrible legal system- it's effectively a joke. An acquisition for one of my products fell through because the acquirer didn't want to make disputes subject to Indian jurisdiction in the contract because, in his own words, "the Indian legal system isn't held in very high regard here (Australia)" 5) High cost of doing businesses. My gateway charges a 5% premium (so 3%+5%) for Indian businesses, because of the increased costs of operation. So, while an American company can charge only 3%, I have to settle for 8%. So many other small little things - it's like death by a thousand cuts. |
It's a tough road, starting and conducting business in India. Be prepared for a lot of hardships. | Keep it Anonymous | Anonymous | - | abcd@gmail.com | I have read and I agree with the Privacy Policy mentioned below | Yes |