Recently The Startup India Portal has been Launched by Secretary, DIPP, Ramesh Abhishek in New Delhi. The “Startup India” initiative was launched by the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi on January 16, 2016 at Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi. As part of the event, a Startup India Action Plan was released. The Action Plan highlights initiatives envisaged by the Government to develop a conducive Startup ecosystem in the country.
As an integral component of the Action Plan, a Startup India portal and mobile app were envisaged to be implemented. The portal and app have accordingly been released recently.
Also DIPP has issued the definition of startups and is also making it easier for them to file intellectual property rights (IPR)
Anyone interested in taking benefits while starting a new venture must understand the following eligibility criteria for applying under the Startup:
1. It must be an entity registered/incorporated as a:
a) Private Limited Company under the Companies Act, 2013; or
b) Registered Partnership firm under the Indian Partnership Act, 1932; or
c) Limited Liability Partnership under the Limited Liability Partnership Act, 2008.
2. Five years must not have elapsed from the date of incorporation/registration.
3. Annual turnover (as defined in the Companies Act, 2013) in any preceding financial year must not exceed Rs. 25 crore.
4. Startup must be working towards innovation, development, deployment or commercialization of new products, processes or services driven by technology or intellectual property.
5. The Startup must aim to develop and commercialize:
a) a new product or service or process; or
b) a significantly improved existing product or service or process that will create or add value for customers or workflow.
6. The Startup must not be formed by splitting up, or reconstruction, of a business already in existence.
7. The Startup has obtained certification from the Inter-Ministerial Board, setup by DIPP to validate the innovative nature of the business, and
a) be supported by a recommendation (with regard to innovative nature of business), in a format specified by DIPP, from an incubator established in a post-graduate college in India; or
b) be supported by an incubator which is funded (in relation to the project) from GoI as part of any specified scheme to promote innovation; or
c) be supported by a recommendation (with regard to innovative nature of business), in a format specified by DIPP, from an incubator recognized by GoI; or
d) be funded by an Incubation Fund/Angel Fund/Private Equity Fund/Accelerator/Angel Network duly registered with SEBI* that endorses innovative nature of the business; or
e) be funded by the Government of India as part of any specified scheme to promote innovation; or
f) have a patent granted by the Indian Patent and Trademark Office in areas affiliated with the nature of business being promoted.
Under the Scheme, Income Tax exemption is available for first three years. However, the startup will be eligible for tax benefits only after obtaining certificate from the Inter-Ministerial Board, setup for this purpose.
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This is Meghna Shukla. She lives in Delhi. She is an engineering graduate and currently pursuing MBA from Jaypee Business School. She has a work experience of 2 years in content development. She loves to read and write.
