Statutory Registrations & Licences in India
Operating a business in India without the correct statutory registrations is not merely a compliance gap — it is often a criminal offence. Factories must not commence production without a valid licence under the Factories Act. Establishments must register under the applicable Shops & Establishments Act before commencing operations. Principal employers engaging contract labour must hold a valid certificate of registration; contractors must hold a valid labour licence. PF and ESI registrations must be obtained once prescribed employee thresholds are crossed.
DYSEN LLP manages the complete registration lifecycle — identifying which registrations apply to your business, preparing and filing applications, following up with the relevant authorities, obtaining certificates and licences, and maintaining a renewal calendar so nothing lapses. For multi-location businesses, we coordinate registrations across states as a single engagement.
Registrations & Licences We Manage
Factory Registration & Licence
Mandatory for any premises where manufacturing processes are carried out with ten or more workers (with power) or twenty or more (without power). We handle new licence applications, annual renewals, amendments for changes in plant or management, and re-registration where required. Applicable Act: Factories Act, 1948.
Shops & Establishments Registration
Required for all commercial establishments — offices, shops, hotels, restaurants, entertainment venues, and other premises — under the applicable state Shops & Commercial Establishments Act. We handle new registrations, renewals, amendments, and branch registrations across all states. Each state has its own form, fee, and authority.
Contract Labour Registration & Licence
Principal employers engaging contract labour through contractors must register under the Contract Labour (Regulation & Abolition) Act, 1970. Contractors employing twenty or more contract workers must obtain a labour licence from the appropriate authority. We manage both — registration for principal employers (Form I) and labour licences for contractors (Form IV), including renewals.
PF Registration
Establishments employing twenty or more persons must register under the Employees' Provident Funds & Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952 within one month of reaching the threshold. We handle new PF code applications through the EPFO's online portal, sub-code registrations for branch establishments, and coverage extension for voluntary coverage requests.
ESI Registration
Establishments with ten or more employees (in most states) must register under the Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948 within fifteen days of becoming liable. We obtain the employer code from the ESIC portal, register all eligible employees with insurance numbers, coordinate Pehchan card issuance, and handle sub-code registrations for branch locations.
Professional Tax Registration
Employers in states that levy Professional Tax — including Karnataka, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala — must register as employers under the respective state Professional Tax Act. We handle employer registration, employee enrolment certificates where required, and periodic return filings.
Labour Welfare Fund Registration
Employers in states with Labour Welfare Fund legislation — including Karnataka, Maharashtra, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, and others — must register under the applicable State LWF Act and make periodic contributions. We handle new registrations, contribution remittances, and annual or bi-annual return filings as required by each state.
POSH — Internal Committee Constitution
Every organisation with ten or more employees is legally required to constitute an Internal Complaints Committee under Section 4 of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013. We draft the ICC constitution order, identify and formalise the external member appointment, and ensure the committee is properly documented and notified to employees.
Other Statutory Registrations
We also manage: BOCW (Building & Other Construction Workers) registration for construction establishments; Inter-State Migrant Workmen registration; Apprenticeship registration under the Apprentices Act; Trade Licence from local municipal authorities; and any other registration required under central or state legislation applicable to your business.
Governing Legislation
Operating Without a Valid Registration or Licence
Operating a factory without a valid licence is an offence under Section 6 of the Factories Act — punishable by imprisonment of up to two years or a fine or both, with the occupier personally liable. Running an unregistered establishment under a Shops & Establishments Act is similarly an offence in most states. Lapsed licences receive no grace period — the business is technically operating illegally from the day of expiry.
Renewals & Ongoing Validity Management
- Maintenance of a renewal calendar covering every registration and licence with advance reminders — typically 60 days before expiry
- Preparation and submission of renewal applications well ahead of expiry dates to avoid lapse periods during authority processing
- Amendment applications for changes in establishment details — name, address, number of workers, nature of manufacturing process, occupier or manager change
- Liaison with Factory Inspectorate, Labour Department, EPFO, ESIC, and other authorities on application status and additional requirements
- Safe custody and record-keeping of all original certificates, licences, and registration documents
- Notification to management of impending renewals with fee estimates and document requirements
New Business Setup — Registration Roadmap
- For businesses setting up new operations, we provide a complete registration roadmap — listing every registration required before commencing operations, in the correct sequence
- We identify which registrations are prerequisites for others (e.g., Factory licence before PF sub-code for factory location) and manage dependencies
- Single point of contact for all registration applications — eliminating the need to deal with multiple departments, portals, and authorities independently
- Progress updates at each stage so your operations team knows exactly when each registration will be in hand