How to choose an India entry partner: Big Four, global providers, specialist firms and online platforms compared

The prices and timelines on your shortlist do not line up: each covers a different stretch of work, and few of those pages cover every filing that follows incorporation.

Which firms incorporate an Indian subsidiary for a foreign company?

A strategy consultancy works on market size, customer needs, the business model, the go-to-market plan and partners; if those questions are still open, start there. Setting up the company and running its filings with the Registrar of Companies (RoC) and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), under the Companies Act 2013 and the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), is the work of these firms:

• The Big Four: Deloitte, PwC, EY and KPMG in India.
• Global corporate service providers: TMF Group, Vistra, Acclime, Healy Consultants, and Dezan Shira & Associates, now part of Ascentium.
• Specialist Indian firms: chartered accountants such as PAAY & Co, Fintax Adviser and VJM Global; company secretaries such as Pallavi Hegde & Co; law firms such as Ahlawat & Associates, King Stubb & Kasiva and Startup Solicitors; and advisory firms such as R Pareva & Company, CorpAlign Advisors, MAS LLP and Nexdigm.
• Online platforms: IndiaFilings, Vakilsearch, LegalWiz, Ebizfiling and Setindiabiz, which sell set-up services online, and Commenda, which sells entity-management software with services.

If Dezan Shira & Associates and Ascentium, or InCorp, are on your list as separate options, count them once. Ascentium announced from Singapore on 21 April 2026 that it had completed its acquisition of Dezan Shira & Associates, which took it to 27 markets. Dezan Shira's India site, read on 21 October 2026, says it will rebrand to Ascentium, and InCorp's India arm now calls itself Ascentium India (formerly InCorp Advisory).

Two choices come before the shortlist. The guide to the routes into India sets out what a branch or liaison office may do and when you need a subsidiary. If your first step is a few hires, an employer of record can employ them before you have a company of your own.

How do the Big Four, global providers, specialist firms and online platforms compare?

Side by side, the firms' own pages describe different things: one quotes its professional fee with government fees on top, another an all-in range, a third no figure at all. Where a page does not mention a field, ask about it, because the silence says nothing about whether the firm does the work. Timelines are compared further down, from the day each clock starts.

What the firms' own pages said on 21 October 2026, beside LegalJini's published terms

Why do so few firms publish a price?

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) told its members in an advisory of 28 April 2020 that the amount of any fee, free of charge included, should not be mentioned in an advertisement of services or in the particulars posted on their websites. Ahlawat & Associates, a law firm, says on its site that Bar Council of India rules do not permit it to solicit work or advertise. A missing price on a chartered accountant's or law firm's page therefore tells you nothing about the cost.

As their FAQs stood on 21 October 2026, two specialist firms print estimated all-in cost ranges, with government fees and professional charges included. Startup Solicitors gives Rs 60,000 to Rs 2,50,000 for a complete foreign subsidiary registration, compliance filings included, and VJM Global gives Rs 15,000 to Rs 50,000 for a basic private limited company incorporation. Each range is that firm's own estimate of the whole cost.

Among the global providers, Healy Consultants publishes a full fee card. Its India page, "Fees and timelines in 2026", read on 21 October 2026, prices company incorporation at US$5,200 in year one and annual company costs at US$1,700 from year two; resident director services at US$6,600 a year; company secretary and registered office at US$2,500 a year; year-end accounting and tax at US$7,970 a year; and corporate bank account opening without travel at US$4,950 once. It gives US$27,300 as its average total engagement for a subsidiary company, including incorporation, the bank account, tax registration and all government fees.

The online platforms publish prices that cover different items, as their pages stood on 21 October 2026:

• IndiaFilings lists a professional fee of about Rs 10,000 to Rs 25,000 and lists government fees, stamp duty and digital signature certificates (DSCs) separately.
• LegalWiz starts at Rs 28,000, excluding government fees, stamp duty and taxes, and sells GST registration and the FC-GPR and FLA filings as extra services.
• Setindiabiz charges a professional fee of USD 500 plus government fees and quotes an all-inclusive figure on request.
• Vakilsearch gives a range of Rs 25,000 to Rs 50,000 or more and says government fees vary with authorised capital, state charges and filings; its page does not say whether the range includes them.
• Ebizfiling advertises all-inclusive plans from Rs 29,999 (or USD 299, as it prints it) and does not say whether government fees and stamp duty are inside.

Ask every firm for an all-in figure in writing that names each item outside its fee: government fees, stamp duty, DSCs, and the notarisation and apostille of the parent's documents. For the official side of the cost, see the government fees and stamp duty behind any provider's price.

Who covers the compliance work after incorporation?

A monthly retainer pays for the filings that start with the certificate of incorporation. Some provider pages still give out-of-date or mistaken filing rules: a later transfer pricing date, a yearly director KYC, a yearly FC-TRS, an RBI clock that starts when the money arrives, SOFTEX returns, and the Annual Performance Report (APR) as a standard filing. Test each firm against the current rules.

Who will be the resident director?

Every Indian company, a foreign parent's subsidiary included, needs at least one director who stays in India for a total of at least 182 days during the financial year, 1 April to 31 March, under section 149(3) of the Companies Act 2013. The test has read this way since 7 May 2018, and for a new company it applies proportionately at the end of its first financial year. The 120-day figure belongs to the designated partner of a limited liability partnership (LLP), under section 7 of the LLP Act as amended in 2021. Five of the provider pages read on 21 October 2026 state the company test wrongly (against an earlier year, a calendar year or as 120 days), and three state it correctly.

No one may hold more than twenty directorships at the same time (section 165(1)), which caps the number of client boards a professional nominee can sit on. If one of your own people will stay in India for 182 days or more in the financial year, appoint that person and leave the service out of every quote.

Who files FC-GPR and the FLA return with RBI?

The company reports the shares it issues to the parent on Form FC-GPR through RBI's Foreign Investment Reporting and Management System (FIRMS) portal within 30 days from the date of issue, under RBI's Master Direction on reporting under FEMA. The separate report of funds received, the Advance Remittance Form, was deleted from 1 September 2018, so a 30-day clock that starts when the money arrives is out of date. While the company holds foreign investment, and for the year in which it ends, it files the FLA return with RBI by 15 July every year. Form FC-TRS is filed only when shares pass between a resident and a non-resident, within 60 days of the transfer or of the receipt or remittance of the funds, whichever is earlier.

Who prepares the transfer pricing report?

For FY 2025-26, which still falls under the Income-tax Act 1961, the transfer pricing report is Form 3CEB under section 92E, due on 31 October 2026. Form 48 under section 172 of the Income-tax Act 2025 is the report from tax year 2026-27; the first one falls due on 31 October 2027, a date the rules produce and the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has not yet printed. The guide to the transfer pricing report sets out which companies must file it and what a late report costs.

When does the subsidiary have to move its shares to demat?

A holding or subsidiary company can never be a small company, whatever its size, under the proviso to section 2(85) of the Companies Act 2013, and under section 2(87) a foreign parent counts as a company, so an Indian company controlled by a foreign parent is its subsidiary. Rule 9B of the Companies (Prospectus and Allotment of Securities) Rules, 2014 requires a private company that is not a small company at a financial year end to issue its securities only in dematerialised form and to have its shares dematerialised within 18 months of the close of that year. For a subsidiary whose first financial year ends on 31 March 2027, the 18 months run to 30 September 2028. Once the shares are in demat form, a reconciliation of share capital on Form PAS-6, certified by a practising company secretary or chartered accountant, is filed within 60 days of each half year, by 30 May and 29 November. Provider pages rarely mention this work, and a compliance quote that leaves it out is incomplete.

Which other filings fall due?

Since 31 March 2026, directors file DIR-3 KYC once every three years, and directors who had already completed their KYC file next by 30 June 2028, according to the Press Information Bureau. If the subsidiary exports services, software included, it declares each month's exports on the Export Declaration Form (EDF) within 30 days from the end of the month in which the invoice was raised, under FEMA 23(R)/2026-RB, in force since 1 October 2026, which replaced the SOFTEX route for software exports; a subsidiary that exports no services has no services EDF to file. The APR, due by 31 December, is filed by an Indian resident that has invested in a foreign entity, so a foreign-owned subsidiary files one only if it has itself invested abroad. The full year of filings puts every date in order.

Who keeps the books, and who audits them?

The board appoints the subsidiary's first auditor within 30 days of registration (section 139(6)). Only a chartered accountant, or a firm whose partners practising in India are mostly chartered accountants, can be appointed (section 141(1)), and a body corporate other than an LLP never can (section 141(3)(a)), so a provider organised as a company cannot be the auditor at all. Section 144 lets the auditor provide only the other services the board or audit committee approves, and never accounting and bookkeeping, internal audit, the design and implementation of a financial information system, actuarial, investment advisory or investment banking services, outsourced financial services or management services, to the company, its holding company or its subsidiary, whether directly or through any entity in which the audit firm has significant influence or control, or whose name, trade mark or brand the audit firm uses. So the firm that keeps a subsidiary's books cannot audit them, and a subsidiary that outsources its books works with two firms. Provider pages leave this rule out, though it decides which firm can audit you.

How should we compare their timelines?

Ask every firm from which day to which day its timeline runs, because the published figures start and stop at different points: the day the documents arrive, the certificate of incorporation, a working bank account. On 21 October 2026, the four Big Four pages and the TMF, Vistra, Acclime and Dezan Shira pages gave no timeline, and these firms printed one:

• Setindiabiz: one to two weeks after it receives complete, legalised documents.
• Ahlawat & Associates: 2 to 3 weeks once documents are ready, and 4 to 8 weeks including the authentication of the parent's documents, banking and RBI reporting.
• King Stubb & Kasiva: about 4 to 8 weeks from documents to live.
• PAAY & Co: 2 to 3 weeks, subject to timely documents and regulatory approval.
• Startup Solicitors: 4 to 7 business days from the SPICe+ filing to the certificate of incorporation, 15 to 25 business days for registration in automatic route sectors, and 15 to 45 days overall.
• R Pareva & Company: 10 to 20 business days for a private limited company or LLP, and 6 to 12 weeks for a wholly owned subsidiary, depending on the approval route.
• MAS LLP: 7 to 15 working days to incorporate.
• VJM Global: the certificate of incorporation typically within 15 to 20 working days.
• IndiaFilings: a total estimated timeline of 10 to 15 business days.
• Vakilsearch: usually 15 to 18 business days, which in practical cases may extend to 6 to 8 weeks depending on document readiness and approval delays.
• Ebizfiling: 10 to 15 working days for incorporation.
• Ascentium India: around a month and a half to set up a company for a foreign parent.
• Healy Consultants: 8 weeks for incorporation and 4 weeks for bank account approval, within an average of 16 weeks for the whole engagement.
• LegalJini: 45 days from the date it receives the documents, and a further 15 days for the bank account.

For a US parent, most of the short figures leave out three stretches: the notarisation and apostille of the documents the parent prepares at home, the bank account, and the FC-GPR filing after the shares are issued. The official clocks behind each provider's timeline show how long each government step takes.

Which type of provider suits which company?

Pick the type that fits your situation, then put the same questions to each firm of that type on your list.

If a Big Four network firm audits your group and will audit the Indian subsidiary, that firm, and any entity it controls or whose name or brand it uses, cannot keep the subsidiary's books or provide management services to it. Give the books to a firm outside the auditor's control and brand, or keep them in-house.

If you need the resident director from your provider, shortlist only firms that offer one in writing, and ask for the contract and how the person's days in India are counted. LegalJini, which has worked with companies since 2004, supplies a resident director from LegalJini's team in a purely operational, non-managerial role: the director signs only on board approval, with two bank signatories, takes no part in the business and is replaced on notice. The director signs basic operational documents with the MCA, the bank and the RoC against an indemnity from the parent, and has no day-to-day business or financial visibility of the company; like every director, he or she keeps the duties the Companies Act gives directors, and the resident director rule explains how that liability works. LegalJini suggests you appoint your own director from your India team 9 to 18 months after set-up and relieve LegalJini's. LegalJini Corporate Services Private Limited is a company, so it cannot be your auditor, and a separate chartered accountant firm audits the subsidiary. To ask about LegalJini's subsidiary set-up service, email support@legaljini.com or use the callback form.

If you are a start-up watching every rupee, the online platforms show a price before you call. Check what each price leaves out, whether FC-GPR and the FLA return cost extra, and who will be your resident director.

If you want one firm for the books and the filings, a global provider or a specialist firm can keep the books, run the secretarial work and file the returns, and a separate chartered accountant firm audits. Pallavi Hegde & Co, for one, lists coordination with statutory auditors among its services; ask any provider which audit firm it works beside.

What should we ask every provider before signing?

These are the questions to ask every firm on your shortlist. Send them in one letter, and ask for the replies and an all-in fee in writing.

1. Who will be our resident director, what residence test does he or she meet, and on how many other boards does he or she sit? The test is 182 days in total during the financial year, and the count of boards must stay within twenty.
2. Who files FC-GPR, and from which date do the 30 days run? They run from the date the shares are issued.
3. Is the FLA return in the fee every year? The return falls due by 15 July each year while the company holds foreign investment, and for the year in which it ends.
4. Who prepares the transfer pricing report, on which form, by when and at what price? For FY 2025-26 the report is Form 3CEB, due on 31 October 2026, and from tax year 2026-27 it is Form 48.
5. Who keeps our books, and who audits us? Whenever the books are outsourced, the reply should name two different firms.
6. Is demat conversion in scope, with the ISIN, the depository connection and PAS-6? A subsidiary has 18 months from the close of its first financial year.
7. Which government fees, stamp duty, DSC and apostille costs sit outside your fee? The reply should name each one and give an all-in figure.
8. From which day to which day does your timeline run? The reply should give three spans: documents received to certificate of incorporation, certificate to an open bank account, and share issue to FC-GPR filed.
9. Who answers in our business hours, and how fast? The reply should name the people, the hours they answer in your time zone and a reply time.
10. Does any step need one of our people in India? The reply should name the step, if there is one, and say how the bank will verify your directors.

Add one question for each type of firm on your list:

• Big Four: does your firm, or any firm using your brand, audit us or our parent, and which services must then go to another firm?
• Global corporate service providers: is the India work done by your own Indian company or by a local partner?
• Specialist Indian firms: which partner, and which accountant or company secretary, will handle our file?
• Online platforms: which chartered accountant or company secretary on your side handles our file?
• A strategy consultancy: do you incorporate and run the entity yourselves, or pass that work to a compliance firm?

Compare the written replies line by line, and sign with the firm whose answers are current and complete, at an all-in fee it will put in its engagement letter.

Frequently asked questions

Can we set up an Indian subsidiary without anyone travelling to India?

Yes, for the incorporation itself. A subscriber in a country that is party to the Hague Apostille Convention, such as the United States, has the signatures and address on the memorandum and articles of association, and the proof of identity, notarised at home and apostilled, under rule 13(5) of the Companies (Incorporation) Rules, 2014. Each foreign director's digital signature certificate is issued after an online video verification done within the 2 days before issue. The step to check is the bank account: one provider's guide, Commenda's, warns that some banks want in-person verification of a foreign director or a resident signatory. A foreign national who travels to India to incorporate the company needs a valid business visa.

What time difference should a US company plan for with an Indian team?

India runs on Indian Standard Time (IST), UTC+5:30, all year. US Eastern time is UTC-4 until the clocks go back on Sunday 1 November 2026 and UTC-5 after that, so an Indian team's day starts 9 hours 30 minutes ahead of New York until then and 10 hours 30 minutes ahead from 1 November 2026, until the clocks go forward again on the second Sunday in March. For the US West Coast the gap is 12 hours 30 minutes, then 13 hours 30 minutes. Those gaps are worked out from the official US and Indian offsets.