Company Registration Cost in India: the complete breakdown

The five components of incorporation cost

Whatever anyone quotes you, the cost of incorporating a company in India is made up of the same five parts. Any quote that does not itemise them is hiding something.

1. Digital Signature Certificates (DSC) — one per director and subscriber. Class-3 DSCs with two-year validity cost roughly ₹1,000–1,500 each from certifying authorities.
2. MCA government fees — the fee for the SPICe+ incorporation form and, where filed separately, the name reservation. For companies with authorised capital up to ₹15 lakh, the incorporation fee itself is nil; the name reservation fee is ₹1,000.
3. Stamp duty — charged by the state where the registered office is located, on the MoA, the AoA and the SPICe+ form. This is the component that varies most between Delhi and Uttar Pradesh.
4. PAN and TAN — applied for through SPICe+; a nominal fee of around ₹130 in total.
5. Professional fee — what you pay a CA, CS or service provider to draft the MoA and AoA, prepare declarations, file the forms and follow up. Ours starts at ₹999.

Indicative cost of a Private Limited Company (₹1 lakh authorised capital, 2 directors)

The picture flips at higher capital: because Delhi's AoA duty is a percentage of authorised capital, a ₹25 lakh company pays ₹3,750 in AoA duty in Delhi against a fixed slab in UP. Stamp rates are set by state governments and are revised from time to time — treat the figures above as indicative and rely on the written quote you receive before filing.

How LLP and OPC costs differ

LLP: the MCA fee for incorporation (FiLLiP) depends on contribution — ₹500 for contribution up to ₹1 lakh, ₹2,000 up to ₹5 lakh, ₹4,000 up to ₹10 lakh and ₹5,000 above that. Name reservation (RUN-LLP) costs ₹200. The main additional item is stamp duty on the LLP Agreement, charged by the state on the capital contribution, plus the Form 3 filing fee. Two DSCs are needed for the designated partners.

OPC: essentially the same as a Private Limited Company but with one DSC instead of two, and one DIN. The nominee's consent (INC-3) carries no government fee.

What you will pay after incorporation

• Statutory audit — mandatory for every company, regardless of turnover. A small company's audit typically costs ₹8,000–20,000 a year from an independent Chartered Accountant.
• Annual ROC filing — AOC-4 and MGT-7/7A plus ADT-1, DPT-3 and DIR-3 KYC. Professional fees from ₹4,999; MCA filing fees are a few hundred rupees per form for small capital.
• Bookkeeping and income tax return — from a few thousand rupees a year for a low-volume company.
• GST registration and returns — registration is free; monthly or quarterly returns cost from ₹500–1,500 a month if outsourced.
• Share certificates and stamp duty on issue — stamp duty is payable on share certificates issued to subscribers within 60 days of incorporation.
• Late fees if you miss deadlines — ₹100 per day per form for annual filings, uncapped. This is the most common "hidden cost" and is entirely avoidable.

Five ways to keep incorporation cost down

• Start with modest authorised capital (₹1–10 lakh). Stamp duty and, above ₹15 lakh, MCA fees rise with it. You can increase capital when you actually raise money.
• Keep the number of subscribers to what you need. Every extra director or subscriber means another DSC.
• Do a proper name check before applying. A rejected name costs a resubmission and, after two rejections, a fresh fee.
• Choose the state deliberately. For large capital, Uttar Pradesh stamp duty is lower than Delhi's — but do not register in a state where you do not operate just to save duty.
• Ask for an itemised quote. If the professional fee, government fee, stamp duty and DSC are not shown separately, you cannot compare providers.

Frequently asked questions