Register a Company in India from South Korea (2026)

If you are a founder or finance lead in Seoul, Incheon or Ulsan planning to register a company in India from South Korea, the mechanics are more procedural than mysterious. A handful of Korea specific steps do trip up first time filers though: the apostille chain for Korean documents, occasional KCCI attestation requirements, and the RBI reporting that starts the moment capital lands in India. This guide walks through the wholly owned subsidiary route most Korean parents choose, the documents your Korean entity needs to notarise and apostille, the treaty position under the India Korea DTAA, and a realistic budget and timeline rather than a marketing minimum.

Can You Register a Company in India from South Korea?

Yes. A South Korean parent can generally hold up to 100 percent of an Indian subsidiary through the automatic route in most sectors, including manufacturing, IT services and trading, without prior government approval. A small number of sectors carry sectoral caps or approval requirements, so it is worth checking the current FDI policy against your specific business activity before filing.

This is the same automatic route used by Japanese, German and Singaporean parents setting up in India, and it is the reason a Private Limited Company is the default structure for a Korean company subsidiary in India rather than a branch or liaison office.

Why South Korea Companies Are Building in India Now

The Corridor in Numbers

Korean investment into Indian manufacturing has been widely reported as growing over recent years, concentrated in electronics assembly, auto components, secondary battery materials and steel processing. Exact figures move with each reporting cycle, so treat any specific number you read as directional rather than fixed, and verify against current trade and investment data before using it in a board paper.

What Usually Triggers the Move

Most Korean companies we see are not entering India speculatively. The trigger is usually one of three things: a global OEM customer, often in electronics or automotive, asking for local Indian production; production linked incentive schemes making Indian manufacturing commercially attractive; or a broader supply chain diversification strategy that reduces dependence on a single manufacturing base. Once one of these triggers exists, the question stops being whether to enter India and becomes how quickly a compliant entity can be stood up.

Choosing the Right Structure

Wholly Owned Subsidiary as the Default

For almost every Korean manufacturing or services entrant, a wholly owned subsidiary incorporated as a Private Limited Company is the right starting structure. It gives you a separate Indian legal person, limited liability for the Korean parent, the ability to hold Indian IP and contracts directly, and access to the automatic FDI route in most sectors. Setting up a foreign subsidiary in India this way also keeps GST registration, hiring and banking straightforward, since the entity is treated as a domestic Indian company for most operational purposes despite full Korean ownership.

Branch and Liaison Office Compared

A smaller number of Korean entrants use a branch or liaison office instead, usually because they want a toehold before committing capital to a subsidiary.

Under current regulations, a liaison office cannot invoice Indian customers or generate revenue, and a branch office is restricted to specific approved activities. Neither is a substitute for a subsidiary if the plan is genuine manufacturing or sales in India.

Personal Shareholding versus Corporate Parent

Some Korean founders ask whether the individual promoter should hold Indian shares personally rather than through the Korean parent company. In most cases the corporate parent holding the shares is cleaner: it aligns with how Korean tax and consolidation rules generally treat overseas subsidiaries, and it avoids personal FEMA reporting obligations for the individual. Where the Korean parent will charge the Indian subsidiary for management services, technology licences or shared services, get transfer pricing advisory input early, since these related party charges are tested against arm's length pricing rules under current transfer pricing regulations.

How to Register a Company in India from South Korea

At a high level, the registration sequence runs as follows.

1. Reserve the proposed company name through the integrated incorporation service on the Ministry of Corporate Affairs portal.
2. File the main incorporation form with the Korean parent's board resolution, subscriber details and identity documents attached.
3. Have the Korean parent's documents notarised in Korea and apostilled, along with identity and address proof for any Korean national directors.
4. Apply for a Director Identification Number and digital signature certificate for at least one director, generally including an India resident director.
5. Secure a registered office address in India and use the linked forms to apply for GST, provident fund and employee insurance registration alongside incorporation.
6. Receive the Certificate of Incorporation together with the company's PAN and TAN from the Registrar of Companies.
7. Open a corporate bank account, remit the share capital from Korea, and file the RBI report for the share allotment.

SPICe+ With a Foreign Parent

SPICe+, the Simplified Proforma for Incorporating Company Electronically, is the single integrated form the Ministry of Corporate Affairs uses to cover name reservation, incorporation, PAN, TAN and statutory registrations together. When the subscriber is a Korean parent company rather than an individual, the filing needs the parent's board resolution authorising the subscription, an apostilled copy of the parent's certificate of incorporation, and identity documents for the individuals who will sign on the parent's behalf.

Documents and Legalisation

South Korea is a member of the Hague Apostille Convention, so documents generally need notarisation by a Korean notary followed by an apostille rather than the older and slower embassy legalisation chain. Expect to apostille the Korean parent's certificate of incorporation, the board resolution appointing subscribers and directors, and passport copies or national ID documents for Korean nationals who will be directors. Documents originally in Korean generally need a certified English translation alongside the apostilled original, and some banks or authorities may separately ask for a Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry certificate confirming the parent company's good standing, particularly for bank account opening. Build in a working buffer for this step since apostille processing in Korea typically takes longer than filers expect.

DIN for Foreign Directors

Every director of an Indian company needs a Director Identification Number. For a Korean national director, the application generally needs a passport copy, apostilled proof of address, and a photograph, all notarised or apostilled as current Ministry of Corporate Affairs rules require. Travel to India is not required for this step in most cases, since the process runs on documentary verification rather than in person appearance.

Resident Director and Registered Office

Under current Companies Act rules, at least one director on the board generally needs to have stayed in India for a specified minimum number of days in the preceding calendar year. Korean parents that do not yet have staff based in India often meet this through a locally appointed nominee or an early expat hire rather than delaying incorporation. The company also needs a genuine registered office address in India from day one, which is where GST notices, ROC correspondence and statutory registers will be sent.

South Korea Specifics That Change the Playbook

The Manufacturing Wave: Electronics and Auto Components

A large share of recent Korea India manufacturing setup activity sits in electronics assembly and auto component supply, often following an existing Korean OEM customer that has already committed to Indian production. If your business fits this pattern, factor in not just company registration but also factory land, environmental clearances and customs registrations, since these run on separate timelines from the ROC filing.

Apostille in Korea and the KCCI Path

In practice, most Korean parent documents follow a two step path: notarisation by a Korean notary public, then an apostille from the relevant Korean authority. Some Indian banks and a smaller number of Indian authorities additionally ask for a Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry certificate on the parent company's incorporation and good standing, particularly where the standard apostille alone does not satisfy the bank's compliance team. Confirm document requirements with your Indian bank and company secretary before starting the Korean notarisation process, since redoing an apostille because of a missing certificate adds real weeks to the timeline.

The India Korea CEPA and DTAA

The trade agreement between India and Korea reduces tariffs on a wide range of goods, which is relevant if your Indian subsidiary will import components from the Korean parent or export finished goods back. Separately, the India Korea Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement generally provides reduced withholding tax rates on dividends, interest, royalties and fees for technical services paid from India to Korea, subject to conditions such as beneficial ownership and a valid Korean tax residency certificate. Under the Income Tax Act 2025, which replaced the 1961 Act, the withholding provision long known as Section 195 and the 15CA and 15CB certification chain continue under renumbered sections and forms, so confirm the current numbers with your CA at remittance time. Treat every treaty rate as conditional on current rules and get it verified against the specific payment type before relying on it.

Money In, Money Out

Capital Remittance and FCGPR

Share capital from the Korean parent needs to come in through normal banking channels into the Indian subsidiary's account. Once shares are allotted, the company reports the inflow to the RBI through the Foreign Currency Gross Provisional Return, generally referred to as FCGPR, within the timeline prescribed under current FEMA rules. Your bank will also ask for a Foreign Inward Remittance Certificate and standard KYC on the remitting Korean entity, so line this up before the funds are sent rather than after.

Korean Promoter Structures in FDI Filings

Across the FDI files we see for Korean parents, the most common structure is a direct sole shareholding by the Korean parent company, with no intermediate holding company. Some groups do route through a Singapore or Hong Kong holding entity for broader group tax or commercial reasons unrelated to India specifically. Whichever structure you use, any charges between the Korean parent and the Indian subsidiary for management fees, royalties or shared services need supporting transfer pricing documentation, since these are related party transactions under current Indian tax rules.

Expats, Visas and the Korean Operating Model

Korean parents frequently start Indian operations with a rotating secondee from headquarters before hiring a full local leadership team. Short business trips generally run on a business visa, while anyone taking up an actual role in the Indian entity, drawing an Indian salary or working from an Indian office on an ongoing basis generally needs an employment visa and subsequent FRRO registration. Build this into your Indian HR plan early, since visa processing timelines run in parallel with, not faster than, company incorporation.

The Compliance Calendar After Day One

FCGPR, FLA and the FEMA Rhythm

After the initial FCGPR filing, the subsidiary generally needs to file an Annual Return on Foreign Liabilities and Assets with the RBI every year, along with any further FCGPR filings for subsequent capital infusions. Getting these FEMA compliance filings right and on time matters more than founders expect, since RBI penalties for late FEMA reporting can be disproportionate to the delay involved.

ROC, GST and Payroll Basics

Beyond FEMA, the subsidiary carries the standard Indian compliance load: annual financial statements and returns filed with the Registrar of Companies, statutory audit, board meetings at prescribed intervals, GST registration and periodic GST returns once the business is trading, and monthly payroll compliance covering tax deduction at source, provident fund and employee insurance contributions for Indian staff.

What a Monthly Retainer Should Cover

A sensible monthly compliance retainer for a Korean subsidiary generally bundles bookkeeping, GST filing, payroll processing and TDS compliance, FEMA filing coordination, and board minute preparation into one predictable fee rather than a series of ad hoc invoices. When comparing quotes, check whether FEMA filings and transfer pricing documentation sit inside the retainer or bill separately, since those two lines are where cheap quotes claw back their discount.