Company registration in Karnataka: Online process, eligibility, documents

Company registration in Karnataka is governed by the Karnataka Shops and Commercial Establishments Act 1961 and Rules 1963. Entrepreneurs owning shops and commercial establishments must register with the Department of Labour, Government of Karnataka under this act to legally operate their businesses in the state.

How to register your company in Karnataka?

Karnataka government has made the registration process completely online and paperless to make it easier for entrepreneurs to register their companies and eliminate errors while recording the details of the registration in the government database.

Karnataka government started the e-Karmika website for all entrepreneurs to register their business in the state. “e – Karmika is a facility for registration and renewal of establishments under the Karnataka Shops and Commercial Establishments Act, 1961,” according to the website.

This website can help entrepreneurs with the following activities:

• Issuance of registration certificate
• Renewal of registration certificate
• Amendment in registration certificate
• Issuance of duplicate registration certificate

You will have to register on the e-Karmika website first to fill in the application to officially register your company. Visit the homepage of the website and scroll down to find the option ‘New registrations’. Clicking on this option will take you to a sign-up form for the website. Complete the sign-up process to receive your credentials.

Steps to register your company in Karnataka

Once you have the login credentials you can register your business using the following steps:

1. Login to the e-Karmika website
2. Click on ‘Registration form’. This Registration form is further divided into sub forms.
3. Access all the forms by clicking on the next button given below each application form to go to the next form.
4. Fill in all the forms
5. Click on submit

Before you start your registration form you would need to download the Declaration of Signature/Authorised Signatory Format and a challan to prove you have paid the registration fees. Once you login to the portal the ‘Download challan’ option can be found on the homepage.

To find the Declaration of Signature/Authorised Signatory Format navigate to ‘Download’ option on the banner of the website. Clicking on the option will give you a drop-down menu with the option to download Declaration of Signature/Authorised Signatory Format and other user manuals.

You must print this format on your company’s letterhead and then proceed to fill in the details asked on the format. During the online application you will be asked to scan and upload this document. The process is the same for uploading the challan as well.

Also read: MSME Registration: Documents, benefits, online process

Eligibility for company registration in Karnataka

To register a company in Karnataka you must fulfill these criteria:

• The company must have a unique name that is not similar to an already registered company name or trademark.
• The company must have a business space and corresponding office address in Karnataka
• The company must prepare Memorandum of Association (MOA) and Articles of Association (AOA).
• The company must have the minimum number of members: one member for a one-person company, two for a private company and seven for a public company.
• The company must have the minimum number of directors: one member for a one-person company, two for a private company and seven for a public company.
• All the directors must possess a Director Identification Number (DIN).
• Directors of the company can be foreign nationals, but at least one director must be an Indian citizen.

Documents required for company registration in Karnataka

Here are the documents required for company registration in Karnataka:

• Identity/Address Proof of the owner (Aadhar card/Driving license/Voter Card etc.)
• Incorporation certificate/Memorandum of article (in case of a Private Limited Company)
• Authorisation letter for authorised signatory/self-attestation letter for owner (as mentioned above)
• Challan/payment receipt/transaction receipt (as mentioned above)

Incorporation certificate is obtained by registering with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) through the MCA website.

Also read: Minority business loans in Karnataka: How to get subsidy, apply online, eligibility

Registration fee

Look at the details below to find out company registration fees in Karnataka. The fee is determined based on the number of employees present in the company:

Number of employees	Fees (₹)
1 to 9	600
10 to 19	4000
20 to 49	10000
50 to 99	20000
100 to 250	40000
251 to 500	50000
501 to 1000	70000
Above 1000	75000

You can download the ‘Instructions to shop and commercial establishment owners’ and other help manuals from the download section of the e-Karmika website for more details on company registration in Karnataka.

Also read: How to do MSME registration for your eCommerce business?