India’s Goods & Services Tax (GST) went through its biggest overhaul since 2017 when the GST 2.0 rate rationalisation took effect on 22 September 2025. The reform, cleared by the 56th GST Council, collapsed a four-slab system into a leaner structure built around two main rates, 5% and 18%, along with a special 40% rate…
The Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) runs one of India’s largest social security schemes, giving lakhs of workers access to medical care and cash benefits when they fall ill, get injured at work, or take maternity leave. If you run a factory or establishment in India, ESIC registration is not optional once you cross the…
An e-way bill is an electronic document that must accompany the movement of goods worth more than Rs 50,000 under India’s Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime. Generated on the government portal at ewaybillgst.gov.in, it carries a unique 12-digit E-Way Bill Number (EBN) that transporters and tax officers can verify in transit. This 2026 guide…
A common question TAXAJ receives is whether a private limited company can be "converted" into a sole proprietorship. The honest answer is: there is no direct legal conversion route under Indian law. A private limited company and a proprietorship are fundamentally different legal structures — the company is a separate legal person registered with the…
Running a business from your flat in Mumbai has never been easier to start, but “informal” does not mean “unregulated”. Even a one-person venture selling baked goods, consulting, tutoring or handmade products online is expected to pick a legal structure, take the registrations that apply to it, and follow the rules of your housing society…
The Unified Shram Suvidha Portal (USSP) is the Government of India’s single-window platform for labour law compliance, run by the Ministry of Labour & Employment. For any business that hires employees, it is usually the first stop for getting registered under the EPF and ESI schemes and for filing labour-related returns online. This 2026 guide…
A payroll management system is the set of processes, policies and software a business uses to pay its employees accurately and on time while meeting every statutory obligation in India. It covers far more than transferring salaries once a month. A modern payroll system calculates earnings and deductions, applies tax rules, files returns with government…
If you are forming a Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) in India, one compliance step often catches new partners off guard: paying stamp duty on the LLP agreement. Unlike the registration fees charged by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA), stamp duty is a state subject under the Constitution of India. This means the amount you…
Every company registered in India carries a hidden fingerprint that tells the world what it does: its main division code of industrial activity. This code is drawn from the National Industrial Classification (NIC) 2008, the standard framework the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) and the Registrar of Companies (ROC) use to categorise business activity. Whether…
India’s Income Tax law has steadily tightened the screws on high-value cash dealings. The goal is to curb black money, widen the tax base and push individuals and businesses toward traceable, digital payments. If you accept a large cash loan, repay a deposit in notes, receive a big cash sum or pay business expenses in…