What a New Indian Business Files in Its First Year

The list of things an Indian business might have to file is long enough to be paralysing. The list a specific new business actually has to file is usually much shorter — but working out which is which is the part nobody explains, and guessing in either direction is expensive.

Most filings are triggered by something: registering for GST, deducting TDS, hiring employees, or incorporating a company. A new proprietorship with no GST registration and no employees may have almost nothing to file in year one. A private limited company has obligations from day one whether or not it trades.

Not sure what applies to you? WhatsApp us your entity type, registrations and headcount and we will map your actual calendar.

Quick Summary — What Triggers What

Filing	Triggered by	Frequency
GST returns	Holding a GST registration	Monthly or quarterly
TDS return	Deducting TDS	Quarterly
Advance tax	Tax liability above the threshold	Four instalments
Income tax return	Having income, or being a company	Annual
ROC filings	Being a company or LLP	Annual
Statutory audit	Being a company	Annual
PF and ESIC	Crossing the headcount thresholds	Monthly

💡 TaxKitab Tip

Build your calendar around the trigger, not the deadline. Most first-year businesses write down due dates and miss the obligation entirely, because the filing never appeared on their list — nobody told them that hiring their tenth employee started ESIC, or that a single consultant payment started TDS. Keep a short list of your triggers instead: registrations held, entity type, headcount. Review it whenever one of those three changes, and the deadlines look after themselves. — From our TDS & TCS Book 6. Available at taxkitab.com/books (Rs 249)

If You Are a Proprietorship With No Registrations

The shortest list, and it surprises people.

No GST registration means no GST returns. No employees means no payroll filings. No TDS deducted means no TDS return.

What remains is your own income tax return, and advance tax in instalments if your liability crosses the threshold. That is genuinely it.

The temptation is to register for things pre-emptively. Resist it. A GST registration you did not need still produces a return every month, and nil returns filed late still attract fees.

Once You Register for GST

This is usually the first real compliance rhythm a new business takes on.

Outward supplies are reported monthly, and the summary return with tax payment follows. Businesses below the turnover threshold can opt for quarterly filing with monthly payment, which reduces the paperwork without changing the money.

Two things catch new registrants. Nil returns are still returns — no activity does not mean no filing. And input tax credit has to be matched against what your suppliers have reported, every month, within the window. Credit that is not claimed in time is generally lost.

The annual return applies only above the turnover threshold, so most businesses in year one are outside it.

Once You Deduct TDS

TDS is triggered by making certain payments — rent above a limit, professional fees, contractor payments, salary — not by your size.

You need a TAN before you can deposit anything. Deductions are deposited monthly, returns are filed quarterly, and certificates are issued to the people you deducted from.

New businesses most often trip on the first one. They pay a consultant, do not deduct, and find out at assessment when the expense is disallowed.

Once You Hire

Salary TDS applies from the first payslip where the employee’s income is taxable. Professional tax applies where your state levies it.

EPF applies once the establishment reaches twenty employees, ESIC at ten. Below those, neither applies — but both start from the month you cross, not the month you register.

State-level obligations come with hiring too, including Shop Act registration or intimation depending on your headcount.

If You Incorporated a Company

A different position entirely, because these obligations attach to the entity existing rather than to it trading.

The annual return and financial statements are filed with the Registrar. The company is audited, regardless of turnover — India has no small-company audit exemption. An income tax return is filed whether or not there was income. Directors complete their annual KYC. Board meetings are held and minuted.

A company incorporated in January or later runs its first financial year to the following 31 March, so the first period can exceed twelve months.

None of this pauses for a company with no revenue. That is the single most common misunderstanding among first-year companies.

Advance Tax

Applies once your estimated tax liability for the year crosses the threshold, and is paid in instalments across the year rather than at the end.

The complication in year one is estimation. You do not yet know what the year looks like, and underestimating attracts interest. A reasonable approach is to revisit the estimate at each instalment rather than fixing it in June and hoping.

What You Can Ignore for Now

Directly useful to know.

Annual GST return, below the turnover threshold. Tax audit, below the turnover or receipts limit. Transfer pricing, unless you have international related-party transactions. EPF and ESIC, below the headcount thresholds. And GST registration itself, unless you have a specific trigger.

Ignoring these correctly is as valuable as filing the others on time.

Building Your Own Calendar

Write down your registrations, your entity type and your headcount. Every obligation follows from those three. Then put each recurring date in a calendar with a reminder several days before, and name one person responsible.

Most first-year failures are not technical. They are a deadline nobody owned.

Frequently Asked Questions

We registered a company but have not started trading. Do we file?

Yes. ROC filings, statutory audit and an income tax return all apply from the first financial year regardless of turnover.

Do we need GST registration from day one?

Only if you cross the threshold or have another trigger, such as interstate supply or selling through an e-commerce operator.

We paid a consultant without deducting TDS. What now?

Deduct and deposit as soon as possible with interest. Left unresolved, the expense can be disallowed.

When does the first financial year end?

31 March. A company incorporated on or after 1 January runs its first year to the following 31 March, so the period can exceed twelve months.

Is a nil GST return really required?

Yes, while the registration is live. Late nil returns attract fees and continued non-filing can lead to cancellation.

Do we need an audit in year one?

A company does, regardless of turnover. A proprietorship or partnership only if it crosses the tax audit threshold.

References

CGST Act, 2017 — registration thresholds and return filing requirements
Income-tax Act, 1961 — TDS, advance tax and return filing obligations
Companies Act, 2013 — annual filings, audit and director KYC requirements
Employees’ Provident Funds Act, 1952 and Employees’ State Insurance Act, 1948

⚠️ Thresholds, due dates and applicability change through notification and vary by state and entity type. Confirm your own calendar with your advisor rather than working from a general list.

Related Reading: You’ve Registered Your Business. What Records Do You Need From Day One? · Setting Up Your Books Properly the First Time · Registering as an Employer in Maharashtra: The Full Sequence

Call or WhatsApp: +91 7448200422 Email: info@taxkitab.com See our Accounting & Bookkeeping service, or explore Managed Compliance if you want the whole calendar handled.

Your First Year: What a New Indian Business Actually Files