Business Licences in Tamil Nadu: Shops Registration, Trade Licence and Sector Approvals

A business in Tamil Nadu needs the same national registrations as anywhere else, plus several state and municipal licences. This guide covers the ones most businesses here meet, and how the state's single-window clearance system helps with industrial approvals.

For Every Business With Premises

Shops and establishments registration

The Tamil Nadu Shops and Establishments Act applies to commercial establishments in the state, including a company's office. Register online with the Labour Department. It governs working hours, holidays and employee records, and is often used as business proof when opening a bank account.

Trade licence

An office within Greater Chennai Corporation or another municipal area usually needs a trade licence from the local body. It's tied to the premises and is usually renewed every year.

Professional tax

In Tamil Nadu, professional tax is collected by local bodies, such as the Greater Chennai Corporation and other municipalities, rather than by the state. The company enrols with its local body and deducts professional tax from employees' salaries on a half-yearly basis. Check the current slabs with your local body. Register within 30 days of becoming liable, and deduct and pay over the tax from salaries each month once you have staff.

For Manufacturing and Industrial Units

Industrial units need approvals such as building permissions, fire NOCs, consent to establish and consent to operate from the State Pollution Control Board, factory licences under the Factories Act and power connections. In Tamil Nadu, the state's single-window clearance system brings many of these together, with defined timelines for approvals. Units in government industrial parks or estates also have to follow the park's own allotment conditions.

Sector Licences

• Food: FSSAI registration or licence, with the Commissioner of Food Safety for Tamil Nadu and district food safety officers handling State licences and inspections.
• Pharma: drug licences from the state drugs control authority for pharmacies, wholesalers and manufacturers.
• Packaged goods: Legal Metrology registration for packers, importers and manufacturers of pre-packaged goods.
• Import and export: the Import Export Code (IEC) from DGFT, which is valid for life with an annual update between April and June.
• Other regulated trades: licences for things such as liquor, explosives, cinemas and private security agencies, from the authority that regulates each.

A Checklist for Businesses in Tamil Nadu

1. Register under the shops and establishments law.
2. Get a trade licence from your local body.
3. Register for professional tax.
4. For manufacturing, apply through the state's single-window clearance system.
5. Get sector licences, such as FSSAI, a drug licence or Legal Metrology registration, as they apply.
6. Get an IEC before your first import or export.
7. Keep a renewal calendar for every licence.

Getting Help

Think Filing handles licences and registrations for businesses in Tamil Nadu, including shops and establishments, trade licences, FSSAI, IEC and industrial approvals.