Trademark Registration Importance

WHAT IS INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS?

A child from creative mind is worth protecting. Laws have thus developed in field of protecting such works which are not tangible in nature. The assets which are not physical are as valuable as others. Hence, Intellectual property which include literally and artistic works, scientific and technical inventions, symbols and names used in commerce activities, geographical indicators, industrial designs etc. These intellectual properties can be protected from infringement and from usage without the consent/ or authority of the creator/owner. These rights not only protect the unauthorized usage but also provide benefits monitory and recognition to the creator; this encourages the creativity in the market in form of inventions, commercial activities, artistic build-up etc.

WHAT IS TRADEMARK?

As per WIPO, ‘A trademark is a sign capable of distinguishing the goods or services of one enterprise from those of other enterprises.’A Trademark thus acts as a brand to the public and has goodwill attached to it. It may include any name, work, symbol, color, logo or any combination of these, intending to distinguish the specific goods and services from the others. The source of goods and service will be identified with the trademark.

WHAT IS THE STATUS OF TRADEMARK LAWS IN INDIA?

Though there were some laws regarding the trademark earlier in the country, in order to conform to the TRIPS (Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights), The Trade Marks Act, 1999 was introduced in India. Thereafter an amendment was introduced in 2010. Apart from the legislation, Indian Courts have been instrumental in drawing guidelines for protection of Rights in respect of Trademarks. A trademark is registered for a period of ten years, but may be renewed from time to time for a period of 10 years upon application with prescribed fee.

WHAT IS THE TRADEMARK REGISTRATION PROCESS IN INDIA?

Any person who claims to be the creator/owner of a trade mark in use or proposed to be used by him,who desires of registering the same, shall apply to the Registrar for the registration of his trade mark.

Trademark registration is a long process. Following are the steps followed:

1.      Trademark Search
Upon deciding what the trademark shall be, thorough search is required to be made in respect of the availability of the trademark. An already registered or widely used and popular mark is one that must be avoided to not fall into any disputes at a later stage.

2. Application filing
   Trademark registration can be filed with the Trademark Registrar in the prescribed manner and filed along with the fee with following information:

·         Proposed Logo or the Trademark

·         Name and address of the creator

·         Classification or Trademark Class

·         If being used, then the date since when

·         Description of the goods or services

The form shall be submitted along with supporting documents serving as proof of the stated information. Creator may sign a Power of attorney in favor of the applicant.

3. Upon due examination by the Registrar, for any conflicts or prohibitions, the trademark will be published in Indian Trademark Journal for inviting any objection or issues from any parties which are required to be raised within 90 days. If no objections are received within such time then the proposed trademark proceeds to acceptance.

The trademark application thus stands accepted and a Certificate of Registration under the seal of the Trademark Registry is issued.

Original Source- https://swaritadvisors.com/learning/trademark-registration-importance/

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Impact of GST on Start-ups

India is currently the 3rd largest startup superpower in the world and with projections of high paced growth for them;there is only one way ahead – UP.

There is no denial that introduction of Goods and Service Tax was not in the ideal course as intended and expected. Yet it is worthwhile to note that the challenges rising are being responded to by the GST council in an efficient manner in form of amendments, notifications and clarifications. In the ever evolving economy, active steps according to the need of the hour are essential. Every aspect and content of economy is to be researched for and the necessary advancement may be made accordingly.

What is GST?

Goods and Services Tax is an integrated, destination based indirect tax on consumption of goods and services, levied at every stage, on the value added, right from manufacture up to the final consumption, the burden of which will be on the final consumer. A dual GST system has been introduced in India from 1 July 2017. This shall facilitate the ease of doing business, better compliances and a well structured tax regime. It does not differentiate between goods and services and is expected to reduce tax evasions.

What is Start-up?

A startup company is a newly formed entrepreneurial unit keeping in mind the perceived demand for a particular product or service which has not been addressed at large and developing a viable business setup to earn profits from the gap.

The start-ups, like the other sectors, have faced both positives and negatives from the GST implementation.

What are the Positives of GST on Start-ups?

1.    Reducing the complexities
a consolidated form of tax instead of variedtaxes at both central and state level shall definitely brings down the complexities involved in dealing with the tax structure.
An easier GST registration which will call for simple scaling shall bring down the costing of the start ups.
It shall not only bring in an ease of running and developing a startup but also to encouraging initiation of a new unit. Fewer tax computations happens to be a positive of GST. 
In addition to that, all the procedures are online and frequent steps are being taken to ensure a straight forward and less time consuming mechanism to be in place.

2.    Reduction of Tax Burden:
The threshold for GST registration is 20 lakhs annual turnover. This is likely to exempt many start ups from the registration, and the profits shall be positively affected.

3.    Easier invoicing and consolidated taxing is another benefit. The goods and services are all treated as one. The multiple taxes to be dealt with have now come under an umbrella. This shall bring an ease into the management and functioning of start ups.

4.    Logistic costs:The big companies were able to keep in place a strategy to help them to avoid the inter-state taxes, which were not only high but also unreasonable; which hampered the budgets of the small businesses and start-ups. Introduction of GST has now benefitted them to negate these logistic costsand providing a smoother road.
The entry taxes and complex procedures while entering in other states, leading to delays, has always prevented the expansion to otherstates, which now will not be an obstruction.

5.    Compliances: Examining all the aspects, it is clear that the compliances required under this scheme are far less than earlier. Thus the time, cost and other resources dedicated to the compliances shall decrease substantially.

What are Possible Negatives of the GST Regime on Start-ups?

Along with there being positives, which shall benefit the business of start-ups in long run, there are some concerns that are being faces today:

1.  Being a fairly new regime, Goods and Services Tax has brought confusion regarding GST registration procedures, exempted limits and various other aspects. With regular changes and notifications being published, a little disorganization for the time being is expected.
Most start ups are not equipped with enough tax and legal expertise. This may result more manpower and resources required to be dedicated.Though in long run, after the clouds of confusion have dispersed, there will be no looking back. But for the time being, the start-ups need to focus on both, development of their unit as well as the catching up with this latesttax regime.

2.      GST has increased the tax burden for manufacturing startups.Under the previous laws, only the manufacturing business with a turnover more than Rs 1.50 cr had to pay the excise, whereas now, the limit has been setto Rs 20 lakh, which is drastically lower than earlier.

3.  E-commerce Ventures require to obtain GST registration mandatorily and no threshold has been set for them. This is bound to hamper those start ups with financial constraint in respect to investments.

4.      The provision of Reverse Charge: Here, it isthe receiver who becomes liable to pay the tax, i.e., reversal of the chargeability. If a vendor do not have GST registration, supplies goods to a person who is registered, then Reverse Charge shall apply i.e. the receiver shall GST not to the supplier, but directly to the Government. The registered dealer paying GST under the reverse charge has to do self-invoicing for the purchases made.For Inter-state purchases, the buyer will require to pay IGST and CGST and SGST has to be paid for Intra-state purchase.
Also, for an e-commerce operator who is supplying services, reverse charge mechanism shall apply and he shall be liable to pay GST. The Central Board of Indirect taxes and Customs has issued a list of goods and services where this mechanism shall apply.

Despite the current jumble, it is projected that the procedures shall be made more clear and easier with time and each member of the economy shall be benefitted by the Goods & Service Tax regime

Original Source: https://swaritadvisors.com/learning/impact-of-gst-on-start-ups/

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