How to Start an Architecture Firm in India: Registration, Money and the First Five Clients

To start an architecture firm in India you need three things in order: a current Council of Architecture (COA) registration, a business structure whose name the law allows, and the tax basics (PAN, GST once your fees cross the threshold, and profession tax where your state levies it). Then protect yourself with a written agreement and professional indemnity insurance, and find your first paying clients. Each step below cites its primary source.

Step 1: COA registration is the licence to the title

The Architects Act, 1972 protects the word "architect" in three sections:

• Section 35(1): "architect" in any law means an architect registered under the Act. That is why even GST notifications ask for "an architect registered with the Council of Architecture".
• Section 36: falsely claiming to be on the register is punishable with a fine of up to ₹1,000.
• Section 37: only a registered architect, or a firm of architects, may use the title and style of architect. A first conviction carries a fine of up to ₹500; a later one, up to six months in prison, a ₹1,000 fine, or both.

What the Act does not do is reserve the work itself. In Council of Architecture v. Mukesh Goyal (17 March 2020), the Supreme Court held that Section 37 does not stop unregistered people from practising architecture, but does stop them using the title. So registration is what lets you, and your firm's name, say "architect". Our explainer on the Architects Act, 1972 covers the history. What to do:

1. Register, or check your registration is current. The COA has accepted only online applications since 1 April 2016. Under Section 27, a name can be removed from the register if the renewal fee is not paid.
2. Find yourself in the COA online directory of architects. Clients check it, so put your registration number on your letterhead too.

Step 2: Pick a structure, and a name the law allows

The structure decides who carries the liability and whether the practice may call itself "Architects".

Sole proprietorship

You practise under your own registration and PAN, with no entity to form, and a name like "Asha Rao Architects" is fine. The trade-off: you and the practice are one person, so claims reach your personal assets.

Partnership of registered architects

This is the classic Indian "firm of architects". The Act does not define the phrase, but the COA's position, recorded in a Ministry of Corporate Affairs circular of 10 October 2011, is a partnership under the Partnership Act, 1932 in which every partner is a registered architect. The Architects (Professional Conduct) Regulations, 1989 add two duties: each partner must make sure the firm follows the conduct rules (Regulation 2(2)), and you may not take as a partner anyone whose name was removed from the register under Section 29 or 30 (Regulation 2(1)(xviii)).

Register the firm with your state's Registrar of Firms. Under Section 69 of the Partnership Act, an unregistered firm cannot sue a third party to enforce a contract (Section 69(2)), and partners cannot sue each other on contract rights (Section 69(1), applied by the Supreme Court in 2025). That matters the day you chase an unpaid fee.

Partnership with an engineer, interior designer or other non-architect

After the 2020 ruling, such a partnership may offer architectural services, but it is not a "firm of architects" in the COA's reading. Keep "Architects" out of the name.

LLP or private limited company

In 2011 the MCA told registrars to stop incorporating companies and LLPs whose objects included architecture, and a 2012 circular demanded a COA no-objection certificate. In Sudhir Vohra v. Registrar of Companies (25 April 2018), the Delhi High Court quashed both: companies and LLPs may provide architectural services. But it also held that entities not registered as architects cannot use "architect" or its derivatives in their names.

One question stays open: neither the Act nor any COA document we found says whether an LLP of registered architects counts as a "firm of architects". Until that is settled, keep the word out of an LLP or company name.

The mechanics, from the ICAI's study material on the LLP Act, 2008:

• An LLP needs at least two partners and two designated partners, one of them resident in India.
• An LLP partner is not personally liable for the LLP's obligations, but remains liable for their own wrongful act or omission (Section 28). For an architect, that means your own design errors stay with you.
• An LLP files annual accounts, a solvency statement and a return; a partnership files nothing annually with the Registrar of Firms.
• A private company needs at least two members and two directors; a member's liability is limited to unpaid share capital.

Our view: a proprietorship or a partnership of architects suits most first practices: both can say "Architects" and cost little to set up. An LLP suits partners who want separate liability and accept annual filings.

Step 3: PAN, GST, profession tax and Udyam

PAN

A proprietorship runs on your personal PAN; the Income Tax Department's Instant e-PAN is free for individuals with an Aadhaar-linked mobile number. A partnership or LLP needs a PAN in its own name; apply once the deed is signed or the LLP is incorporated.

GST

• When it becomes compulsory. Under Section 22 of the CGST Act, you must register once your aggregate turnover in a financial year exceeds ₹20 lakh, or ₹10 lakh if you supply from one of the special category States the section lists. Section 25(3) allows voluntary registration earlier, useful when corporate clients want GST invoices.
• Your SAC code. The GST scheme of classification of services puts architecture in group 99832: 998322 for residential building projects, 998323 for non-residential ones, and sibling codes for advisory, restoration, planning and landscape work.
• The rate. Heading 9983 carries 9% central tax under the CGST rate notification 11/2017, plus an equal state tax: 18% in all. The September 2025 rate changes (Notification 15/2025) reworded this entry but left the rate unchanged.

Profession tax

Profession tax is a state levy, so rules differ by state. In Maharashtra, the GST Department's enrolment procedure (PTEC) covers individuals and LLPs (not partnership firms), is online and free. Ask your CA what applies in your state.

Udyam (MSME) registration

Udyam registration is free and paperless. It runs on your Aadhaar number and PAN (plus GSTIN if registered) and pulls investment and turnover figures automatically. A micro enterprise is one with investment up to ₹2.5 crore and turnover up to ₹10 crore. The benefit is payment: under the MSMED Act, as the MSME Samadhaan portal explains, a buyer who does not pay a micro or small supplier within 45 days of accepting the service owes compound interest at three times the RBI bank rate, and a registered micro or small enterprise can take the case to the state's MSME Facilitation Council.

Step 4: Professional indemnity insurance

Professional indemnity (PI) insurance pays for your legal liability when a client or third party suffers financial loss from your professional negligence. One insurer's PI prospectus, which names architects, lists defence costs, settlements and court awards among what it pays.

In a proprietorship or partnership your liability is unlimited, and even in an LLP your own wrongful acts stay with you. The COA's Conditions of Engagement make the client indemnify you only for claims caused wholly by the client, not for your own errors.

Read the exclusions. The same prospectus excludes contractual liability, exceeding cost estimates, missed construction deadlines and loss due to delay. So do not promise a fixed construction cost or handover date unless you will carry that risk yourself. The COA home page links to a broker's portal for registered architects; we have not reviewed its terms or prices, so compare quotes.

Step 5: Fees and contracts

Regulation 2(1)(iv) requires you to tell clients the COA's conditions of engagement and scale of charges and make them the basis of the appointment. The COA's preamble calls its scale of charges a "mandatory minimum": 7.5% of the cost of works for an individual house, and 5% for most other projects, for comprehensive services.

Know the other side. A 2015 Central Public Works Department office memorandum (reproduced by Architexturez) says the COA's conditions and scale are approved by neither Parliament nor the Central Government, and told CPWD officers not to use them. Expect public clients to tender on price.

Our guide to architect fees in India compares percentage, per square foot and lump-sum quotes. For your own agreement, start from the COA Conditions of Engagement: define stages, tie each payment to a deliverable, keep the copyright clause, and show GST as a separate line on every invoice.

Step 6: Where your first five clients come from

The 1989 Regulations shape how you look for work. Regulation 2(1)(xxv) bars advertising, with exceptions: your name may appear in a professional directory or on a website, in unpaid press coverage of your work, and in brochures sent to named potential clients. You may not pay or take commissions for introductions (2(1)(vi)), or do free designs in competition with other architects outside COA-guided competitions (2(1)(xiv)).

Within those rules, our guidance on where the first five come from:

1. People who already trust you. Friends, family and classmates now working with developers. Do not approach your former employer's client on a live project: Regulation 2(1)(xiii) bars supplanting another architect.
2. A portfolio that shows built work. Five to eight projects, including work you led in your last job, with your role stated. A free MOA profile puts those projects and your COA registration details on one page you can send to anyone.
3. Small, paid commissions. A flat renovation or a clinic interior: quick to finish and photograph, and they turn into referrals.
4. Competitions. A shortlisted entry gives you work to publish. Pick credible briefs from our 2026 to 2027 competitions calendar.
5. Collaborators. Structural engineers and contractors often meet clients first. Pay nothing for introductions; earn referrals by being easy to work with.

For positioning and pitching, see 10 strategies to land your first high-value client.

Frequently asked questions

Can I start an architecture firm without COA registration?

You can offer design services, because the Supreme Court held in 2020 that the Act does not reserve the practice. But without registration you cannot call yourself an architect or name the practice "Architects"; Section 37 makes that an offence.

Can an LLP or company use "Architects" in its name?

The Delhi High Court held in 2018 that entities not registered as architects cannot use the word or its derivatives in their names. Whether an LLP of registered architects is an exception is unsettled, so leave it out.

Is GST registration mandatory for architects?

Above ₹20 lakh of turnover a year (₹10 lakh in the special category States), yes; earlier, it is optional. Architectural services fall under SAC group 99832 at 18%.

Do architects need professional indemnity insurance in India?

We found no rule making it compulsory for a private practice, but some clients ask for it, and it is your main protection against a negligence claim.

Setting up your studio? Put your portfolio on MOA, free, and see how other architects on MOA present their work.

Sources

• Council of Architecture: The Architects Act, 1972 (Sections 2, 27, 29, 30, 35, 36, 37) (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Council of Architecture: Architects (Professional Conduct) Regulations, 1989, as amended in 2003 (Regulation 2) (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Council of Architecture: notice on online applications for registration (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Council of Architecture: Online Directory of Architects (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Ministry of Corporate Affairs: circular of 10 October 2011 on registration of companies and LLPs (on coa.gov.in) (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Ministry of Corporate Affairs: General Circular 2/2012 of 1 March 2012 (on coa.gov.in) (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Supreme Court of India: Council of Architecture v. Mukesh Goyal, judgment of 17 March 2020 (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Delhi High Court: Sudhir Vohra v. Registrar of Companies, W.P.(C) 934/2012, judgment of 25 April 2018 (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Institute of Chartered Accountants of India: Limited Liability Partnership Act, 2008 (study material) (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Supreme Court of India: Sunkari Tirumala Rao v. Penki Aruna Kumari, order of 17 January 2025 (Section 69(1), Partnership Act) (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• LiveLaw: Shiv Developers v. Aksharay Developers, 2022 (Section 69(2), Partnership Act) (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• CBIC: Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (Sections 22 and 25) (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• GST Council: Scheme of Classification of Services (group 99832) (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• GST Council: Notification 11/2017-Central Tax (Rate), as amended to 1 April 2019 (heading 9983) (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Notification 15/2025-Central Tax (Rate) of 17 September 2025 (copy hosted by GST Gyaan) (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Income Tax Department: Instant e-PAN user manual (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Maharashtra GST Department: Procedure for Enrolment Certificate (PTEC) (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Ministry of MSME: Udyam Registration portal (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Ministry of MSME: MSME Samadhaan, delayed payments (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• IFFCO Tokio General Insurance: Professional Indemnity Policy, sales literature (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Council of Architecture: Conditions of Engagement for Comprehensive Architectural Services (indemnification, copyright) (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Council of Architecture: Conditions of Engagement and Scale of Charges, preamble (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Council of Architecture: Scale of Charges (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Architexturez: CPWD Circular No. DG/P&WA/79, Office Memorandum of 16 December 2015 (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Council of Architecture: home page (link to insurance policies for registered architects) (accessed 16 Oct 2026)