It needs money and you have it. Equity, or a loan?

Both are available to you at 100%, which is the comfortable case. Equity means subscribing to shares: remit the money, have it allotted within 60 days at or above fair value, and file FC-GPR within 30 days of allotment. A loan means an external commercial borrowing, and at 100% you clearly meet the recognised lender test — but it brings a framework with it: a minimum average maturity, a cap on the all-in cost, restrictions on what the money may be used for, a loan registration number before you draw it down, and a monthly return for the life of the loan. Most owners funding a young company choose equity for simplicity and switch to debt later when the interest deduction is worth the administration.

Generally no, and this is the part that surprises people. The borrowing rules work from a list of recognised lenders, and the usual qualification for an owner is holding 25% or more of the equity directly, or being a group company under a common overseas parent holding 51% or more. A director with a token holding, or a founder's relative abroad, does not qualify — and an Indian company cannot take a deposit from a non-resident individual as a way round it. In that position the route is equity, or a loan from someone who does qualify.

Decide the route before the money moves, because the clock starts when it arrives. For equity: the remittance comes through banking channels, the bank issues the inward remittance certificate and completes KYC, the shares are allotted within 60 days at not below fair value on a certified valuation, and FC-GPR is filed within 30 days of allotment. For a loan: confirm you are a recognised lender, agree terms inside the maturity and cost ceilings, obtain a loan registration number before drawdown, and file ECB-2 monthly. In both cases the purpose code on the inward remittance must match what the money actually is — a wrongly coded inflow is the most common reason a filing will not reconcile later.

Often, but not as often as it first looks. Interest is deductible to the Indian company, which is a genuine saving against corporate tax, and repayment of principal is not a taxable event. Against that: the interest paid abroad carries withholding tax, the rate has to be within the ceiling, there are limits on deducting interest paid to a related party, the money cannot be used for several purposes including real estate and on-lending, and working capital from a direct equity holder carries a longer minimum maturity than you might expect. For a company that is not yet profitable, a deduction against nil profit is worth nothing, which usually settles it.

It is fixable but it is time-bound. Money received towards shares has to result in an allotment within 60 days, and if it does not, it must be refunded to the sender within fifteen days. It cannot simply sit in the account as share application money while the paperwork catches up. If the window has already passed, the position is regularised rather than ignored — usually by refunding and re-remitting correctly, and by paying the Late Submission Fee on whatever reporting is late. Say so early; it is much cheaper than having a buyer find it during diligence.

No, not as an ordinary loan. Lending from India to a non-resident is restricted. Money comes back to you as dividend, as payment for services or royalties at arm's length, as repayment of a loan you properly made, on a buyback within the statutory limits, or on a sale of your shares. What is not available is treating the Indian company as an account you can draw on.