The Fifteen Contract Templates Every Indian Startup Needs, and the Indian Rule Behind Each
The fifteen contract templates an Indian startup needs in its first three years, what each is for, the Indian legal point that makes each one different from a downloaded version, and which guides in this series cover each in depth.
A startup's contracts arrive one at a time, each copied from the last company a founder worked at. By Series A there are fifteen document types in six formats with three different governing-law clauses. This hub lists the fifteen, what each does, the Indian point that a downloaded template usually misses, and where this series covers each in depth. Position as of October 2026.
Formation and ownership
1. Founders' agreement. Equity, vesting, roles, IP assignment, exit. Indian point: post-exit non-competes are void under section 27 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872; pre-incorporation IP needs a written assignment.
2. Shareholders' agreement. Investor rights, transfer restrictions, reserved matters. Indian point: must be reflected in the articles under the Companies Act, 2013 to bind the company.
3. ESOP scheme and grant letter. Section 62(1)(b) and rule 12: special resolution, one-year minimum vesting, register in Form SH-6.
People
4. Offer letter and appointment letter. Conditions, validity, notice; no at-will language.
5. Employment contract. Confidentiality, IP, employee-data clause under section 7(i) of the DPDP Act, 2023; fixed-term employment under the Industrial Relations Code, 2020 where the role has an end date.
6. Independent contractor / consultancy agreement. Indian court tests for employment (control, integration, economic reality); TDS under section 194J; GST; MSE 45-day payment cap.
7. Employee NDA. Confidentiality that survives exit; narrow non-solicit; no non-compete.
Revenue
8. Customer agreement / SaaS terms. Clickwrap formation under section 10A of the IT Act, 2000; separate data consent (section 6(1), DPDP Act); processor terms where you handle customers' user data (section 8(2)).
9. Mutual and one-way NDAs. Definition, purpose, exclusions, survival; injunction as the remedy.
10. Statement of work / order form. Deliverables, acceptance, change control, invoicing triggers.
11. Reseller, partner or marketplace agreement. In-term exclusivity is enforceable, post-term is not; the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020 for marketplace sellers.
Suppliers and infrastructure
12. Vendor / service agreement. GST exclusive and invoice condition; TDS section; MSE payment cap; 180-day input-credit rule; liability cap with carve-outs.
13. Data processing agreement. Required by section 8(2) of the DPDP Act for every processor from 13 May 2027; rule 6 safeguards; breach notification enabling the 72-hour report.
14. Lease or leave and licence. Registration for leases over a year (Registration Act, 1908, section 17(1)(d)); compulsory registration of leave and licence in Maharashtra; stamp before signing.
Capital
15. Term sheet and investment documents. Share subscription agreement, SHA amendments, valuation report; section 56(2)(viib) no longer applies to shares issued on or after 1 April 2025.
Three rules across all fifteen
- Stamp before signature where the state schedule charges the instrument (section 17, Indian Stamp Act, 1899).
- Sign electronically with the right method: Aadhaar eSign or DSC for anything stamped, registered or litigated; a platform signature with audit trail for routine consents; and never a First Schedule document (private POAs, trusts, wills) through e-signature.
- Keep the record together: executed copy, stamp certificate, audit trail and the dated obligations, so each contract can be proved under section 63 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 and tracked to renewal.
Where each is covered in depth
This series includes guides on NDAs, founders' and shareholders' agreements, ESOPs, employment and contractor agreements, SaaS terms, vendor agreements, data processing agreements, leases and leave and licence, and the startup data-room test. Start with the template you sign most often.
Where Legatio fits. Legatio ships with the fifteen templates as starting points, executes them with the right signature method and stamping step, and tracks the obligations each creates. The positions inside each template are yours to set with counsel.
Position stated as of October 2026. General information, not legal advice.