The financial newspapers have covered this (here and here) and The Firm has an interesting discussion on this. The income tax authorities have sought to challenge the valuation on which certain Indian companies have issued shares to their foreign parents. While the shares were previously issued based on the erstwhile formulation adopted by the Controller of Capital Issues (CCI) that was...
Legal advice privilege for tax advice given by non-lawyers
One of the striking changes in professional advice over the last two or more decades is the gradual erosion of the monopoly which members of the legal profession once had in giving legal advice. This, with the increasing importance of specialisation, has seen businessmen turn to members of other professions who are experts in particular fields that call for legal advice: for example, a chartered...
Computation of damages and the incidence of tax
The recent decision of the Court of Appeal in Capita Alternative Fund Services (Guernsey) Ltd v Drivers Jonas considered a peculiar set of circumstances in which the incidence of tax can be factored in when computing the damages suffered by a commercial party. The House of Lords had considered this question almost 60 years ago in BTC v Gourley, and laid down a set of guidelines to determine...
Research Report: International Investment Law and the Vodafone Claim
[The following announcement comes to us from the Student Initiative to Promote Legal Awareness (SIPLA), at the National Law School, Bangalore] The Research Panel on International Investment Law and Policy, under the aegis of the Student Initiative to Promote Legal Awareness, at the National Law School, Bangalore has recently concluded a study of possible claims in an investment arbitration...
IICA’s Legal Compliance Manual
I just came across a Legal Compliance Manual put together by the Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs (IICA). It contains a list of compliances required to be carried out on the part of businesses that arise under various central and state legislation. Areas addressed include corporate law, environmental law, labour law, tax law and other general laws. It is indeed a useful tool for...
Scheme of Arrangement & Tax Authorities: The Vodafone Essar Case
Lately, the income tax authorities have been actively objecting to schemes of arrangement initiated under sections 391 to 394 of the Companies Act, 1956 on the ground that the schemes are intended to avoid applicable taxes. Such objections are usually raised when the scheme is presented for sanction of the High Court. This scenario has been played out last week in a decision of the Gujarat High...
The AAR’s ruling in Schellenberg Wittmer: Partnerships and Tax Treaties
The entitlement of partnerships to the benefits of a double taxation avoidance agreement [“DTAA”] is a contentious issue. The main reason is asymmetry in the manner in which partnership income is taxed in the two Contracting States – India, for example, in certain circumstances taxes the income of a partnership in the partnership’s hands, but the Contracting State with which it has a DTAA (for...
Recent AAR Rulings on the ‘Mauritius route’
Some recent reports have pointed out that the Authority for Authority for Advance Rulings has once again sanctified the “Mauritius route”. While the law since Azadi Bachao Andolan’s case has upheld the sanctity of a tax residency certificate (TRC), the Revenue has not given up its efforts to find the “hidden reality” or “true facts”. The Revenue has also met with some success in its...
The GAAR Guidelines
One of the major changes implemented by the Finance Act has been the introduction of the General Anti-Avoidance Rules (GAAR). The Government has recently issued draft GAAR Guidelines in this connection, which can be downloaded from here. It is proposed to introduce a monetary threshold for invocation of the GAAR provisions, and time limits (such as time limits for making references to the...
Depreciation and Sale-and-Lease-back Transactions
One of the most important deductions permissible under income tax law in relation to capital assets is depreciation. Under the general scheme of the Income tax Act, particularly section 32, depreciation is allowed to an assessee who is the owner of a capital asset used for the purposes of business. The criterion of “ownership” is given a slightly more liberal scope under tax law. Assessees can...
Recent Comments