The CBDT (Central Board of Direct Taxes) has issued Guidelines for Compounding of Offences under Direct Tax Laws on 14 June 2019 (2019 Guidelines). These will supersede the prevailing compounding guidelines (dated 23 December 2014) and the clarification (dated 4 September 2015) issued in relation thereto (collectively, the 2014 Guidelines).
The Government of India (Union Cabinet) has approved the ratification of the Multilateral Convention to Implement Tax Treaty Related Measures to Prevent Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (MLI) and India’s final position to the same.
In a batch of writ petitions (Civil Writ Petition No. 2915/2019 and others), the Hon’ble Rajasthan High Court (High Court) has held that the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Amendment Act, 2016 (Amendment Act) is prospective in nature and cannot have retrospective effect (Judgment).
The Bombay High Court (Court) recently pronounced a ruling (Indostar Capital v Asst. Commissioner of Income Tax, Writ Petition No. 3296 of 2018) in favour of the Taxpayer (Indostar Capital). The Taxpayer, a Mauritian company sought relief from the Court since it was denied a ‘nil’ withholding certificate on the sale of shares of its Indian subsidiary, for which it was claiming the benefits of the India – Mauritius Tax Treaty (Treaty).
Ritu Shaktawat is a Partner in the Direct Tax Practice Group in the Mumbai office. With over a decade in the profession, Ritu has advised clients in the areas of corporate taxation and international taxation including bilateral tax treaties and transfer pricing.
Bijal Ajinkya is a partner in the Direct Tax, Private Client and Investment Funds practice groups in the Mumbai office with over 23 years of experience. On the tax side, Bijal primarily focuses on international tax, structuring of inbound and outbound investments, tax structuring of flip, SPAC transactions, complex M&A tax negotiations, tax insurance, WNI insurance, providing opinions on complex tax issues on international tax, GAAR, POEM, PE, & MFN, etc.
