Tax Law

On 20 March 2026, the Central Board of Direct Taxes notified the Income-tax Rules, 2026 vide Notification No. G.S.R. 198(E), issued under Section 533 of the Income-tax Act, 2025. Both the Act and the Rules come into force on 1 April 2026, consolidating and replacing the old Income-tax Act, 1961 and the Income-tax Rules, 1962. With less than two weeks remaining before the changeover, taxpayers, businesses, and practitioners need to understand what the new procedural framework

Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) and Infrastructure Investment Trusts (InvITs) have emerged as important asset classes in India's capital market. Introduced through SEBI regulations first issued in 2014 and 2016 respectively, and subsequently refined through several amendments, these instruments allow retail and institutional investors to participate in large-scale real estate and infrastructure assets that were previously accessible only to institutional capital. India

Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City) and its International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) have emerged as India's most significant experiment in creating an international financial hub within national borders. Regulated by the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA), GIFT IFSC is designed to attract global financial services activity, provide a gateway for cross-border capital flows, and offer a unique jurisdiction combining the advantages o

India's tax and customs law has long been marked by executive overreach, where the bureaucracy has often acted beyond its statutory authority, particularly in levying and collecting customs duties. A landmark Supreme Court judgment in 2026 has reaffirmed a fundamental constitutional principle: the executive cannot retain or levy tax without explicit legislative authorisation, and it cannot retrospectively impose tax liability. This ruling has significant implications for impo

Goods and Services Tax (GST) has been India's dominant consumption tax since 2017, but compliance remains complex and litigious. One of the most critical aspects of GST is the Input Tax Credit (ITC) mechanism, which allows businesses to claim credit for tax paid on input goods and services. Recent judgments from 2026 have brought welcome clarity to several contentious areas of ITC law, particularly regarding technical errors on invoices and the doctrine of mutuality. This art

Multinational enterprises conducting operations across India and other jurisdictions face complex transfer pricing (TP) obligations. Transfer pricing governs pricing of transactions between related entities such as parent companies, subsidiaries, and affiliated organizations. India's transfer pricing framework, embedded in Section 92 of the Income Tax Act, is designed to prevent profit shifting to low-tax jurisdictions while ensuring Indian tax authorities receive appropriate

India's goods and services tax system has evolved significantly since its introduction in 2017, with the government progressively implementing technological infrastructure to enhance tax compliance, combat tax evasion, and generate real-time revenue data. E-invoicing represents one of the most significant technological mandates, requiring large taxpayers to generate invoices through a centralized Invoice Registration Portal (IRP) system that captures all transactional data. T

India's franchise business has experienced explosive growth over the past two decades, with franchised systems now operating across retail, food and beverage, hospitality, healthcare, education, and numerous other sectors. However, unlike many developed jurisdictions, India lacks a dedicated franchise law establishing specific rights, obligations, and disclosure requirements for franchisors and franchisees. Instead, the franchise relationship is governed by general contract l

Stamp duty and registration charges represent significant costs in any real estate transaction in India, often determining the true cost of property acquisition beyond the purchase price. These levies, governed by the Indian Stamp Act 1899 and state-specific registration legislation, vary substantially across India's states and union territories, making them critical factors in real estate planning and negotiation. Understanding how stamp duty is calculated, the rates applica

Environmental clearance under the Environmental Impact Assessment framework is a mandatory prerequisite for a wide range of industrial, infrastructure, and real estate projects in India. Governed by the Environment Protection Act, 1986 and the EIA Notification, 2006, the framework requires project proponents to assess the potential environmental impacts of their projects, consult affected communities, and obtain prior approval from the relevant regulatory authority before com

The Finance Bill, 2026, introduced alongside the Union Budget, contains several targeted amendments to the Goods and Services Tax laws that will take effect from April 1, 2026. Three changes stand out for their practical significance: the removal of the pre-existing agreement requirement for post-sale discounts under Sections 15 and 34 of the CGST Act, the elimination of the minimum threshold for export refund claims, and the deletion of the special place-of-supply rule for i

India's income tax law is undergoing its most significant structural overhaul in over six decades. The Income Tax Act, 2025, which received Presidential assent in August 2025, comes into force on April 1, 2026. It replaces the Income Tax Act, 1961, which had accumulated decades of amendments, provisos, explanations, and judicial interpretations. The new Act does not fundamentally alter the tax base or rates but rewrites the law in plain language, consolidates scattered provis

The Finance Bill, 2026, introduced alongside the Union Budget, makes targeted amendments to both the Income Tax Act, 2025 and the Income Tax Act, 1961. While the new Income Tax Act takes effect on April 1, 2026, the Finance Bill layers additional changes on top of it, several of which have immediate compliance significance for businesses, employers, and individual taxpayers. Understanding the Finance Bill in full is essential to planning for the first complete financial year

Goods and Services Tax input tax credit represents a fundamental mechanism enabling neutral taxation of supplies through GST system. Input credit allows registered taxpayers to offset GST paid on procurement against GST collected on supplies, preventing cascading taxation. However, input credit availability is subject to specific conditions and limitations creating complexity in compliance. Recent judicial pronouncements have clarified several contentious areas, shaping conte

Employee Stock Option Plans (ESOPs) have become a cornerstone of startup compensation strategy in India, allowing founders to attract and retain top talent by offering equity participation while managing cash burn during early growth stages. However, ESOPs involve complex legal, tax, and administrative requirements that many startups misunderstand or implement poorly. A poorly structured ESOP can create unexpected tax liabilities for employees, trigger compliance violations w

Employee Stock Option Plans (ESOPs) have become the standard tool for Indian startups to attract and retain talent by offering employees a stake in the company's future growth. For founders structuring their first ESOP pool and employees evaluating stock option grants, understanding the legal framework and tax implications is critical to making informed decisions. The legal and tax landscape for ESOPs has seen significant changes in 2025 and 2026, including the abolition of a