LexBlog (LexBlog India)

The Income Tax Appellate Tribunal, Bangalore (“Tribunal”), recently in Google Ireland Ltd. v. DCIT[1] allowed an appeal by Google Ireland Ltd (“Google Ireland”) and held that the payments received from Google India Pvt Ltd (“Google India”) for granting marketing & distribution rights of Google AdWords program were not in the nature of “royalty” or fee...

On March 8, 2024, the U.S. Department of State (DOS) published the April 2024 Visa Bulletin. The April 2024 Visa Bulletin reflects no advances in final action dates for India and China. Specifically, the priority dates are as follows: As a background, the DOS Visa Bulletin summarizes the availability of immigrant numbers and releases Dates for...

Proposed changes to the levels of checks on a range of products, including sesame seeds from India and Turkey for Salmonella, have been put forward by UK food agencies. The plans cover official controls and special conditions on imported high-risk food and feed that is not of animal origin. The Food Standards Agency (FSA) and...

The Visa Bulletin is released monthly by the Department of State and is used to determine when a sponsored foreign national can submit the final step of the green card process, or if already pending, when the final step can be adjudicated. Below is a summary of the April Visa Bulletin, including Final Action Dates and changes from the previous month.

India enacted its new Digital Personal Data Protection Act last year. Here are some key takeaways regarding the law, courtesy of Sajai Singh, a partner at J. Sagar Associates in India. Singh spoke recently at Alpine Privacy Days in Switzerland.

Pivoting from China to India Recently, India’s Consul General K. Srikar Reddy met with a group of business leaders in Salt Lake City, Utah at World Trade Center Utah to discuss increasing business relationships between Utah and India. Mr. Reddy is based in San Francisco and covers the western US. He was previously posted in...

The following Q&A was first published in the Legal 500 and Legal Business Magazine on 8th March, 2024. The same was written by our Private Client team at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas. The online version of the Q&A can be found here. How does estate planning differ in India compared to other countries, especially in light of...

The 7th session of the Codex alimentarius Committee on Spices and Culinary Herbs (CCSCH7), chaired by India, concluded its work on several important new add-ons to existing and new standards on small cardamon; allspice, juniper berry and star anise; and turmeric. It advanced the work on vanilla, still subject to additional inter-sessional work until the...

The following article was first published in the Mint newspaper on 28th February, 2024. The same was written by our Private Client team at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, who frequently publish their comments and opinions in the Mint. The online version of the article can be found here. I have three sons, all of whom are married...

The Visa Bulletin is released monthly by the Department of State and is used to determine when a sponsored foreign national can submit the final step of the green card process, or if already pending, when the final step can be adjudicated. Below is a summary of the March Visa Bulletin, including Final Action Dates and changes from the previous month.

On January 29, 2024, the U.S. Department of State (DOS) will begin accepting online H-1B visa stamp applications at this web address for a limited number of qualifying applicants to receive H-1B visa stamps from within the U.S. rather than at a U.S. embassy or consulate abroad. This long-awaited pilot program is initially only for certain individuals whose most...

In the Indian holy city of Ayodhya, the politically and religiously controversial dedication of the Ram Mandir, a Hindu Temple, took place this morning. An article last week in Time explains the significance of the event. Here are excerpts: A decades-long flashpoint in India’s sectarian politics is poised to reach a climax next week. The...

The Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010, and the rules framed thereunder regulate ‘foreign contribution’. This post examines how heightened policing calls for stringent compliance by entities receiving ‘foreign contribution’. Evolving regulatory framework for ‘foreign contributions’ The first law to regulate ‘foreign contributions’ in India, the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act of 197

Nearly five years after a landmark Supreme Court ruling, which reiterated that information privacy is a fundamental right enshrined in the Constitution, India finally enacted its Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (the “DPDPA” or “Act”), on August 11, 2023. While the Act adopts several principles from global data protection frameworks such as the EU...

Companies subject to India’s new data protection law should assess practical implications. By Gail Crawford, Fiona Maclean, Danielle van der Merwe, Kate Burrell, Bianca H. Lee, Alex Park, Irina Vasile, and Amy Smyth The Indian parliament enacted India’s first comprehensive data protection law on 11 August 2023, namely the Digital Personal Data Protection Act 2023...

For the second day of data, we are taking a look around the world. The most significant new international data protection law of 2023 is probably India’s long-awaited comprehensive data protection law, the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (the “DPDP Act”). The DPDP Act was enacted and notified in the Official Gazette on 11...

In August, India passed its long-awaited Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (“the Act”). Initially introduced in 2019, the draft bill went through several iterations before being approved by India’s Union Cabinet earlier this year. Although the Act shares many similarities to other privacy legislation, such as the EU’s GDPR and the United Kingdom’s UK...

As the previous post in this series addressed the systems in place to prevent INTERPOL abuse and Secretary General  Jürgen Stock’s recent comments on that topic, today’s post will focus on what is needed for these reforms to be effective.  After INTERPOL’s Secretary General Jürgen Stock’s reform efforts had been integrated, INTERPOL still had to...

INTERPOL Secretary General Jürgen Stock recently addressed what he referred to as misinformation regarding the organization in the media and critics of the Red Notice system who claim it has become a tool of repressive states.  In an op-ed published in Euronews, Mr. Stock reiterated that Red Notices are a key tool for cooperation among...

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has published the draft CCI (Combinations) Regulations, 2023 (Draft M&A Regulations) on 5 September 2023 and has invited stakeholder comments, to be submitted by 25 September 2023. The Draft M&A Regulations would replace the current CCI (Procedure in regard to the transactions of business relating to combinations) Regulations, 2011...

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has published the draft CCI (Combinations) Regulations, 2023 (Draft M&A Regulations) on 5 September 2023 and has invited stakeholder comments, to be submitted by 25 September 2023. The Draft M&A Regulations would replace the current CCI (Procedure in regard to the transactions of business relating to combinations) Regulations, 2011...

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has published the draft Competition Commission of India (Lesser Penalty) Regulations, 2023 (LPR 2023) seeking stakeholder comments by 6 November 2023. Once notified, the LPR 2023 will amend the Competition Commission of India (Lesser Penalty) Regulations, 2009 (LPR 2009). The LPR 2009 regulates the leniency programme which is available...

Background The Income-tax Act, 1961 (“IT Act”) contains various machinery provisions which enable tax authorities to recover tax dues from taxpayers. When payments are made to non-residents that are chargeable to tax under the IT Act, payers (both resident and non-resident) are obligated to withhold tax at applicable rates prior to remittance of funds. Typically,...

La suola rossa del noto brand Christian Louboutin, creata per la prima volta nel 1993 con un semplice smalto, incarna ormai un’icona nel mondo della moda, tanto che è stata registrata come marchio e viene tenacemente tutelata dal suo titolare. Di recente, Louboutin ha prevalso in due procedimenti promossi contro contraffattori dinanzi ai tribunali di...

In Supriyo Supriya Chakraborty v. Union of India, (Sup. Ct. India, Oct. 17, 2023), a 5-judge bench of India’s Supreme Court, in 4 opinions spanning 366 pages, refused to recognize same-sex marriages, but called on the government to study and implement further rights for same-sex couples. As summarized by BBC News: The petitioners had argued...

The Visa Bulletin is released monthly by the Department of State and is used to determine when a sponsored foreign national can submit the final step of the green card process, or if already pending, when the final step can be adjudicated. Below is a summary of the November Visa Bulletin, including Final Action Dates and changes from the previous month.

Last week, Michigan Congressman Shri Thanedar announced formation of the 28-member “Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh, Jain US Congressional Caucus.” According to India West Journal: “The group will address cultural misunderstandings, promote interfaith dialogue and harmony, and support initiatives to promote the well-being, education, and empowerment of the Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh, and Jains in the US.”...

On September 21, 2023, the Indian government suspended the processing of visa applications in Canada. The Indian embassy in Ottawa and consulates in Toronto and Vancouver outsource visa operations to BLS International, a third-party provider of consular support services for diplomatic missions around the globe. According to a message posted on the BLS website, the...

In September 2023, select leaders participating in the G20 Summit announced plans to develop the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC). The project aims to develop two integrated corridors – one connecting India to the Arabian Gulf, and one connecting the Arabian Gulf to Europe – with new ship-to-rail transit networks, undersea telecommunication cables, and a...

by Robert A. James With the success of the Chandrayaan-3 this August, India became the fourth country to land a spacecraft on the moon. Improved fabrication methods like 3D printing, plus larger-scale production of essential materials for remote activity, have made space technology cheaper than ever to build. Even conservative investors are financing ventures, thanks...