A Global Guide To M&A India

by Vivek Gupta and Rohit Berry

Contacts: Vivek Gupta E. vivek.gupta@bmradvisors.com, T. +91 124 339 5052; Rohit Berry E. rohit.berry@bmradvisors.com, T. +91 11 3081 5030
This article in question and answer format is the
third in a series provided by Taxand from their
Global Guide To M&A 2013
www.taxand.com: "Quality tax advice, globally"
The tax and regulatory regime in India is undergoing an overhaul, with the new Companies Act
2013 being phased in and the proposed Direct Tax
Code ("DTC"). The Companies Act 2013 has been
passed by the Parliament and the majority of the
sections along with the rules have been notified and
made effective. DTC has been the matter of debate over the last few years. No timelines have been
proposed for its implementation yet. However, the
government has recently placed DTC 2013 for
comments and suggestions from the public. While
the basic framework for taxation in India remains
the same, some critical amendments proposed under DTC 2013 have been included below.

Asset deals
In asset acquisitions, a company's assets and liabilities are transferred for a consideration specified
separately for each asset or set of assets, typically
in the form of cash or shares. In asset acquisitions
the target company's historical business liabilities
are not carried over to the buyer and the tax exemptions and incentives available to the seller are
normally not available to the buyer after the assets
acquisition. The assets acquired are recorded in the
books of account at the amount actually paid for
the particular asset.
VAT is levied on the transfer of movable or intangible assets. In India, VAT rates range from 4 percent
to 12.5 percent, depending on the classification of
the assets or goods. Subject to conditions, the VAT
paid by the buyer may be offset against the buyer's
future output VAT liability.

From A Buyer's Perspective

1. What are the main differences among
acquisitions made through a share deal versus
an asset deal in your country?

Stamp duty is levied on the transfer of movable and

immovable assets. Stamp duty is a state levy and is
imposed in the state where the assets being transferred are located. Transactions may be structured

so as to minimize stamp duty, particularly in certain cases involving the transfer of movable assets.
It is important to ensure that the entire transaction
is carefully documented to support the valid legality of the transfer and the protection of the rights of
the buyer and the seller. The transaction must also
meet the requirements supporting the contention
of a lower or nil stamp duty liability on the transfer.
Stamp duty may also be levied in the state where
the asset transfer agreement is executed between
the parties, in addition to the state in which the assets are located.

the buyer among the various assets transferred, for

which a valuation of the transferred assets would
need to be undertaken. This opens up some planning opportunities for the buyer in terms of ensuring that the assets' depreciable base is recorded in a
tax efficient manner.
Further, in a slump sale, tax benefits and incentives
available to the business undertaking may be transferred to the buyer, subject to the satisfaction of
certain conditions.
Additionally, transfer taxes are lower than in an asset
acquisition. Since the entire undertaking is trans-

Other modes of transferring assets

A transfer of assets from one entity to another may
be structured using other mechanisms in a more tax
efficient manner such as a slump sale or a demerger.

ferred as a whole in exchange for a lump sum consideration, the transaction may be held to be a sale
of business and not a sale of goods, and accordingly
the transfer may be viewed as not subject to VAT.

Slump sale
In India, a slump sale is a sale of a business undertaking as a going concern involving the transfer of
the identified business by the seller to the buyer for
a lump sum consideration. The transfer of a business by way of a slump sale is generally perfected
with the execution of a business transfer agreement,
which regulates the transfer of the business itself including its various components such as the assets, liabilities, employees, licenses and existing contracts.
The consideration for transfer may be discharged
by way of a payment in cash or shares. It involves
the transfer of the business as a whole without allocating values to individual assets. Accordingly the
lump sum consideration would need to be split by

Stamp duty implications are largely similar to those

for asset acquisitions. In a slump sale, structuring
options may be adopted to lower the impact of
stamp duty to bring in efficiency for the stamp duty
on movable assets.
Demerger
A demerger means the transfer of an identified business division from one company to another on a
going concern basis through a court-approved process. In a demerger the consideration for the transfer
of business is discharged by issuing "shares" (which
could be equity or preferred) to the shareholders
of the seller entity in order for the transaction to
be tax neutral. DTC 2013 has kept the position

statusquo and allows the issuance of equity or

preference shares pursuant to the demerger.
In India a demerger process requires approval by
the high court of the state in which the registered
office of the company/ies is located. The entire process normally takes between six and eight months,
depending on the number of states involved and
status of the company, i.e., whether the company is
a listed or a closely-held company. It is pertinent to
note that Companies Act 2013 provides that a notice should be served to the Central Government,
Income Tax Department, Reserve Bank of India,
Competition Commission of India and other regulators/authority for inviting their comments on the
scheme which has partially been implemented and
thereby extending timelines by a month or two.
In a demerger the buyer has a compulsory obligation to record assets at their book value as per the
books of the seller at the time of the demerger. Further the tax benefits and incentives available to the
business division may be transferred to the buyer,
subject to satisfaction of certain conditions. Planning avenues can be explored for the financial restructuring of the demerging company by adjusting the prior losses and expenses of the demerger
against other capital reserve accounts, paid-in capital, capital revaluation reserve, share premium etc.
Typically no VAT arises in case of a demerger.
Where state law has a specific provision on the levy of
stamp duty in an approved scheme of arrangement (as

approved by the jurisdictional high court), the stamp

duty will be levied using the mechanism provided in
the law. Typically stamp duty is levied as a percentage of the market value of the shares issued under
the scheme of arrangement or as a percentage of the
market value of immovable property located in that
state. In some states the possibility of a no stamp duty
position may be explored. An amendment to Indian
stamp duty laws to levy stamp duty on mergers and
demergers was proposed but had not yet been passed
by Parliament at the time of publication of this guide.
Where the demerger involves two states (i.e., the
business division's assets are located in 2 states) and
the stamp duty is levied under the stamp duty law of
both states, a credit for the stamp duty paid in one
state may be claimed in the other state, by carrying
out the process prescribed under the state stamp duty
law. However, obtaining credit for stamp duty paid
in some other state involves a lot of practical challenges and is generally a lengthy and tedious process.
Stock acquisitions
In stock acquisitions, the transferee company acquires the shares of the transferor company from its
existing shareholders for a consideration. The company's identity remains unchanged and the company continues to be responsible for all of its liabilities
existing before the transfer of shares. In a stock acquisition the assets continue to be recorded at their
book values, as they appeared prior to the transfer of
shares. Further the tax incentives and benefits available to the company prior to the transfer of shares
generally continue to be available after the transfer

of shares, although the nature of each particular

incentive or benefit would need to be analysed to
determine its continuity. In certain cases the target
company will not be allowed to carry forward any
brought-forward tax losses (see section 6).
Gains arising on the sale of shares of an Indian company are normally liable to tax in India unless specifically exempt or sheltered under a tax treaty. Indirect stock acquisitions could also be liable to tax
in India in some cases. Withholding tax obligations
could also arise for the buyer. Certain international
transactions involving indirect acquisitions and others claiming Indian tax exemption under the treaty
are the subject matter of litigation and Indian revenue authorities are seeking to tax such transactions
in India. The final outcome of this litigation has been
recently announced and the Apex Court has ruled
against the revenue authorities, to state that indirect
acquisitions of Indian shares would, in normal circumstances, not be taxable in India. Interestingly in
response the Indian Government passed a retrospective amendment (effective from 1961) for levy of tax
on indirect transfers, where the overseas shares derive
substantial value from the underlying Indian asset as
also levy of tax on transfer of any rights pertaining to
management or control of the Indian company. The
term substantial value has not been defined and is
generally debated from case to case.
Under DTC 2013 a specific provision has been
proposed for taxability of indirect transfers of Indian assets in certain situations. DTC 2013 provides
that an indirect transfer of share or interest deriving

its value from assets situated in India (representing

at least 20 percent of the fair market value of all the
assets owned by the company) shall be taxable in
India. However an exemption is provided for small
shareholders holding up to 5 percent in the overseas company, with no voting power and control.
DTC 2013 has also proposed the concept of Controlled Foreign Corporations (CFC) for taxability
of passive income earned by foreign subsidiaries of
Indian companies, in certain cases.
Share transfers are also subject to stamp duty. It is
possible however to reduce such costs by dematerializing the shares of the target company prior to the
transfer of shares.
Other considerations
Foreign investments in India are regulated by the
provisions of the Foreign Exchange Management
Act 2000 and the related regulations and press
notes issued by the Indian Government. The regulations prescribe the upper limit for equity interests
held by a foreign company in an Indian entity, depending on the industry in which the Indian entity operates. At the time of making the investment
in India, the foreign company must adhere to the
applicable limits. Further investment in certain selected industries requires the prior approval of the
Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB).
When the seller or buyer is an Indian resident and
the counter party is a non-resident, the sale or acquisition of shares could also be subject to certain

pricing guidelines and filing requirements. It would

be pertinent to note here that recently the exchange
control authorities have issued a statement, which
proposes to withdraw the existing pricing guidelines, and henceforth such transactions will be
based on acceptable market practices. The authorities are yet to notify the said guidelines.
2. What strategies are in place, if any, to step up
the value of the tangible and intangible assets in
case of share deals?
Under Indian law, in share acquisitions, the values
of tangible and intangible assets continue to be recorded at the same values prior to the transfer of
shares, for both accounting and tax purposes.
The value of tangible and intangible assets may be
stepped up in asset acquisitions (either by way of
an itemized sale or a slump sale) as discussed above.
3. What are the particular rules of depreciation
of goodwill in your country?
Under Indian law, different rules have been prescribed for depreciation and amortization for accounting and income tax purposes
Accounting
Under the prescribed Indian accounting standards,
intangible assets (such as patents, intellectual property rights, copyright, trademarks, etc.) are amortized over the useful life of the asset. Further, the
standard presumes that the useful life of any intangible asset should generally not exceed ten years unless a higher period is justifiable.

Goodwill may be self-generated or acquired as

a part of an acquisition transaction. Under the
prescribed accounting standard, self-generated goodwill is not recognized in the books of
account and, accordingly, no depreciation or
amortization can be claimed for it. Goodwill
acquired as a part of an acquisition transaction
is typically amortized over a period of between
five and ten years, though the final position also
depends on the useful life and is subject to annual tests of impairment.
Income tax
Under Indian tax law, depreciation is allowed
on intangible assets such as know-how, patents,
copyright, trademarks, licenses, franchises or any
other business or commercial rights of similar
nature. Although goodwill is an intangible asset,
it is not specifically included in the list provided
in Indian tax law.
While recent rulings have supported claiming
of the amortization of goodwill, it is unlikely
that the revenue authorities at the lower level
will yet allow them and this is likely to involve
contentious litigation. Through appropriate
purchase price allocation exercises, goodwill
can actually be split among the several business or commercial rights comprised. Subject
to facts, depreciation can be claimed on some
of these rights.
DTC 2013 has specifically included goodwill under the definition of intangible asset.

4. Are there any limitations to the deductibility

on interest of borrowings?

5. What are usual strategies to push-down the

debt on acquisitions?

Under Indian tax law, there are no direct thin capitalization rules, and deductions for interest on borrowings are allowed in the year in which interest is
paid or accrued. However, interest paid or accrued
on capital borrowed for the acquisition of an asset
to extend an existing business (in the period between the date on which the capital was borrowed
and the date on which the asset was first put to use)
is not allowed as a deduction and instead is considered as part of the acquisition cost of the asset.

The strategies for a push-down of debt on acquisitions have to be analyzed under two scenarios: foreign debt and local debt.

Tax withholding
Payments of interest are subject to withholding tax in
India under the domestic law or the applicable tax treaty.
Transfer pricing
An international transaction between two related
enterprises must be transacted at an arm's length
price. Where the debt is taken by the Indian entity
from a foreign related enterprise, the interest must
be at an arm's length price. If the Indian revenue
authorities are of the view that the interest is not
at an arm's length price, they may make an adjustment to the interest paid and reduce the deduction
claimed. Similarly interest payments exceeding INR50m between two associated Indian enterprises
are also subject to transfer pricing regulations.
Regulatory provisions
In the case of foreign debt, the provisions related to
external commercial borrowings are to be complied
with. See the following section for further details.

Foreign debt
Foreign debt raised by an Indian company is governed by the external commercial borrowing (ECB)
guidelines, which apply in the case of a push-down
of the debt to the target company. Although foreign debt raised by an Indian company is subject
to restrictions that do not typically enable a pushdown of the debt to the Indian company, the position needs to be examined based on the facts of
each case. Key conditions attached to the raising
and utilization of foreign debt include:
Borrowers may raise foreign debt from internationally recognized sources such as international banks,
international capital markets, multilateral financial
institutions, export credit agencies, suppliers of
equipment, foreign collaborators, foreign equity
holders etc.
The foreign equity holder must have a minimum
equity interest of 25 percent in the Indian company to qualify as eligible lender. Further, in the
case of foreign debt in excess of USD5m from the
foreign equity holder, the ECB liability-to-equity
ratio must not exceed 4:1.
Borrowings from group companies (having the
same parent as the Indian company) and indirect
equity holders with more than 51 percent equity
stake are also permitted with prior approval and
subject to certain monetary limits.

Foreign debt may be raised totaling up to

USD750m during a financial year, subject to
prescribed restrictions.
Certain sectors are permitted to take the foreign
debt without obtaining prior approval from a
regulatory authority, although restrictions have
been imposed on sectors such as financial institutions, services sector (except those engaged in
hotel, hospital, software sectors).
Under the existing regulations, foreign debt is
normally allowed for capital expenditure only
and for making an investment outside India.
Foreign debt cannot be raised to meet working
capital needs and is specifically prohibited to be

(i.e., the company taking the loan and the target

company) or by passing the debt onto the target
company. For a merger of the two companies, approval must be obtained from the jurisdictional
high court by filing a scheme of arrangement. The
entire merger process typically takes between six
and eight months, depending on the states involved and company status, i.e., whether the company is listed or closely held. Further, please see
section 1 above for recent changes in the court approval process which may extend the timelines for
a merger. Alternatively the company taking the
debt may pass the debt onto the target company,
subject to the satisfaction of conditions prescribed

used for on-lending or investment in the capital

market or acquisition of a company (or part of a
company) in India for investment in real estate
or repayment of an existing Rupee loan.
The guidelines prescribe an all-in-cost ceiling
on foreign debt sourced by an Indian entity.
The all-in-cost ceiling includes interest, other
fees and expenses in foreign currency, except for
the commitment fee, pre-payment fee and fees
payable in Indian Rupees. But it excludes any
withholding taxes. The current all-in-cost ceiling
varies between 350 and 500 basis points over the
six-month London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR), depending upon the loan tenure. These
rates are revisedregularly.

under corporate law.

Local debt
A loan taken by an Indian entity from local sources may be pushed down to the target company
either by way of the merger of two companies

6. Are losses of the target company/ies available

after an acquisition is made?
Indian tax law allows tax losses to be carried forward and set off within the eight years immediately
following the tax year for which the loss was first
computed. There is no limitation on carrying forward and setting off unabsorbed depreciation.
Certain restrictions have been imposed on carrying
forward tax losses where the target company is a
closely held company. In such a case, the carry forward and offset of business losses from earlier years
are allowed only if the shares of the company carrying not less than 51 percent of the voting power
are beneficially held by the same persons on the last
day of the tax year in which the loss was incurred
and on the last day of the tax year in which the loss
should be offset.

The above rule does not apply however where the

change in shareholder ownership of the Indian
company, which is the subsidiary of a foreign
company, is pursuant to a scheme of amalgamation or demerger of a foreign company and 51
percent of the foreign amalgamating company's
shareholders remain as the shareholders of the resulting company.
The above restriction on the carry forward and offset of business losses does not apply to unabsorbed
depreciation, which may continue to be carried
forward and offset without any restrictions.
However in the case of an amalgamation of a
specific company, accumulated tax losses and
unabsorbed depreciation or amortization of the
amalgamating company are deemed to be the accumulated losses of the amalgamated or resulting
company subject to fulfillment of the conditions
prescribed under the Indian tax laws. Further, the
amalgamated company is entitled to carry forward
such accumulated losses for the entire period of
eight years. Accordingly the accumulated losses
get a fresh lease of life in case of an amalgamation complying with the stringent conditions prescribed under the Indian tax laws.
Similarly, in case of demerger of a business division to another company, the accumulated
loss and unabsorbed depreciation directly relatable to the business division transferred is
allowed to be carried forward and set off in
the hands of the resulting company subject to

the satisfaction of conditions prescribed under

Indian tax law.
7. Is there any indirect tax on transfer of shares
(stamp duty, transfer tax etc.)?
The transfer of shares attracts stamp duty at the
prescribed rates. These costs may be reduced, however, by dematerializing the shares of the transferee
company prior to the transfer of the shares.
8. Are there any particular issues to consider in
the acquisition of foreign companies?
Regulatory considerations
Overseas investments by an Indian entity are
regulated by the Indian foreign exchange regulations. Under existing Indian regulations Indian companies are allowed to establish joint
ventures as well as wholly owned subsidiaries
overseas, subject to the satisfaction of certain
conditions. The total investment by an Indian
company in an overseas joint venture or wholly owned subsidiary should not exceed its net
worth (defined to include capital stock plus free
reserves) as of the date of its last audited balance sheet. For computation of net worth of the
Indian company, the net worth of its holding
company (which holds at least 51 percent direct
stake in the Indian company) or its subsidiary
company (in which the Indian company holds
at least 51 percent direct stake) could also be
considered , to the extent not availed of by the
holding company or the subsidiary company
independently. Certain exclusions have been
granted where the investment is made through

funds held in specific foreign currency accounts

or out of specified foreign currency proceeds
earned by the Indian company.
To calculate the limit, the overseas investment includes:
Contribution to capital
Loans
50 percent of performance guarantees
100 percent of any financial guarantee issued
to or on behalf of the joint venture or wholly
owned subsidiary.
However, restrictions have been imposed on the
investments to be made in the capital, loans and
guarantees of certain entities. Further, additional
conditions have been imposed on overseas investments by an Indian company in the financial
services and real estate sectors.
The acquisition can also be structured through an
intermediate holding company.
Corporate law considerations
Under Indian corporate law the merger of an
overseas company into an Indian company is
permitted, but the merger of an Indian company with an overseas company is not. However, the new Companies Act, 2013 permits
the merger of an Indian company with an
overseas company.
However DTC 2013 is unclear on the tax neutrality of mergers involving merger of an Indian company into a foreign company.

9. Can the group reorganize after the

acquisition in a tax neutral environment? What
are the main caveats to consider?
A group may reorganize in a tax neutral manner
after an acquisition by way of the following on a
case-by-case basis:
A merger of the group companies into a single
company
A demerger of non-core businesses of the group into
a separate company to attain value for shareholders
However to ensure tax neutrality in the reorganization,
the conditions under Indian tax law must be satisfied.
Other modes of reorganization involving taxability
(either on the company/shareholders) include:
A capital reduction whereby a company can
cancel its capital for consideration or against accumulated losses. However, capital reduction may
result in tax liability on the company as well as
on the shareholders.
A buy-back of shares whereby the group company
may reduce its capital by buying its own capital
from the shareholders and subsequently cancelling it etc. A new provision has been introduced
for taxing the companies on buyback of shares.
(Please see section 11 for details).
10. Is there any particular issue to consider in
the case of companies whose main assets are
real estate?
Under the provisions of Indian tax law, no specific
regulations apply to the transfer of shares of a company whose main assets are real estate. The transfer

of real estate assets directly, is also subject to capital

gains tax computed in the manner specified in Indian tax laws that are applicable to all types of capital assets. However, there exists specific provisions
in relation to transfer of real estate assets which provides that in case the consideration of transfer is less
than the stamp valuation of the real estate asset,
then the latter would be deemed as the consideration for tax purposes.
Further, the direct transfer of real estate is subject
to stamp duty at the rates prescribed under the state
stamp duty laws or the Indian Stamp Act where
there is no state-specific law.
11. Thinking about payment of dividends out
of your country and a potential exit, is there
any particular country that provides a tax
efficient exit route to invest in your country?
Under Indian tax law, dividends are subject to dividend distribution tax to be paid by the company
distributing the dividend. Dividend distribution tax
is payable at the rate of 15 percent (exclusive of surcharge and education cess) on the distributed dividend amount. Once the dividend distribution tax is
paid, no tax is levied in India on the dividend recipient. Accordingly, the payer is not required to withhold any taxes at the time of the dividend payment.
Certain countries with which India has tax treaties
permit (subject to certain conditions) an underlying tax credit for the dividend distribution tax paid,
i.e., the overseas company allows the tax paid by the
Indian company as a credit against its tax liability

for the dividend received from the India entity. For

example, the tax treaty entered between India and
Mauritius is one such treaty.
Finance Act 2013 has imposed a new tax on buyback of unlisted shares effective June 1, 2013.
An Indian unlisted company undertaking a buyback of shares will be required to pay tax on distributed income similar to dividend distribution
tax at the rate of 20 percent (exclusive of surcharge and education cess).
Distributed income shall mean the difference
between the consideration paid by the company
on buy-back of shares and the amount received
by the company on issue of such shares that are
being bought back. The provisions shall be applicable to all unlisted companies irrespective
of the residential status of shareholders. The
amount received by the shareholder will not be
subject to any further tax.
The availability of credit for tax paid in India on
buy-back of Indian unlisted company shares discussed above would need to be examined in detail
with respect to a specific treaty.
To ensure a tax efficient divestment of the stake
at the time of exit, the following points should
be considered:
Listed shares
Under domestic tax laws, long-term capital gains
(gains on the sale of shares held for more than 12

months) earned on the sale of shares of an Indian

listed company made on the stock exchange are
typically exempt from tax, although a marginal
securities transaction tax is payable.
Unlisted shares
For unlisted shares the treatment of capital gains
under the domestic tax law applies. For a tax efficient divestment the investment can be structured
through countries with whom India has a favourable tax treaty, wherein the liability on capital
gains is in the country of residence of the seller.
Therefore no capital gains liability is attracted in
India. Countries with treaties that may be used
to reduce the tax cost at the time of exit include
Cyprus, Mauritius, Singapore and the Netherlands. It may be noted that recently the Indian
government has suspended its treaty with Cyprus
for reason of non-exchange of information.
However to ensure a tax efficient exit the conditions prescribed under the respective treaties
need to be satisfied. Additionally a Tax Residency Certificate containing the prescribed particulars is required to be submitted as a condition
for availing benefits of the provision of treaties.
The protocol entered between India and Singapore for example contains a limitation-of-benefits (LOB) provision, which provides that the
tax resident will not be entitled to capital gains
tax exemptions if its affairs are arranged primarily to take advantage of the benefits under the
tax treaty. Furthermore in recent times the tax
authorities have been aggressively examining the

possibility of renegotiating the tax treaties with

Mauritius and Cyprus to remove beneficial capital gains provisions. Although there are no specific anti-abuse provisions in Indian law, there
has been significant litigation on this subject and
the validity of tax treaties has recently been upheld in an Apex Court decision.
DTC 2013 has proposed various provisions including treaty override and General Anti-Avoidance
Rules (GAAR). However, it is pertinent to note
that the Government has already announced deferral of the GAAR provisions and the same are now
proposed to become effective from the financial
year starting Apri1 l, 2015.
12. How is foreign debt usually structured to
finance acquisitions in your country?
Foreign debt raised by an Indian company is governed by Indian foreign exchange regulations (see
question 5 above). Given restrictions imposed on
foreign debt, it cannot be used to structure the
financing of acquisitions in India. Foreign debt
may be raised by an Indian entity for direct investment in an overseas company.
To fund acquisitions through foreign debt a
holding company may be established outside
India to invest in the Indian company, where
the funds required by the holding company for
investment in the Indian company may be financed through debt. In such a case the interest
on the debt is normally born by the holding
company and deduction for interest expense is

not available against the income of the Indian

operating company. This can however be overcome by using structured investment instruments between the holding company and the
Indian operating company.

From A Seller's Perspective

13. What are the main differences between
share and asset deals?
Asset deals
In asset acquisitions, a company's assets and liabilities are separately transferred for a consideration
and specified for each asset. The seller of the assets
is liable for tax on capital gains arising at the time
of the assets sale at the prescribed rates.
The transfer of assets may be structured as a slump
sale, as a demerger, or through stock acquisitions.

the undertaking as appearing in the books of account. The value of total assets is the sum of the
written-down value of depreciable assets and the
book value of non-depreciable assets. In computing the value of total assets, any change in
the value of assets on account of the revaluation
of assets is ignored.)
Demerger
Demerger means the transfer of an identified
business division from one company to another
on a going concern basis. In a demerger, the consideration in exchange for the transfer of a business is discharged by issuing shares of the buyer
company to the shareholders of the seller entity.
A demerger may be affected in a tax neutral manner when carried out using the method prescribed
under Indian tax law.
Stock deals

Slump sale
A slump sale is the sale of a business undertaking as a going concern involving the transfer of
the entire business by seller to buyer for a lump
sum consideration. In a slump sale, the seller
is liable for tax on capital gains earned at the
time of undertaking the sale. The capital gains
are computed for the business undertaking as a
whole and not for individual assets. To compute
capital gains, the cost of acquisition of the un-

In a stock acquisition, the buyer acquires the shares

of the target company from its existing shareholders for a consideration. The capital gains arising
on the transfer of shares are taxable in India at the
prescribed rates.

dertaking is presumed to be its net worth, which

is computed in the manner prescribed under Indian tax law. (Net worth is the value of total
assets of the undertaking less total liabilities of

Under Indian tax law, capital gains are computed

by reference to the holding period for the capital
assets by the transferee. There is no provision for
participation exemption under Indian tax law.

14. How are capital gains taxed in your

country? Is there any participation exemption
regime available?
Computation of capital gains

To compute capital gains assets held for a period of 36 months or less are referred to as shortterm capital assets. For shares of a company, any
listed security, mutual fund unit or zero coupon
bonds, the period of 36 months is replaced by
12 months. Assets other than short-term capital
assets are referred to as long-term capital assets.
Gains arising from the transfer of short-term capital assets are known as short-term capital gains.
Gains arising from the transfer of capital assets
other than short-term capital assets are known as
long-term capital gains.
Short-term capital gains are calculated as the sale consideration less the cost of acquisition, less the cost of
improvement and expenses incurred at time of sale.
Short-term capital gains are taxable at a rate of
30 percent (or 40 percent for non-residents), exclusive of the applicable surcharge and education
cess (of 10 percent for Indian companies and 5
percent for foreign companies, where the company's total income is more than INR100m).
Short-term capital gains resulting from specified
securities traded on a recognized stock exchange
in India, and on which securities transaction tax
is paid, are taxed at a fixed rate of 15 percent
exclusive of the surcharge and the education cess.
To calculate long-term capital gains, costs are
adjusted for inflation based on indices issued
by the Indian Government. Long-term capital
gains are calculated as the sale consideration less
the indexed cost of acquisition, less the indexed

cost of improvement and expenses incurred at

the time of the sale. In case of non-residents,
costs are adjusted for foreign currency fluctuation rather than inflation, while calculating
long-term capital gains.
Long-term capital gains are taxable for non-residents at a fixed tax rate of 10 percent (exclusive
of surcharge and the education cess) in the case of
unlisted securities without indexation and foreign
exchange fluctuation benefit, and at a rate of 20
percent (exclusive of surcharge and the education
cess) in other cases. However, the revenue authorities may adopt a contrary view and tax long-term
capital gains on certain unlisted securities at a rate
of 20 percent even without indexation and foreign
exchange fluctuation benefit.
Long-term capital gains resulting from the sale of
specified securities traded on a recognized stock exchange in India (and on which securities transaction tax is paid) are exempt from tax.
Note that DTC 2013 proposes significant
amendments to taxation of capital gains, in
terms of classification of assets, applicable tax
rates and removal of certain exemptions (including for listed securities)
15. Is there any fiscal advantage if the proceeds
from the sale are reinvested?
Under Indian tax law, exemption can be claimed
for capital gains arising from transfer of longterm capital assets (including shares) if such gains

are invested in a long-term specified asset within

a period of six months from the date of transfer.
However, investment in the specified securities
may be made up to INR5m in one tax year. Furthermore, the investments need to be locked in

for the prescribed period (typically three years)

to claim the exemption. If the investments are
transferred or otherwise converted into cash,
they are taxable in the tax year in which the conversion takes place.