Govt offers tax relief to four more foreign funds to push infra investments

17 May 2021 CW Team

CBDT granted the tax relief to three pension funds in separate notifications—two from Canada and one from Australia and to a UK development finance institution, subject to riders. These investors are now eligible for tax relief under section 10 of the Income Tax Act, which deals with earnings not to be included in the taxable income. Investors will receive full tax exemption on income from interest, dividend and long-term capital gains.

As per CBDT's notification, the foreign funds that have been given the tax break are OMERS Administration Corp pension fund regulated under the law of the government of Ontario, Australian pension fund Government Employees Superannuation Board, Canada, UK's CDC Group Plc and Public Sector Pension Investment Board pension fund that is regulated under the law of the Government of Canada, as per CBDT's notifications.

Earlier in May, CBDT had granted tax exemption to four other pension funds and five sovereign wealth funds as per a provision introduced through Finance Act 2020, which seeks to encourage infrastructure investments.

The aim is to help finance nearly 7,000 projects that are part of the national infrastructure pipeline (NIP), which is estimated to have a project cost of more than Rs 100 trillion.

The Budge 2021 proposed a sharp 26% jump in capital spending in FY22 to Rs 5.54 trillion compared to what was spent in the year before. The government is also pursuing a privatisation plan aimed to pump more private capital into different sectors.

Image Source

Also read: Govt proposes to cut import duties on steel to aid MSMEs

Also read: Piyush Goyal urges commerce and industry team to clear exporter dues

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has decided to provide tax exemptions to four more foreign funds for their earnings from infrastructure investments made in India between now and March 2024 to boost infrastructure investments in the country. CBDT granted the tax relief to three pension funds in separate notifications—two from Canada and one from Australia and to a UK development finance institution, subject to riders. These investors are now eligible for tax relief under section 10 of the Income Tax Act, which deals with earnings not to be included in the taxable income. Investors will receive full tax exemption on income from interest, dividend and long-term capital gains. As per CBDT's notification, the foreign funds that have been given the tax break are OMERS Administration Corp pension fund regulated under the law of the government of Ontario, Australian pension fund Government Employees Superannuation Board, Canada, UK's CDC Group Plc and Public Sector Pension Investment Board pension fund that is regulated under the law of the Government of Canada, as per CBDT's notifications. Earlier in May, CBDT had granted tax exemption to four other pension funds and five sovereign wealth funds as per a provision introduced through Finance Act 2020, which seeks to encourage infrastructure investments. The aim is to help finance nearly 7,000 projects that are part of the national infrastructure pipeline (NIP), which is estimated to have a project cost of more than Rs 100 trillion. The Budge 2021 proposed a sharp 26% jump in capital spending in FY22 to Rs 5.54 trillion compared to what was spent in the year before. The government is also pursuing a privatisation plan aimed to pump more private capital into different sectors. Image SourceAlso read: Govt proposes to cut import duties on steel to aid MSMEs Also read: Piyush Goyal urges commerce and industry team to clear exporter dues

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