CA Online

1. The advance amount received by the assessee towards transfer of development rights could not be treated as sale consideration. [CIT v/s. DLF Commercial Project Corporation, High Court of Delhi]. 2. CBDT released java utility for e-filing Form 6 to declare black money. Taxpayers are requested to e-file Form 6 during the compliance window which ends on 30.09.2015. 3. Levy of VAT on sale of goods in an agreement to sale of flat, and further held that states are not empowered to levy VAT on transfer of immovable property. [Punjab and Haryana High Court in CHD Developers v/s. State of Haryana and Others]. 4. Company holding a general meeting after giving a shorter notice u/s 101 of Companies Act, 2013 may also circulate financial statements (to be laid/considered in the same general meeting) at such shorter notice. General Circular No. I / /2015 dated 21.07.15. 5. The Delhi Government has directed all collector of stamps to collect the stamp duty through e-stamp only and verif...

Govt needs broad-based support for GST to stick to implementation date of Apr 1, '16 The government is looking to take the sting out of the contentious 1% compensation for manufacturing states that Congress has been citing to oppose the goods and service tax (GST), calling it an imperfect law.This compensation is proposed at up to 1% and in effect could be a lot less, said a senior government official. The government needs to get broadbased support for GST across parties in order to stick to the implementation date of April 1 next year. “If the concerned states do not face any revenue loss once the tax is rolled out, there will be no pressure on them to levy the tax,“ the official said. “Also, 1% is the upper limit and at a very low level it will not have the feared cascading effect.“ The government hopes this clarification will help ease the bill's passage when it's taken up for discussion in the Upper House. The government is also willing to offer states full comp...

Bonus payments to be doubled, gratuity to be made portable The Narendra Modiled NDA government is looking to enhance maternity leave for working women from three months to six months, virtually double bonus payments to employees and make gratuity portable between jobs. These proposed changes in employment laws could buttress the Modi government's credentials with the working class while it attempts to push through more ambitious reforms in labour rules that are blamed for hampering investment and job creation in the country. “The changes in the Payment of Bonus Act would raise the salary limit for getting a bonus from Rs 10,000 per month to Rs 19,000, and are at an advanced stage with a draft Cabinet note being moved earlier this month for comments from ministries,“ said a senior labour ministry official. Separately, the government is initiating stakeholder consultations to amend the Maternity Benefits Act of 1961 and the Payment of Gratuity Act of 1972, the official added....

The income tax department has launched an e- filing link on its official website for declaring illegal foreign assets and black money using the one- time compliance window notified recently by government. “ The link has been provided on the official efiling portal of the departmenthttps:// incometaxindiaefiling.gov. in,” an official said. Business Standard, New Delhi, 22nd July 2015

No consecsus as yet on social security code Even though the Indian Labour Conference ( ILC) could not build a consensus on forming a labour code on social security schemes, it recommended aslew of measures to broaden their coverage. The two- day conference, atri- partite platform of trade unions, industry and the government, concluded here on Tuesday with a series of recommendations. It recommended that Employees’ State Insurance Corporation ( ESIC) coverage be expanded to include the unorganised workers by reducing the threshold of coverage. At present, firms with 10 workers are covered under this law and the Union labour ministry will reduce this threshold limit. On- site construction workers will soon become a part of the ESIC Act. At present, construction workers directly hired by a factory, those who work on the premises of a factory, and technical workers such as engineers get health benefits from ESIC. However, workers hired through agencies or those working on a const...

The government is considering deregulation of forward contracts, or put and call options for equity, in an attempt to boost merger and acquisition ( M& A) activity in India. Companies agreeing to joint ventures ( JVs) usually enter into forward contracts where one company can buy the other’s shares and sell them back at a predetermined price. Restrictions on such put and call options have been revised a number of times. Since the passage of the Finance Bill 2015, oversight of such instruments has shifted from the Reserve Bank of India ( RBI) to the finance ministry. The government is looking at relaxing rules governing forward contracts for companies, and one option is complete deregulation. Business Standard, New Delhi, 22nd July 2015