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Startups, advertisers and media buyers have approached the finance ministry seeking an exemption from the equalisation levy (Google tax) for online advertisers that will come into effect from June 1. Members of the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) recently met minister of state for finance Jayant Sinha and revenue department officials, sources said. The tax will raise the cost of doing business for Indian clients by almost 6%, and give international ad networks edge over their Indian counterparts, the IAMAI said. It will also “severely raise the cost of doing business” for Indian tech startups as their cost of advertising will go up. Hindustan times New Delhi,14th June 2016

Web aggregators might have to face tighter norms for operating in the insurance sector. In proposed rules, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India ( Irdai) has suggested the capital requirement (paid- up capital and net worth) would be increased from a minimum of Rs.10 lakh to Rs. 25 lakh. Further, these aggregators would be treated as insurance intermediaries. If an application for registration is rejected by Irdai or has been withdrawn, the applicant may apply afresh after a financial year has gone by. However, if a foreign promoter or foreign investor has exited for any reason during the preceding two financial years, they would be ineligible to apply. Web aggregators are entities granted a licence by Irdai and allowed to display insurance product information and comparisons on their sites. Prospective customers can buy products of multiple insurance companies from these portals. However, they are not allowed to sell other financial products on this platfor...

Last week, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), as part of its effort to tighten the norms for giving investment advice, warned the public to deal only with Sebi- registered investment advisors ( RIAs) and research analysts. Investors who heed the regulator’s advice are much less likely to fall victim to the twin malaise of poor- quality advice and misselling. The Sebi ( Investment Advisors) Regulations, issued in January 2013, made it mandatory for any person or entity that acts as an investment advisor to obtain a certificate of registration from the regulator. The first advantage of dealing with an RIA is that he would be properly vetted. He would have cleared the NISM Series- X- A and B exams. To obtain the certificate, he would have demonstrated that he possesses the required qualifications, infrastructure and capital. An inherent conflict of interest arises when people who offer investment advice also sell products. They inevitably veer towards selling produ...

Targeting April 2017 for the rollout of the goods and services tax ( GST), the government is betting on support from smaller regional parties to pass the national sales tax legislation in the Parliament session from next month, and expects approval for supporting laws by year- end. GST was earlier planned to be introduced from April 1 this year, converting 29 states into a single market through the new indirect tax regime, but the deadline was missed as the Bill to roll it out remains stalled in the Oppositiondominated Rajya Sabha. “ If we can pass it in the monsoon session ( of Parliament beginning next month), then we can implement it in April 1, 2017,” said Minister Business Standard New Delhi,14th June 2016

New SDR norms allow promoters to manage debt- laden firms SIGH OF RELIEF The Reserve Bank of India ( RBI) on Monday allowed banks to conduct deep restructuring of large accounts to revive projects that can be saved, effectively throwing a lifeline to promoters who risked losing their companies. Banks are anyway struggling to dispose of many stressed assets they have already acquired and have no clue what to do next. Accounts that are worth ? 500 crore or more and have already started commercial operations will be eligible for the new recast scheme, titled ‘ Scheme for Sustainable Structuring of Stressed Assets.’ Only those promoters who have shown no malfeasance in their actions while running the show can ask for the permission to continue with the management, even if they get reduced to minority shareholders in the process. RK Bansal, executive director, IDBI Bank, said the two sectors which would benefit are steel and power . Some of the completed projects in these sectors ...

www.caonline.in News... 1. Procedure for Gold/silver/platinum import by nominated agencies via {Circular No. 27/2016-Customs } 2.Startups- Guidelines for Patent, Designs & Trade Marks application via {Public Notice No. CG/F/Start-up/Guidelines/2016/79 - (08/06/2016)} 3. CA providing accommodation entries debarred from practice via {Institute of Chartered Accountants of India V/S Vivek Kapoor & Anr (Punjab & Haryana High Court)} 4. Registration u/s 12AA cannot be denied for mere non filing of ITR via {Shri Shirdi Sai Darbar Charitable Trust (Dharamshala) Vs. C.I.T. (Exemptions)- (ITAT Chandigarh)} 5. Preference shares redemption not taxable as deemed dividend via {Shri Uday K. Pradhan vs. ITO (ITAT Mumbai)}

Net direct tax collections jumped 18% to Rs.43,391 crore during the first two months of the current fiscal, the government said on Friday. “The net direct tax collection for the first two months of the current year is Rs.43,391 crore, which indicates a growth rate of 18%,” revenue secretary Hasmukh Adhia said in a series of tweets. The indirect tax growth rate for April-May 2016-17 is 36.7%, with additional revenue measures and 14% without ARM. Hindustan Times New Delhi,11th June 2016

Amid hopes of longpending Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill getting passed in the Rajya Sabha in the next Parliament session, state finance ministers will deliberate on the model GST law at a two-day meeting in Kolkata beginning Tuesday. Finance minister Arun Jaitley will participate in the meeting of empowered committee of state finance ministers and try to iron out differences over the new regime that will subsume all indirect taxes and create one national market under the GST. Hindustantimes New Delhi,13th June 2016

The Centre has notified new rules to allow hiring of private sector professionals in senior positions at Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs), after amending a nearly three decade-old resolution. Candidates from state public sector enterprises and the priva te sector, subject to fulfilling the eligibility criteria, will be considered as non-internal candidates for a period of five years, as per the new rules issued on Friday by Personnel Ministry . The Union Cabinet had on June 1 given ex-post facto approval to the proposal. The Economic Times New Delhi, 13th June 2016

The Securities and Exchange Board of India ( Sebi) has tightened its know- your- client (KYC) and disclosure rules on issue of participatory notes ( Pnotes), to curb misuse of the investment route used by foreign investors not registered in India. these take effect from from July 1. The move was approved by its board of directors on May 19, on regulation of what are formally termed Offshore Derivative Instruments ( ODI). This was after considering the suggestions of the Supreme Court- appointed Special Investigation Team on undisclosed money, to ensure this route is not used for money laundering. P- notes allow foreign investors to take exposure to Indian stocks without registering with Sebi. These are issued by foreign portfolio investors registered with Sebi. Under the new guidelines, Indian KYC or anti- money laundering rules ( AML) will also apply to P- note holders. Earlier, a holder had to adhere to the KYC or AML norms of only their home jurisdiction. “On the KYC of OD...

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) might ask banks to use forensic audit to pick up projects that need to be restructured and let the original management of the company run the show instead of the lenders taking over. Under the existing norms, if banks fail to nurse back a company to health through various restructuring exercise, the lenders finally take control of the company under strategic debt restructuring (SDR). Banks take over the management control of companies by converting the debt into equity. While lenders have indeed invoked SDR in a couple of cases, they are stuck with the assets as they could not find new management for the companies; the banks themselves are clueless on how to run these firms. Bankers are of the opinion that SDR has failed in its intended results and as such, anew restructuring exercising is the need of the hour. They had also given the same feedback to the central bank, following which RBI is in talks with the lenders for formulating the new rec...