The Lighthouse - Talks with Roedl & Partner's India Experts

Episode 20: Effective Contract Management

Unlocking Business Success through Effective Contract Management. Contracts serve as the blueprint for business relationships, guiding transactions, outlining expectations, and protecting interests. Yet, the true power of contracts lies not just in their creation but in their management throughout their lifecycle.

Contract management is crucial for ensuring legal compliance, managing risks, controlling costs, monitoring performance, enhancing efficiency, nurturing relationships, supporting strategic initiatives, and facilitating dispute resolution in India's business environment.

In this episode of The Lighthouse, our senior professional – Anand Choudhary ( Senior Associate) will decode why mastering contract management is crucial for driving business success in conversation with Anushrii Bathla Oza.

For further information Anand Choudhary can be contacted per e-mail or phone (+91 020 6625 7100).

Episode 19: Taxation of permanent establishments (PE) in India

In India, the concept of Permanent Establishment (PE) is crucial for determining the tax liabilities of foreign entities doing business within the country. A Permanent Establishment refers to a fixed place of business through which the business of an enterprise is wholly or partly carried out. It typically involves a fixed place of business such as an office, branch, factory, workshop, or a construction site.

The definition of Permanent Establishment is significant for tax purposes, as it determines whether a foreign company is subject to tax in India. If a foreign company has a Permanent Establishment in India, it is generally liable to pay tax on the profits attributable to that establishment.

India's tax laws and regulations related to Permanent Establishments are complex and subject to interpretation. Foreign companies doing business in India should carefully evaluate whether they have a Permanent Establishment and understand their tax obligations accordingly.

In this episode of The Lighthouse, our senior professional Gaurav Khanna will decode various answers relating to the functioning of PE’s in India, while Anushrii Bathla Oza throws some interesting array of questions at him in this regard.

For further information Gaura Khanna can be contacted per e-mail or phone (+91 022 6266 0800).

Episode 18: Income Tax Litigation – Part 2

Income tax litigation refers to legal disputes and conflicts that arise between taxpayers and tax authorities regarding the interpretation and application of tax laws.

These disputes can cover a wide range of issues, including the calculation of taxable income, eligibility for deductions and credits, and the assessment of tax liabilities.

Income tax litigation can occur at various levels, from local tax authorities to national or federal tax agencies.

In continuation to our 1st Part – Income Tax Assessment, in this episode of The Lighthouse , our tax expert and senior professional Piyush Bafna will elaborate on the topic: “Income Tax Litigation in India” with Anushrii Bathla Oza.

This leg of the episode explains the vitalities of timelines, alternate methods to seek relief, tips to handle tax litigation effectively and how Rödl & Partner can fortify in the process end to end!

For further information Piyush Bafna can be contacted per e-mail or phone (+91 020 66257100)

Episode 17: Income Tax Assessments — Part 1

Filing an income tax return is a yearly ritual. Once every year, everyone has to file an income tax return, be it an individual or a business. Every taxpayer/entity whose income is above the basic exemption limit has to file in details related to his income and deduction. This is done by self-calculation of the amount of income earned in the past financial year and paying tax accordingly. The Income Tax Department analyses all the details that a taxpayer submits. This is Income Tax Assessment. In simpler words, the examination of the details submitted by a taxpayer (in their income tax return) is called Income Tax Assessment. Income Tax Assessment is a post filing procedure. Once a taxpayer has filed his income tax return, they go through each and every detail of it.

In this episode of The Lighthouse , our tax expert and senior professional Hitesh Khivsara shares his knowledge on Income Tax Assessments in India with Anushrii Bathla Oza. A very interesting topic for all taxpayers in India, to understand the different categories, types and outcomes of assessments pertaining to India.

For further information Hitesh Khivsara can be contacted per e-mail or phone (+91 020 66257100)

Episode 16: The New Digital Personal Data Protection Act, a New Business Hurdle or a Required Blessing

The Digital Personal Data Protection Act that received the President’s assent on the 11th of August 2023 governs the processing of digital personal data of Indian citizens in a manner that recognizes both the right of individuals to protect their personal data and the need to process such personal data for lawful purposes.

This episode will enlighten you about the trending topic- “The Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (DPDP)”

Our latest episode: "The New Digital Personal Data Protection Act, a new business hurdle or a required blessing?" is brought to you by our Senior professional – Vivek Balakrishnan engaging in conversation with Anushrii Bathla Oza.

For further information Vivek Balakrishnan can be contacted per e-mail or phone (+91 9699 765 941)

Episode 15: Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR)

Alternative dispute resolution (“ADR”) refers to any method of resolving disputes without litigation. ADR regroups all processes and techniques of conflict resolution that occur outside of any governmental authority. The most famous ADR methods are the following: mediation, arbitration, conciliation, negotiation, and transaction.

Our next episode focusses on the topic: “Alternative dispute resolution (“ADR”)”, brought to you by our Senior professional Vaibhav Sharma in conversation with Anushrii Bathla Oza.

For further information Vaibhav Sharma can be contacted per e-mail or phone (+91 22 6266 0800).

Episode 14: Transfer Pricing Issues around intragroup services

Multinational Enterprise Group (MNE) generally centralizes various commonly required services across the group. These services commonly include management, administrative, marketing, legal, accounting, IT, human resource and other corporate services. Such Intra-Group support services (IGS) confer various commercial benefits in terms of economies of scale, standardization, control, cost optimization,

avoiding duplicative efforts, and also allow group entities to concentrate on core activities.

Watch our episode on this topic – “Transfer pricing issues relating to Intra Group Services and applicability of Benefit Test”, brought to you by our Senior professional – Aparna Shaligram in conversation with Anushrii Bathla Oza.

Read for more information: Benefit Test Documentation – a Transfer Pricing requirement for Intra-Group support services

For further information Aparna Shaligram can be contacted per e-mail or phone (+91 20 6625 7100).

Episode 13: Product licensing requirement for Business in India

The ISI mark is a standards-compliance mark for industrial products in India since 1950. The mark certifies that a product conforms to an Indian standard developed by the Bureau of Indian Standards, the national standards body of India. The ISI mark is by far the most certification mark in the Indian subcontinent. The primary goal of the ISI mark is to have organized industrial growth and to maintain quality in industrial production in India.

Our next episode of the lighthouse, engages in this very interesting topic, brought to you by Chhavi Jain, our senior professional who specializes in product licensing, in conversation with Anushrii Bathla Oza.

For further information Chhavi Jain can be contacted per e-mail or phone (+91 20 6625 7100).

Episode 12: Market Entry for German Companies in India

India was amongst the first nations to establish diplomatic ties with Germany post the World Wars. The tone of the relationship was set by the two visits of the Indian Prime Minister to Germany in 1956 and 1960.

Post the economic reforms and liberalization of the Indian Market in 1991, Germany has gone on to become one of India’s most significant trade and investment partners.

In line with the increased number of German companies, stepping foot into India, we bring to you or next episode of “The Lighthouse 2.0 – Market entry for German companies in India”.

In this episode, our senior professional, Mr. Simone Puddu in conversation with Ms. Anushrii Bathla Oza will share insightful tips on the aforesaid topic, like options to enter the Indian market, how to prepare for the entry and the optimal strategy to adapt to enter India!

For further information Simone Puddu can be contacted per e-mail or phone (+91 20 6625 7100).

Episode 11: Transfer Pricing Issues around permanent establishments

India has emerged as one of the world's fastest developing countries in recent years, with an increase in economic activity owing to huge influxes of international investments and technological collaborations.

All this has increased the challenge of charging tax on foreign entities. The tax on foreign entities in India is based on different aspects such as place of income, source of income and presence of the entity in India. So with the increase of global business presence in India, the concept of Permanent Establishment (PE) gained importance.

In this episode of The Lighthouse, watch our senior professional ( Transfer Pricing) – Gauri Athalekar speak about the transfer pricing compliances in relation to the PE’s, in conversation with Anushrii Bathla Oza.

For further information Gauri Athalekar can be contacted per e-mail or phone (+91 20 6625 7100).

Episode 10: Labour Codes

The Indian Parliament passed four labour codes that will impact how businesses operate in India. The new labour codes aim to make it easier for companies to hire and fire workers and reduce the number of regulations they need to comply with. While some businesses welcome the new reforms, others are concerned about how they will be impacted.

In this episode of The Lighthouse, watch our senior professional – Apoorva Singh decode the labour codes and how they will affect businesses in India in conversation with Anushrii Bathla Oza.

For further information Apoorva Singh can be contacted per e-mail or phone (+91 20 6625 7100).

Episode 9: 5 Reasons why outsourcing is preferred over in-house accounting (BPO)

India is a preferred destination for global outsourcing of research and development, manufacturing, software development and IT-enabled services. India is a known “HUB” for outsourcing and statistics speak only in favor where numbers are only increasing and companies prefer to outsource their business activities.

Ever wondered how outsourcing became so popular and the chosen way of doing business? Well, the benefits of outsourcing are multiple, namely: Simplifying processes, Increase redundancy, reduces costs, supplement resources etc.

In our episode of The Lighthouse, our senior professional Aafreen Athani ( Head of BPO I Pune & Mumbai) will explain the “Top 5 reasons why outsourcing of compliance and accounting has proven beneficial than in-house accounting!”

For further information Aafreen Athani can be contacted per e-mail or phone (+91 20 6625 7100).

Episode 8: State Industrial Policies

The vision of a sustainable economy, which India aspires to be in the next ten years, is built on the shoulders of robust industrial policies. Industrial policy in all its essence is a set of interventions which seeks to extract economic performance from firms as a trade-off against subsidies/benefits accrued from the government. A well implemented industrial policy is the key to the growth, development and sustainability of every state.

In our episode of “The Lighthouse”, our industry expert: Anand Khetan (Partner and Head of Indirect Tax- West & South India) will deep dive into this topic and decipher what are the industrial policies. Furthermore, Anand will illustrate the key points relating to the application of the policies i.e.

Eligibility
Benefits
Phase wise Procedure/Steps.

We would like to highlight that Rödl & Partner and Guidance Tamil Nadu are working together since January 2020 and have established in a short period a powerful business collaboration.

On Friday the 18th December 2020; Rödl & Partner signed a Memorandum of Understanding (“MoU”) with Guidance Tamil Nadu. With this MoU in place since the last 2 years Rödl & Partner and Guidance Tamil Nadu have jointly been able to help several German companies with their investment in Tamil Nadu.

For further information Anand Khetan can be contacted per e-mail or phone (+91 20 6625 7100).

Episode 7: Market opportunities for german companies in india

Like Benjamin Franklin said : “An investment in knowledge pays the best interest”. We say : “Let’s get you that best interest”.

Currently, about 1,800 German companies have business set up in India. In fact, many of them have been settled here for a long time now. The German business community has very well received the Indian government’s decision to liberalize the FDI regime and its efforts to improve the ease of doing business.

Under the roof of the successful ‘Make in India’ initiative, the embassy of India in Berlin has also initiated ‘Make in India Mittelstand’ initiative, which specifically targets German SMEs that are interested in investing in India. Having said this, it is true that Ties between India and Germany have been strengthening over the years, but there is still vast scope in varied spheres including business for both countries to collaborate for mutual gains.

In our today’s episode of the Lighthouse, watch Jamly John our Head of Business Development & PR in dialogue with Anushrii Bathla Oza, speak about the market opportunities that are offered by India to German companies. Right from planning to implementation, we are your partners to accomplish your Indian endeavor.

For further information Jamly John can be contacted per e-mail or phone (+91 20 6625 7100).

Episode 6: Contract manufacturing in India

“Contract manufacturing” is the outsourcing of part of the manufacturing process of a product to a third-party. More specifically, contract manufacturing is an outsourcing of certain production activities that were previously performed by the manufacturer to a third-party.

Benefits of outsourcing are multiple and results have shown that contract manufacturing is a reliable, resourceful and resilient way of doing business. Watch our episode which highlights the concept “Contract Manufacturing in India”, the present-day need for businesses.

For further information Akash Valappil can be contacted per e-mail or phone (+91 20 6625 7100).

Episode 5: Valuation Advisory for M&A Transaction Purpose Part IÍ

Every coin has two sides and so does every valuation! Lets explore the flip side of the valuation advisory and deep dive into our second part of this episode which focusses on – M&A Transaction.

In Part II, watch Hemant Patel, place choices and reasons on the valuation approach to be adopted.

For further information Hemant Patel can be contacted per e-mail or phone (+91 20 6625 7100).

Episode 4: Valuation Advisory for Compliance Purpose Part I

Valuation is the analytical process of determining the current (or projected) worth of an asset or a company. There are many techniques used for doing a valuation. An analyst placing a value on a company looks at the business's management, the composition of its capital structure, the prospect of future earnings, and the market value of its assets, among other metrics.

Lets lay focus on the understanding various scenarios where a company would require valuation advisory and the methodologies connected to this compliance valuation.

When the stakes are high, you need an advisor you can trust. Watch Hemant Patel our “Valuation Guru” and your advisor on what approach is to be taken and when!

For further information Hemant Patel can be contacted per e-mail or phone (+91 20 6625 7100).

Episode 3: Tax implications of entry options in India

India is one the fastest growing economies and has been projected to be the third largest economy in GDP purchasing power parity terms measured at current prices. During the financial year 2020-21 India has attracted the highest ever FDI inflow of 83.57 billion us-dollar and the economy has been projected to grow at 6.7 per cent in 2022, the fastest in the world.

Considering this surge in the positive upward curve in this growth and advancement, it is become increasingly vital for foreign entities to structure their investments in India. With a wide range of entry options into India, namely Joint Venture, Partnerships, Liaison offices to list a few, the question is which route to choose while setting foot.

Our direct tax professional, Priyanka Limaye will ease your decision making process. For further information Priyanka Limaye can be contacted per e-mail or phone (+91 20 6625 7100).

Episode 2: Customs- Special Valuation Branch (SVB)

“Customs Duty” refers to the tax imposed on the goods when they are transported across the international borders. The objective behind levying customs duty is to safeguard each nation’s economy, jobs, environment, residents, etc., by regulating the movement of goods, especially prohibited and restrictive goods, in and out of any country.

Lets dive into the background, structure of the customs duty in India and the role of the Special Valuation Branch (SVB) , the department responsible for evaluating these transactions. Join our indirect taxation and SVB expert – Devika Gandhi explaining the whole structure of this system in simple and relatable steps.

For further information Devika Gandhi can be contacted per e-mail or phone (+91 20 6625 7100).

Episode 1: Make in India Mittelstand

The first interview of “The Lighthouse” focusses on our experts discussing about the key features, opportunities and potential, the MIIM program brings along to India's fast-growing economy.

Teaser video with our India experts

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The Lighthouse Talks with Roedl & Partner's India Experts