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India’s simplified two-tier Goods and Services Tax (GST) system is going to be implemented from September 22. So, a few weeks before the country’s important festive season, e-commerce companies have started redesigning their strategies. According to industry executives, online retailers expect a pick-up in demand, but at the same time they will also have to deal with short-term operational challenges. Read Article

India’s simplified two-tier Goods and Services Tax (GST) system is going to be implemented from September 22. So, a few weeks before the country’s important festive season, e-commerce companies have started redesigning their strategies. According to industry executives, online retailers expect a pick-up in demand, but at the same time they will also have to deal with short-term operational challenges. Read Article

In a major revamp to our existing GST rate structure, the GST council headed by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has exempted the taxes from health and insurance products, which earlier stood at 18 per cent. Read Article

India’s greenfield development agenda defines its sustainable economic growth path. As part of its Nationally Determined Contributions under the Paris Agreement, India aims to reduce the emissions intensity of GDP by 45% from 2005 levels by 2030, ensure 50% of its power capacity is non-fossil fuel-based, and create an additional carbon sink of 2.5 to 3 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalent through forest and tree cover. Read Article

India’s trade landscape has been transformed to improve the ease of doing business, boost exports, reduce tax evasion and align with global standards. The government is simplifying procedures, promoting digitisation and modernising regulations. The goods and services tax (GST) has been one of the most significant economic initiatives. Replacing many central and state taxes, the GST is a simpler unified tax structure with four rate categories, 5%, 12%, 18% and 28%. Proposals put forward will eliminate the 12% slab, making compliance even easier. Read Article

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday announced major Goods and Services Tax (GST) reforms spanning across sectors aimed at easing the tax burden on consumers, while also rationalising the GST rates from the previous four slabs to a simplified two-tier structure of 5 per cent and 18 per cent, with another flat 40 per cent rate. This is in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s promise of major GST overhaul, which he made during his Independence Day speech. While most sectors, including agriculture, food, handicraft, insurance, and healthcare, stand to benefit significantly, some sectors such as luxury and sin goods, are staring at higher rates. Read Article

The real estate industry has hailed the GST Council’s landmark decision to rationalise tax rates on cement (from 28% to 18%) and other construction materials like sand and bricks (from 12% to 5%), among others. The Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman-led GST Council’s measures announced for the real estate sector are aimed at providing benefits to the affordable and mid-income segments, which have seen major slowdown in the past few quarters. Read Article

Global insurers such as Generali and Ageas, which have already raised their stakes in Indian ventures to the maximum 74% allowed for foreigners, stand to gain from draft amendments to insurance laws that propose scrapping key curbs. The changes, which were proposed as draft on August 29 and are to be tabled in Parliament, ease conditions imposed in 2021 when the foreign direct investment (FDI) cap was lifted from 49% to 74%. At the time, insurers with foreign shareholding above 49% and a solvency margin below 180% were required to retain half their net profits in reserves before declaring dividends. In addition, half of their boards had to comprise independent directors, or one-third if the chairman was independent. Read Article

Insurance companies are expected to face a setback in the short run following the GST Council’s recent exemption on GST, as it could lead to the loss of input tax credit eligibility, said industry experts and executives, adding that the companies, however, will benefit in the long term. Individual life and health insurance premiums have been exempted from the 18 per cent GST from 22nd September onwards. This includes term insurance, health policies, including family floater and ULIPs. Read Article

Amendments propose removal of key curbs, greater boardroom control Insurance Law Changes Set to Benefit Global Parents of JVs Shilpy Sinha Mumbai: Global insurers such as Generali and Ageas, which have already raised their stakes in Indian ventures to the maximum 74% allowed for foreigners, stand to gain from draft amendments to insurance laws that propose scrapping key curbs. The changes, which were proposed as draft on August 29 and are to be tabled in Parliament, ease conditions imposed in 2021 when the foreign direct investment (FDI) cap was lifted from 49% to 74%. Read more at Economic Times Mumbai | Economic Times Kolkata

In a move that will facilitate a quicker turnaround of insolvent companies, the government has proposed a key change to the country’s bankruptcy law that will let the firms’ revival plans move ahead even if the lenders are locked in disputes over how to share the proceeds, two people aware of the discussions within the government said. A provision in the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendments) Bill, 2025, tabled in Parliament, allows tribunals to first approve a company’s resolution plan and take up disagreements among creditors on distribution later, they said. Read Article

The government’s draft norms for the Indian Insurance Companies (Foreign Investment) Amendment Rules, 2015, are expected to ease compliance for foreign investment in the sector and give comfort to global players, according to experts. The norms, put out last week, propose to omit the clause that requires a majority of directors and key management persons (KMP) to be resident Indian citizens in companies that have significant foreign investment. This, according to experts, is expected to ease the compliance burden for companies. Read Article