The Ministry of Finance (Department of Economic Affairs) on 12 June 2026, notified the Foreign Exchange Management (Non-Debt Instruments) (Third Amendment) Rules, 2026 (‘Amendment Rules’), amending the Foreign Exchange Management (Non-Debt Instruments) Rules, 2019 (‘NDI Rules’). The Amendment Rules constitute the third amendment in the FEMA liberalisation cycle for the year 2026, following the first and second amendments, which respectively relaxed restrictions on investments from countries sharing a land border with India and liberalised foreign investment in the insurance sector opening the sector up till 100% under automatic route. The third amendment is yet another attempt to widen the gate for the Indian economy. For years, access to India's listed securities market was reserved specially for a defined class amongst which are foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) and non-resident Indians (NRIs) and overseas citizens of India (OCIs), this time the liberalisation is into the Indian capital markets.
The 2026 Steel import Regulation of the European Union (EU) (‘2026 Regulation’),[1] which came into force on 1 July 2026, is not simply a continuation of earlier Steel Safeguard measures[2] applicable since 2018, but it indicates a decisive shift in the EU’s approach to regulate its steel imports in the coming years. With lowering of tariff-rate quotas (TRQs), higher out-of-quota duties and proposal for stricter origin requirements, the 2026 Regulation goes beyond the WTO’s temporary safeguard regime to a more permanent industrial policy governing steel imports into the EU. In particular, the 2026 Regulation reduces the EU's tariff-free steel quota by ~47%, doubles the out-of-quota duty from 25% to 50%, and introduces a new ‘melt and pour’ traceability requirement.
Various State Benches of the Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal (‘GSTAT’) have recently become operational, and questions relating to jurisdiction between the Principal Bench and the State Benches have begun to arise in practice. While Section 109 of the CGST Act specifies certain categories of cases to be dealt with exclusively by the Principal Bench, early orders of the Principal Bench indicate that jurisdictional issues are not always straightforward.
Bank guarantees, letters of credit, pledges and other similar instruments cement commercial dealings by securing payment against default of a contract. A key aspect of such security instruments is also that they are usually exercisable at the unilateral option of the holder, in order to ensure timely cashflow, despite a pending dispute as to whether the default has occurred.
Several lessons are being learnt from the experience of lockdown amidst COVID-19.It also exposed varioussoftspotsin Indian laws and executive orders.Questioning the authority on such technicalities would have been termed insensitive and may have caused unnecessary hurdles to secure the recovery from the pandemic.
The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, Government of India (“DPIIT”) had vide press note 3 of 2020 dated April 17, 2020 (“Press Note 3”) amended the extant foreign direct investment (FDI) policy dated August 28, 2017. As per Press Note 3, the amendment was introduced with an aim to curb opportunistic takeovers of Indian companies by persons or entities (directly or indirectly) of any country which shares a land border with India (“Bordering Country”) during difficult times
The lockdowns due to COVID-19 in various countries have shrunk global trade with countries choosing to protect their people first before opening any further borders. The Government has also been tweaking the Import and Export Policy for many goods keeping in view the requirement of these goods in India. The Government has also issued an Ordinance, circulars, press releases, etc., on various relief measures for the benefit of the trade and industry.
Due to the current lockdown, the Government has introduced certain relief measures for the industries by extending the timelines for statutory and regulatory compliances under various laws. In this regard, the Finance Ministry has issued multiple notifications on 03-04-2020. A snapshot of the notifications relevant for present discussion is as under:
In the International trade scenario, World Trade Organization (“WTO”) provides an operating framework which facilitates free trade between its member-countries. The Dispute Settlement Understanding (“DSU”) is a legal text containing the rules for dispute settlement in the WTO. The Dispute Settlement Body (“DSB”) comprising of representatives of all WTO Members, administers the DSU and is responsible for overseeing the entire dispute settlement process.
Business environment has undergone a drastic change i.e. from the traditional ‘physical system’ to the modern ‘digital system’. With user/ consumer facing countries devising measures to tax digital businesses, the International tax landscape is certainly undergoing a renovation.
The extant COVID-19 pandemic has been plaguing individuals and industries alike. The Government of India has, with a view to curb opportunistic takeovers/acquisitions of Indian companies due to the COVID-19 pandemic, reviewed and revised the extant foreign direct investment (“FDI”) policy dated August 28, 2017 (“FDI Policy”), issued by the Department for Promotions of Industry and Internal Trade (“DPIIT”) vide press note 3 of 2020 dated April 17, 2020
In an effort to streamline the functioning of tribunals in India, the Finance Act, 2017 brought appeals filed against the orders of the Competition Commission of India (CCI)under the Competition Act, 2002 (CompetitionAct) within the purview of the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT).
Indian Council of Medical Research (hereinafter referred as the ‘ICMR’) has recently come up with letter of intent inviting hospitals and institutions to participate in randomized controlled study of Therapeutic Plasma Exchange in critically infected covid-19 patients. This is also being referred to as the ‘Convalescent Plasma Therapy’.
Businesses across the world have been impacted by the global pandemic, COVID – 19 and State measures have brought many economies to a standstill. It is inevitable that the next few months are going to present new challenges to businesses.While certain industries such as airlines, entertainment, hotels etc. will struggle to get back on their feet, essential commodities, pharmaceuticals and healthcare providers will be strained with unprecedented demand.
The global sports market is an estimated $600 billion industry1, comprising of infrastructure, events, training, manufacturing and retail. The scale and revenue-generating opportunities are most visible during marquee international sporting events.
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