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2014 (11) TMI 1083 - AT - Income TaxRoyalty and Fees for Technical Services under Section 9(1)(vi) and 9(1)(vii) - Held that - Once the preceding years were awaiting adjudication at the AO stage it would be inappropriate for us to come to any conclusion. We therefore set aside the orders of the revenue authorities and restore the issue to the file of the AO for a fresh adjudication in line with the decision taken by he AO in the preceding years(s). Needless to mention adequate and reasonable opportunity shall be given to the assessee to present its case. Non giving credit of TDS - Held that - The AO is legally bound to allow TDS to the assessee as per law. We therefore direct the AO to allow the undisputed and legally correct claim of TDS & on doing so the AO shall allow the benefit of TDS as claimed in the GOA.
Issues Involved:
1. Classification of receipts as 'Royalty' and 'Fees for Technical Services' under Section 9(1)(vi) and 9(1)(vii) of the Income-tax Act, 1961. 2. Denial of the benefit of the rate prescribed under section 115A of the Act. 3. Computation of chargeable income based on gross receipts instead of net receipts. 4. Short credit of TDS amounting to Rs. 9,54,980. 5. Levying interest under section 234A of the Act amounting to Rs. 42,11,918. 6. Levying interest under section 234B of the Act amounting to Rs. 3,01,85,410. Detailed Analysis: Issue 1: Classification of Receipts as 'Royalty' and 'Fees for Technical Services' The appellant contested the classification of Rs. 21,39,71,104 as 'Royalty' and 'Fees for Technical Services' (FTS) under Section 9(1)(vi) and 9(1)(vii) of the Income-tax Act, 1961. The appellant argued that the services provided to Standard Chartered Bank, India (SCB India) were purely for data processing and did not entail any transfer of rights or access to the data, nor did it involve any technical expertise or special skills. The revenue authorities, however, concluded that the services were highly technical and managerial, and the payments qualified as 'Royalty' and 'FTS' under the Income-tax Act. The ITAT, following precedents from previous years, decided to restore the issue to the Assessing Officer (AO) for fresh adjudication in light of the retrospective amendments and previous ITAT decisions. Issue 2: Denial of Benefit under Section 115A The appellant argued that the AO and the Dispute Resolution Panel (DRP) erred in denying the benefit of the rate prescribed under section 115A of the Act, claiming that SCB India should be considered an 'Indian concern.' The revenue authorities held that SCB India, being a foreign bank with branches in India, did not qualify as an Indian concern, and thus the beneficial rate of 20% under section 115A was not applicable. The ITAT directed the AO to re-adjudicate this issue as well, in line with the decisions taken in previous years. Issue 3: Computation of Chargeable Income The appellant contended that the AO erred in adopting gross receipts instead of net receipts for computing chargeable income. The ITAT, acknowledging the linkage of this issue with the primary issue of classification under 'Royalty' and 'FTS,' directed the AO to compute the tax liability based on net receipts after giving adequate opportunity to the appellant. Issue 4: Short Credit of TDS The appellant claimed that the AO erred in granting a short credit of TDS amounting to Rs. 9,54,980. The ITAT directed the AO to allow the undisputed and legally correct claim of TDS as per section 199 of the Act read with Rule 37BA of the Income-tax Rules, 1962. Issue 5: Levying Interest under Section 234A The appellant argued that the AO erred in levying interest under section 234A amounting to Rs. 42,11,918. The ITAT held that the exigibility of interest under section 234A is consequential to the tax computed and directed the AO to recompute the interest as per law. Issue 6: Levying Interest under Section 234B The appellant contended that the AO erred in levying interest under section 234B amounting to Rs. 3,01,85,410, arguing that the entire income was subject to TDS and thus the question of advance tax did not arise. The ITAT directed the AO to recompute the interest under section 234B as per law. Conclusion: The ITAT set aside the orders of the revenue authorities and restored the issues to the file of the AO for fresh adjudication, ensuring that adequate and reasonable opportunities are given to the appellant to present its case. The appeal was allowed for statistical purposes.
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