2018 (7) TMI 1630 - HC - Income Tax

Deduction u/s 10A computation - Whether reimbursement of expenses obtained by the assessee for services rendered outside the country has to be excluded from the total turnover, since it stands excluded from the export turnover? - Held that - The issue is no longer res integra and is covered by the decision of the Hon ble Supreme Court in CIT v. HCL Technologies Ltd. 2018 (5) TMI 357 - SUPREME COURT as held if the deductions on freight, telecommunication and insurance attributable to the delivery of computer software under section 10A of the Income-tax Act are allowed only in export turnover but not from the total turnover then, it would give rise to inadvertent, unlawful, meaningless and illogical result which would cause grave injustice to the respondent which could have never been the intention of the Legislature. - Decided in favour of assessee

Summary

Issues:
1. Eligibility of the assessee for exemption under Annexure-A notification as a 100% Export Oriented Unit (EOU).
2. Exclusion of reimbursed expenses for services rendered outside the country from the total turnover under Section 10A of the Income Tax Act.
3. Interpretation of various Acts and notifications for granting exemptions under the Income Tax Act.

Issue 1:
The assessee, a 100% EOU and a software exporter, claimed benefits under the Software Technology Parks (STP) Scheme and the Annexure-A notification under Section 3 of the Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act, 1992. The Assessing Officer initially refused to grant exemption under Annexure-A but allowed it under Section 10A of the Income Tax Act. The Tribunal upheld the Assessing Officer's decision, stating that the exemption provided under other Acts did not apply. The High Court concurred with the Tribunal's decision, emphasizing that the FTDR Act lacked a non obstante clause present in other Acts, and the STP Scheme allowed the deduction under the IT Act. Consequently, the appeals of the assessee were dismissed.

Issue 2:
The question in the Revenue's appeal revolved around whether expenses reimbursed by a foreign client for services rendered outside the country should be excluded from the total turnover under Section 10A of the IT Act. The Tribunal held that if the expenses were excluded from the export turnover, they must also be excluded from the total turnover to maintain consistency. Citing the decision in CIT v. HCL Technologies Ltd., the High Court upheld the Tribunal's decision, stating that failing to exclude such expenses from the total turnover would lead to unjust and illogical outcomes. As a result, the appeal filed by the Revenue was dismissed.

Issue 3:
The High Court relied on the decision in CIT v. HCL Technologies Ltd. to address the interpretation of deductions related to freight, telecommunication, and insurance under Section 10A of the IT Act. The Court followed the Supreme Court's judgment, emphasizing that deductions should be allowed in both export and total turnover to avoid unintended consequences. Consequently, the High Court ruled in favor of the assessee and dismissed the Revenue's appeal.

In conclusion, the High Court upheld the decisions of the Tribunal in both the assessee's and Revenue's appeals, emphasizing the consistent application of exemptions and deductions under the Income Tax Act.