New SEZ Applications to Begin Oct. 21

September 21, 2010 Posted by India Briefing Reading Time: < 1 minute

Sept. 21 – Authorities will be accepting new special economic zone applications beginning October 21.

This month, Commerce Secretary Rahul Khullar went through the approval of 11 new SEZs. India’s SEZs have been instrumental in enticing investments and providing jobs although there are fears that this may change as the SEZ Act that allows generous tax cuts to investors is revised under the new Direct Taxes Code bill.

Export Promotion Council for EoUs and SEZs said that changes to the SEZ Act, “would very seriously affect employment, exports and investment in the SEZs.”

The latest proposal of the DTC bill suggests that SEZs notified on or before March 31, 2012, be eligible for tax benefits.

Currently, of the 577 SEZ-issued approvals, around 363 have been notified. For the first quarter of 2010-11, SEZ exports amounted to Rs.586.8 billion, an increase of 68 percent compared to the same period last year.