Rewind 2022: Top 22 Statutory Announcements of the Year 2022

As the year 2022 has ended, it’s important to reflect on the major statutory announcements announced during the year that impacted entities and taxpayers. From new tax laws to changes in foreign exchange regulations, these announcements had a significant impact on the way entities work. In this article, we have shortlisted the top 22 statutory announcements of the year 2022 we reported at taxmann.com.

1. UAE brings the law to levy 9% corporate tax with effect from 1st June 2023

Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022

The Ministry of Finance of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has published Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022, providing the legislative framework to levy corporate tax on business profits in the UAE.

UAE Corporate Tax (UAE CT) will become effective for financial years starting on or after 1^st June 2023. It shall apply to:

(a) Individuals who are engaged in a business or business activity in UAE through an unincorporated partnership or sole proprietorship;

(b) Juridical persons incorporated in the UAE;

(c) Juridical persons effectively managed and controlled in the UAE; and

(d) Foreign juridical persons that have a Permanent Establishment in the UAE.

The decree provides that the financial statements of businesses should be prepared in accordance with accounting standards accepted in the UAE. Taxpayers should prepare financial statements on an accrual basis unless they are permitted to use the cash basis of accounting.

Further, to determine the taxable income, transactions and arrangements between related parties must meet the arm’s length standard. The arm’s length result of a transaction must be determined by applying one or a combination of the prescribed transfer pricing methods.

The corporate tax shall be imposed on the taxable income at the following rates:

(a) For individuals and juridical persons: 9% of taxable income that exceeds the specified amount (to be decided by cabinet).

(b) In the case of Qualifying Free Zone Persons: 9% of taxable income which does not meet the qualifying income definition.

2. Consequences of PAN becoming inoperative made effective from 01-04-2023

Notification 17/2022, dated 9-03-2022 & Circular 07/2022, dated 30-03-2022

Every person who has been allotted a PAN as of 1^st July 2017 and is eligible to obtain an Aadhaar number shall link his PAN with Aadhaar. If such a person fails to do so, the PAN allotted to the person shall be made inoperative after the notified due date. The due date for such linking has been extended multiple times, and the latest date was 31-03-2022. If a person fails to intimate his Aadhaar after this date, he shall be liable for payment of a fee under Section 234H.

The CBDT has notified the Income-tax (Third Amendment) Rules, 2022 to insert sub-rule (5A) in Rule 114 to provide that if a person intimates his Aadhaar number after the due date, then he shall be liable to pay a fee of:

(a) 500, if such intimation is made between 01-04-2022 and 30-06-2022; and

(b) 1,000, in all other cases.

Further, Sub-rule (2) of Rule 114AAA provides that where a person is required to furnish, intimate or quote his PAN, and his PAN has become inoperative, it shall be deemed that he has not furnished, intimated or quoted the PAN. Consequently, he shall be liable for all the consequences for not furnishing, intimating or quoting the PAN. The CBDT has notified that all the consequences for not furnishing, intimating or quoting PAN shall come into effect from 01-04-2023 if PAN becomes inoperative due to non-linking of PAN with Aadhaar. However, the taxpayer is liable to pay a fee of Rs. 500 or Rs. 1,000, as the case may be, if PAN is linked with Aadhar between 01-04-2022 to 31-03-2023.

3. CBIC notified Central Goods and Services Tax (Fifth Amendment) Rules, 2022

Notification No. 62/2022 –Central Tax dated 26^th December 2022

The CBIC has issued CGST (Fifth Amendment) Rules, 2022 to notify changes recommended by the GST Council in its 48^th meeting. The key changes announced are as under:

(a) Form GSTR-1 has been amended to change the manner of reporting details relating to supplies made through the e-commerce operator (‘ECO’);

(b) The procedure is prescribed for filing an application for refund by the unregistered buyers where the contract/ agreement for the supply of services, like construction of flat/house and long-term insurance policy, is cancelled;

(c) Rule 37A is inserted to provide for the mechanism and time limit of reversal of ITC by the recipient where the supplier does not pay the tax to the Government;

(d) New Rule 88C and Form GST DRC-01B introduced for issuing intimation to the taxpayer for the differences between liability reported in Form GSTR-1 and Form GSTR-3B, where such difference exceeds a specified amount and/or percentage;

(e) Rule 37(1) is amended w.e.f. 01-10-2022 to provide for the reversal of input tax credit only proportionate to the amount not paid to the supplier vis-a-vis the value of the supply, including tax payable;

(f) Rule 108 and Rule 109 are amended to provide clarity on the requirement of submission of the certified copy of the order appealed against and the issuance of final acknowledgement by the appellate authority; and

(g) New Rule 109C and Form GST APL-01/03W are introduced to provide the facility for withdrawal of an application of appeal up to a certain specified stage.

4. Foreign nationals from border-sharing countries needed security clearance from Home Ministry to obtain DIN

Notification no. G.S.R. 410(E), Dated: 01.06.2022

The Government has notified the Companies (Appointment and Qualification of Directors) Amendment Rules, 2022. Amendment has been made to rule 8. Now security clearance from Home Ministry would be required if a person seeking an appointment as a director or applying for Director Identification Number (DIN) is a national of a country that shares a land border with India. The necessary security clearance shall be attached along with the consent or application for DIN.

As per Rule 8 of the Companies (Appointment and Qualification of Directors) Rules 2014, every person appointed to hold the office of a director shall, on or before the appointment, furnish to the company a consent in writing to act as such in Form DIR-2.

Now, the person seeking appointment as a director who is a national of a country that shares a land border with India shall have to obtain necessary security clearance from the Indian Ministry of Home Affairs and shall attach the same along with the consent. The Form DIR -2 has also been suitably amended to include a disclosure from the applicant that he/she is not required to obtain security clearance from the Ministry of Home Affairs before seeking an appointment as director.

A further amendment has also been made to Rule 10, which relates to the allotment of the DIN. Rule 10 prescribes that on submission of Form DIR-3 on the portal and payment of the requisite amount of fees through online mode, an application number shall be generated by the system automatically.

Now, a proviso has been inserted after Rule 10(1) providing that no application number shall be generated in case of the person applying for DIN is a national of a country which shares a land border with India unless necessary security clearance from the Ministry of Home Affairs has been attached with the application.

Accordingly, Form DIR 3 has also been amended to include a declaration from the applicant that he/she is not required to obtain security clearance from the Ministry of Home Affairs under sub-rule (1) of Rule 10 before applying for a director identification number. List of countries sharing a land border with India is – China, Pakistan, Bhutan, Myanmar, Afghanistan, Nepal, and Bangladesh.

5. CBDT proposed common ITR by merging all existing forms except ITR-7; released draft ‘Common ITR’

Notification F No 370133/16/2022-TPL, dated 01-11-2022

The CBDT has proposed to introduce a common ITR by merging all the existing returns of income except ITR-7. This will give an option to taxpayers to file the return either in the existing form or the proposed common ITR, at their convenience.

The draft ITR aims to ease filing of returns and reduce the filing time of individuals and non-business-type taxpayers. It intends the smart design of schedules in a user-friendly manner with a better arrangement, logical flow, and increased scope of pre-filling. Taxpayers will not be able to see the schedules that do not apply to them.

6. Govt. revamped Overseas Direct Investment (ODI) governance framework

Notification No. No. FEMA 400/2022-RB, Dated 22-08-2022, read with Notification No. G.S.R.646(E), dated 22-08-2022

The Govt. has revamped the ODI governance framework by notifying the Foreign Exchange Management (Overseas Investment) Regulations, 2022 and Foreign Exchange Management (Overseas Investment) Rules, 2022.

The new norms aim to simplify and liberalise the existing framework for overseas investment by a person resident in India to cover wider economic activity and significantly reduce the need for seeking specific approvals, thereby significantly increasing the ease of making investments outside India. The Foreign Exchange Management (Overseas Investment) Rules 2022, subsumes extant regulations pertaining to FEM (Transfer or Issue of Any Foreign Security) Regulations, 2004 and FEM (Acquisition and Transfer of Immovable Property outside India Regulations), 2015.

7. E-invoice made mandatory for taxpayers having turnover exceeding 10 crores from 1st October 2022

Notification No. 17/2022–Central Tax dated August 1^st, 2022

The CBIC has prescribed a new threshold limit for e-invoicing, and now e-invoice is mandatory for taxpayers having turnover exceeding 10 crores from 1^st October 2022. In this regard, an amendment has been made in Notification No. 13/2020 – Central Tax dated 21^st March 2020.

8. Premature closure clause won’t be triggered due to the death of holder of ‘Senior Citizens Savings Scheme’: FinMin

Press Release, dated 29-09-2022

The Senior Citizen Saving Scheme (SCSS) is a Central Government sponsored program for senior citizens and retired persons. The amount deposited under the scheme is considered for tax deduction under Section 80C. The deposit under this scheme earns interest at the rate of 7.4% (8% with effect from 01-01-2023).

The deposit under this scheme shall be made for a period of 5 years. However, the account holder may extend the account for a further period of 3 years by making an application.

Account holders also have the option to close the account prematurely at any time by making an application in Form-2. If the account is closed within one year, interest paid on the deposit is recovered from the sum payable to the account holder. However, if it is closed after 1 year, a recovery of 1% to 1.5% of the deposit shall be made from the account holder.

The Ministry of Finance (FinMin) has noticed that in a few cases of the death of the account holder, operating agencies are closing the SCSS account by treating it as premature closure.

Thus FinMin has clarified that the premature closure clause of the Senior Citizens Savings Scheme does not trigger on account of the demise of its account holder. The premature closure of the account is applicable only when the SCSS account holder requests for the closure of his account before the maturity period. Accordingly, the penalty of premature closure shall be applicable.

Further, in case of the death of the account holder and the account is being closed on request of the nominee/legal heir, the rate of interest as applicable on the SCSS scheme shall be paid till the date of demise of the account holder. Thereafter, the interest rate applicable to Post Office Savings Account shall be paid from the date of demise of the account holder till the date of final closure of the account.

9. RBI mandates ‘Legal Entity Identifier’ for Rs. 50 crore plus cross-border deals

Circular No. RBI/2021-22/137 A.P. (DIR Series) Circular No. 20, Dated 10-12-2021

The RBI has made the ‘Legal Entity Identifier’ (LEI) mandatory for cross-border transactions of capital or current account transactions worth Rs 50 crore and above. LEI is a 20-digit number used to uniquely identify parties to financial transactions worldwide to improve the quality and accuracy of financial data systems.

LEI norm has been introduced in a phased manner for participants in the over-the-counter (OTC) derivative, non-derivative markets, large corporate borrowers, and large value transactions in centralised payment systems. From 1^st October 2022, AD Category-I banks shall obtain the LEI number from the resident entities (non-individuals) undertaking capital or current account transactions of Rs. 50 crores and above per transaction under FEMA, 1999.

Once an entity has obtained an LEI number, it must be reported in all transactions of that entity, irrespective of transaction size. AD Category-I banks shall have the required systems in place to capture the LEI information and ensure that any LEI captured is validated against the global LEI database available on the website of the Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation (GLEIF).

In India, LEI can be obtained from Legal Entity Identifier India Ltd. (LEIL), which is also recognised as an issuer of LEI by the Reserve Bank under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007. The rules, procedures, and documentation requirements may be ascertained from LEIL.

10. CBDT clarified that gift vouchers, rewards points, and website subscriptions are not VDAs

Notification no. 74/2022, dated 30-06-2022

The meaning of virtual digital assets (VDA) has been defined by Section 2(47A). It covers the following three classes of VDA:

(a) Information or code or number or token generated through cryptographic means;

(b) Non-fungible token (NFT); and

(c) Any other digital asset as may be notified by the Board.

The residuary clause mentioned in point (c) also gives power to the Central Govt. to exclude any other digital asset from the definition of a virtual digital asset subject to prescribed conditions.

Exercising such power, the Central Government has notified the following virtual digital assets which shall be excluded from the definition of VDA:

(a) Gift card or vouchers, being a record that may be used to obtain goods or services or a discount on goods or services;

(b) Mileage  points,  reward  points  or  loyalty  card,  being  a  record  given  without  direct  monetary consideration under an award, reward, benefit, loyalty, incentive, rebate or promotional program that may be used or redeemed only to obtain goods or services or a discount on goods or services; and

(c) Subscription to websites or platforms, or applications.

11. CBIC issued clarification for GST applicability on liquidated damages, compensation, notice pay recovery etc.

Circular No. 178/10/2022-GST dated 3^rd August 2022

The CBIC has issued a circular to clarify several contentious issues, such as GST applicability on liquidated damages, notice pay recovery, compensation for non-collecting roll charges etc.

The CBIC clarified that where the ‘liquidated damages’ is paid only to compensate for injury, loss or damage suffered by the aggrieved party due to breach of the contract and there is no agreement (express or implied) by the aggrieved party to refrain from or tolerate an act or to do anything for the party paying the liquidated damages, the liquidated damages are mere a flow of money due to such breach. Such payments do not constitute consideration for a supply and are not taxable.

Also, the penalty imposed for violation of laws such as traffic violations, violation of pollution norms, or other laws is also not a consideration for any supply received and is not taxable. It is also clarified that amounts recovered by the employer from the employee for leaving the employment before the minimum agreed period are not taxable.

12. CBIC issued notifications to implement recommendations of 47^th GST Council meeting

Notification No. 10/2022 – Central Tax to Notification No. 14/2022 – Central Tax dated July 5^th, 2022

The CBIC has issued several notifications giving effect to recommendations of 47^th GST Council meeting. The key changes notified are as follows:

(a) Exemption from the filing of annual return to the registered persons whose aggregate turnover in the financial year 2021-22 is up to Rs. 2 crores;

(b) The due date for filing of Form GST CMP-08 by Composition Dealers for the quarter ending 30^th June 2022 is extended till 31^stJuly 2022;

(c) The late fees for filing GSTR-4 for FY 2021-22 have been waived till 28^thJuly 2022;

(d) Time-period from 1^stMarch 2022 to 28^th February 2022 is to be excluded from the calculation of  the limitation period for filing of refund claim;

(e) No requirement for reversal of input tax credit for the exempted supply of Duty Credit Scrips by the exporters.

13. Govt. appointed Competition Commission of India to deal with Anti-Profiteering matters under Section 171(2)

Notification No. 23/2022 – Central Tax & Notification No. 24/2022 – Central Tax, both dated November 23^rd, 2022

The Government has empowered the Competition Commission of India, established under the Competition Act 2002, as an authority under Section 171(2) of the CGST Act, 2017 with effect from 1^st December 2022.

Notably, Section 171(2) allows the Central Government to constitute or empower, through notification,  any authority to examine whether input tax credits availed by any registered person or the reduction in the tax rate have actually resulted in a commensurate reduction in the price of the goods or services supplied by him.

14. Body corporates from border-sharing countries could not enter into a compromise or an arrangement or merger or demerger without Govt.’s nod

Notification no. G.S.R. 401(E) dated 30.05.2022

The MCA has notified the Companies (Compromises, Arrangements and Amalgamations) Amendment Rules, 2022. Now, a company/body corporate incorporated in a country sharing a land border with India is required to submit a declaration in Form CAA-16 at the time of making an application for compromise or arrangement.

In Form CAA-16, the following details need to be mentioned:

(a) Details of the transferee company;

(b) Details of the transferor company;

(c) A declaration from an authorised representative on behalf of the company that the company is not required to obtain prior approval under the FEM (Non-Debt Instruments) Rules, 2019 or the approval has been obtained and is enclosed with the form;

(d) List of enclosures to be attached with the form.

15. CBDT issued clarifications considering reports released by Netherlands, France & Switzerland on the MFN clause

Circular No. 3/2022, dated 03-02-2022

The decree of the Netherlands, dated 28-02-2021 and France bulletin, dated 04-11-2016, has declared that the tax rate on dividends under their respective DTAAs with India stands modified under the MFN clause after India entered into a DTAA with Slovenia, which became a member of the OECD on 21^st July 2010.

Similarly, the publication of the Swiss Confederation, dated 13-08-2021, has declared that the tax rate on dividends under their DTAA with India stands modified under the MFN clause after India entered into a DTAA with Lithuania and Colombia, which became members of the OECD on 5^th July 2018 and 28^th April 2020 respectively.

Considering the above decree/bulletin/publication on the interpretation of the MFN clauses, the CBDT has clarified that both the Netherlands and France have passed the said decree/bulletin without having any bilateral consultation with India. Therefore, these would not have any effect on curtailing the tax liability that is payable to the Government of India under the respective tax treaty.

The applicability of the MFN clause and benefit of the lower rate or restricted scope of source taxation rights in relation to certain items of income is available if all the following conditions are satisfied:

(a) A treaty with the third State (second treaty) is entered into after the signature/Entry into Force (depending upon the language of the MFN clause) of the treaty between India and the first State;

(b) The second treaty is entered into between India and a State which is a member of the OECD at the time of signing such treaty;

(c) India limits its taxing rights in the second treaty in relation to the rate or scope of taxation in respect of the relevant items of income; and

(d) A separate notification has been issued by India, importing the benefits of the second treaty into the treaty with the first State, as required by Section 90(1) of the Income-tax Act, 1961.

However, where in the case of a taxpayer, there is any decision by any court favourable to such taxpayer, this circular will not affect the implementation of the court order in such case.

16. MCA widened the scope of small companies, increased the threshold limit for paid-up capital and turnover

Notification No G.S.R. 700(E) dated 15-09-2022

To ensure ease of doing business and ease of living for the corporates, MCA had revised the definition of Small companies. The MCA had earlier revised the definition of “small companies” by increasing their thresholds for paid-up capital from “not exceeding Rs. 50 lakhs” to “not exceeding Rs. 2 crores” and turnover from “not exceeding Rs. 2 crores” to “not exceeding Rs. 20 crores”.

The definition has been further revised by increasing such threshold for paid-up capital from “not exceeding Rs. 2 crores” to “not exceeding Rs. 4 crores” and turnover from “not exceeding Rs. 20 crores” to “not exceeding Rs. 40 crores”.

As a result, more companies would fall under the ambit of Small companies. It is a welcome move in improving the ease of doing business index. Revision in the definition of small companies will further benefit more companies in reducing their compliance burden. Some of the relaxations that are enjoyed by the Small companies are listed hereunder:

(a) Exemption from preparing the cash flow statement as part of the financial statement;

(b) Advantage of preparing and filing an Abridged Annual Return (i.e. MGT-7A);

(c) Mandatory rotation of auditor not required;

(d) An Auditor of a small company is not required to report on the adequacy of the internal financial controls and its operating effectiveness in the auditor’s report;

(e) Exemption from the requirement of holding of minimum 4 board meetings in a year;

(f) Annual Return of the company can be signed by the company secretary or where there is no company secretary, by a director of the company; and

(g) Lesser penalties for defaults.

17. Government increased the quantum of penalty for acceptance of foreign contributions in contravention of FCRA

Notification No. S.O. 3025(E), Dated 01.07.2022

The Government has increased the amount of penalty for accepting the foreign contribution without obtaining the certificate of registration from the Central Government as mandated under Section 11 of the Act. Accordingly, the amount of penalty is Rs. 1,00,000 or 30% of the foreign contribution received, whichever is higher. Earlier, the amount of penalty prescribed for accepting a foreign contribution in contravention of Section 11 of the Act was Rs. 1,00,000 or 10% of the foreign contribution received, whichever is higher.

Further, the notification also provides for the new penal provisions for the contravention of various other sections as stated below:

• A penalty of 5% of such foreign contribution received in a financial year has been prescribed for failure to intimate about the receipt of foreign contribution within the prescribed time limit;
• A penalty of Rs. 10,000 per utilisation account for failure to intimate within the prescribed time about the opening of account;
• A penalty of Rs. 10,000 for each violation has been prescribed for failure to place on the website as prescribed in clause (a) of Rule 13.

18. The CBDT made return filing mandatory where turnover, TDS/TCS or deposit in a saving account exceeds a certain limit

Notification no. 37/2022, dated 21-04-2022

Section 139 of the Income-tax Act contains provisions for filing a return of income. The seventh proviso to Section 139(1) requires mandatory filing of a return by a person entering into certain high-value transactions.

The CBDT has notified the following additional criteria to make return filing mandatory for an assessee:

• If total sales, turnover or gross receipt of the business exceeds Rs. 60 lakhs during the previous year;
• If the total gross receipt of the profession exceeds Rs. 10 lakhs during the previous year;
• If the total tax deducted and collected during the previous year exceeds Rs. 25,000. The threshold limit shall be Rs. 50,000 in case of a resident individual of the age of 60 years or more; or
• If the aggregate deposit in one or more savings bank accounts is Rs. 50 lakhs or more during the previous year.

19. MCA amended Nidhi rules to hike the requirement of minimum NoF to Rs. 20 lakhs and paid-up capital to Rs. 10 Lakhs

Notification no. G.S.R. 301(E), Dated: 19.04.2022

The MCA had notified the Nidhi (Amendment) Rules, 2022. As per amended rules public company desirous to be declared as a Nidhi shall apply, in Form NDH-4, within 120 days of its incorporation for declaration as Nidhi on fulfilling these two conditions.

• It has not less than 200 members; and
• It has Net Owned Funds of Rs. 20 Lakhs or more.

Further, the amended rules provided that any company which has not (or fails to) complied with the requirements of the said Rule, or the application submitted by the company in Form NDH-4 has been rejected by the Govt., that company shall not raise any deposit from its members or provide any loans to them.

However, if any deposit raised by a company after the date of non-compliance or the date of rejection of the application in Form NDH-4, whichever is later, shall be deemed to have been raised in pursuance of Chapter V of the Act, meaning thereby the provision related to deposit shall apply, and it shall be subject to all the requirements under that Chapter or under any other provisions of the Act or the rules made thereunder, as the case may be.

Also, the Net Owned Funds requirement has been raised to Rs. 20 lakhs from Rs 10 lakhs. The Govt. has also enhanced the minimum paid-up equity share capital requirement for a Nidhi from Rs. 5 lakhs to Rs. 10 lakhs, while specifying that every Nidhi existing as on the date of commencement of the Amendment Rules shall comply with this requirement within 18 months from the date of such commencement.

20. Spending of CSR funds for activities w.r.t ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ is an eligible CSR activity: MCA clarified

General Circular No. 08/2022, dated: 26.07.2022

`Har Ghar Tiranga’, a campaign under the aegis of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, was aimed to invoke the feeling of patriotism in the hearts of the people. In this regard, the MCA had clarified that spending of CSR funds for activities w.r.t mass scale production and supply of the National Flag, outreach and amplification efforts, and other related activities were made eligible CSR activities under item no. (ii) of Schedule VII of the Companies Act, 2013 pertaining to promoting education relating to culture.

The MCA had allowed companies to undertake the aforesaid activities subject to the fulfilment of the Company (CSR Policy) Rules, 2014 and related circular/clarification issued by the Ministry from time to time.

21. RBI brought uniformity in the Late Submission Fee (LSF) for different reporting delays under FEMA

A.P. (DIR SERIES 2021-22) Circular No. 16, dated 30-09-2022

The RBI had decided to bring uniformity in the imposition of Late Submission Fees (LSF) across functions. The reporting delays under the FEMA can be regularised on the submission of LSF. Before the amendment, different methodologies existed for calculating LSF to be paid for various reporting delays. RBI had decided to bring uniformity in the imposition of LSF across functions. A uniform fee is to be paid for various delays in reporting.

22. RBI temporarily raised the limit for ECBs from USD 750 million to USD 1,500 million per Financial Year

Notification No. FEMA.3(R)(3)/2022-RB, dated 28-7-2022

The RBI has notified the FEM (Borrowing and Lending) (Third Amendment) Regulations, 2022. Amendment had been made to Schedule 1. The limit of USD 750 million or equivalent per financial year was temporarily increased to USD 1,500 million or equivalent. This dispensation was made available for ECBs raised till 31-12-2022.