With India poised to be the third-largest global economy by 2030, a key policy of the country’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry is establishing special economic zones (SEZs). These zones, part of India’s reform agenda, are geographic regions with more liberal regulations than in the rest of the country. The broad category of SEZs encompasses several more specific zone types, such as free trade zones (FTZs), export processing zones (EPZs), free zones, industrial estates, free ports and urban enterprise zones.
SEZs were established to attract foreign direct investment, create employment opportunities, develop infrastructure, and facilitate transfer of technology and access to global markets. However, their main objective is to provide an internationally competitive and hassle-free environment to encourage exports. With this goal, the government of India announced its SEZ policy in 2000, with objectives including making available goods and services free of taxes and duties, creating integrated infrastructure for export production, enabling expeditious and single-window approval mechanisms, and offering a package of incentives to attract foreign and domestic investment to promote export-led growth.
Investments in India’s SEZs have increased over the last decade, leading to increased trade and investment, job creation and more effective governance. Investment in SEZs was $590 million in 2006, and had grown to $69.3 billion as of 2018. India had 223 operational SEZs as on March 31, 2018. Employment in SEZs stood at 100,000 in February 2006, and had increased to 1.9 million by March 2018.
To encourage participation in SEZs, companies are provided with certain benefits and incentives such as tax holidays and income tax exemptions. For instance, units in SEZs enjoy a 100 percent income tax exemption on export income for the first five years, 50 percent for the next five years, and 50 percent of the ploughed back export profit for another five years. Furthermore, there is duty-free import/domestic procurement of goods for development, operation and maintenance of SEZ units—among other incentives.
SEZs, when equipped, are expected to offer premier infrastructure services as well as sustenance services, also authorizing for the tariff-free import of goods and raw materials. Additionally, attractive monetary subsidiaries and trouble-free custom tariffs, banking as well as other methods are offered in such business zones. Setting up SEZs is also recognized as communications development approaches.
• SEZs are controlled through a three-tier Organizational Set-up, they are:
• The supreme controlling entity in the Department is recognized as The Board of Approval.
• At the district level, The Unit Approval Committee deals with SEZs development and other associated concerns.
• Every district is controlled by a Development Commissioner, who also controls the Unit Approval Committee.
Since the promulgation of the Act, the Indian government has also acknowledged suggestions for additional, far smaller SEZs, which should be proposed through developers to the Indian Board of Approval.
The SEZ Rules, 2006 lays down the whole process to develop a proposed SEZ or set up a unit in an SEZ. Till September 2017, 221 SEZs are in operation, and by January 2018, a considerable 423 have received formal approval for operation.
Even though India’s SEZs are somewhat new, but they have become significant sourcing as well as manufacturing destinations for foreign investors.
List of Special Economic Zones in India
The government announced the SEZ during April 2000. India’s Special Economic Zone Act, 2005 furthermore amended the nation’s foreign investment policy and changed its EPZs to SEZs, with prominent zones which include;
SEEPZ (Mumbai); Cochin (Kerala state); Kandla (Gandhidham, Kachchh); Surat (SachinSurat); Madras (Chennai state); Visakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh state); Falta (West Bengal state); Noida (Uttar Pradesh state); Indore (Madhya Pradesh state); Manikanchan (Salt Lake, West Bengal state); Jaipur(Rajasthan State); Salt Lake Electronic City-SEZ (Kolkata); Mahindra City-SEZ (Chennai state).
Features of SEZs
The key features of Indian Special Economic Zones are:
• SEZs in India are established by the government, private as well as the joint sector, not like its international counterparts where areas are primarily maintained by their respective governments. This offers equal prospects towards both Indian and international players.
• Government has assigned more or less 1,000 hectares area for Greenfield SEZs. Though, there is no limitation in the context of the favorable area in constructing sector-specific SEZs.
• 100% of Foreign Direct Investment is permitted for every endowment in Special Economic Zones, aside from activities classified under the unconstructive record.
• SEZ divisions are compulsory to be encouraging net foreign exchange yielders and are not allowed to any least amount of value addition guidelines or export duties.
• Commodity surge from Domestic Tariff Area (DTA) into an SEZ is acknowledged as exports as well as commodity surge into DTA from SEZ are acknowledged as imports.
Benefits of SEZs
The benefits of SEZs are:
• Full Income tax exemption for 5 years and an extra 50% tax relief for an additional 2 years.
• The manufacturing industry is permitted an FDI influx of 100% through automatic channels, not including a few industries.
• Services towards establishing off-shore banking divisions in SEZs.
• Service Tax as well as Central Sales Tax exemption.
• External commercial lending of up to US$500 million is permitted for SEZ divisions in a year without any maturity limitations through certified banking networks.
• No import authorization responsibilities.
• Services towards sustaining foreign exchange proof of payments of up to 100% in Exchange Earners' Foreign Currency Account.
• SEZ franchisees are permitted 100% FDI in offering customary telephone services in the areas.
• No restraint of foreign endowments for small scale industry reticent goods.
• Tax relief from sectoral authorization compulsions for goods reticent for SSI industry.
• Tax relief from the customs tariff on import of goods, raw products, spare parts, etc.
• Tax relief from Central Excise tariff on the acquirement of goods, raw products, spare parts, etc from the local market.
• No regular assessments through Customs for export and import freight.
• Capacity to understand and repatriate export advances within a year.
• Revenues allowed to be repatriated without any dividend assessment requirements.
• Authorization for Employment prospects for local exporters for direct export.
• Authorization for off-shoring of local as well as global players. This service is available to the jewelry sector as well.
Procedure for Obtaining SEZ Approval
The procedures for setting up of SEZ in India are:
1. Any individual willing to establish a Special Economic Zone is required to make a proposal towards the State Government. The application for proposal for the establishment of Special Economic Zone is to be made in form A. The proposal could be made only after finding the area for SEZ. Proposal for establishing SEZ could even directly be made before the Board.
2. If the proposal is directly made against the Board, the individual, after getting approval from the Board, must obtain the concurrence of the State Government.
3. On receiving the proposal, the State Government must forward the same to the Board along with its recommendation.
4. The Central Government has the right to recommend a various requirement for establishing of Special Economic Zone. The minimum area of land needed for establishing of business, terms and conditions for many authorized operations are some of the instances of various requirements which could be prescribed by Central Government.
5. Currently, the minimum area requirement for establishing a Special Economic Zone is:
• For Multi-sector SEZ, 1000 hectares area is required.
• For Sector Specific SEZ, 100 hectares area is required.
• For FTWZ, 40 hectares area is required.
• For IT/ITES/handicrafts SEZ Biotechnology/non-conventional energy/gems and jewelry Sector, 10 hectares area is required.
6. The Board, after receiving the proposal, might either approve the proposal subjected to such terms and conditions as it might deem fit or can even modify or reject the proposal.
7. Final Action of Board on receiving of the proposal is:
• When a Board approves the proposal devoid of any modification, in such case, the Board is needed to communicate the approval to the Central Government.
• When a Board approves the proposal by means of modification, in such case, the Board is needed to communicate the modification to the individual or the State Government of the concerned person. Furthermore, if the modification as proposed through the Board is accepted by the individual or the State Government, the Board is needed to communicate the same to the Central Government.
• When Board rejects the proposal –
1. then the Board is needed to record the reason for rejection as well as communicate the same to Central Government. The Central Government consecutively would intimate the same towards the individual or the State Government.
2. If everything goes well, the Central Government on receiving of communication shall issue a letter of approval on such terms and conditions and duties and entitlements as might be approved by the Board, to the Developer, being the individual or the State Government concerned.
Documents Required
Proposal for establishing a Special Economic Zone must be made in form A along with essential undertaking and affidavit. The project report should also be submitted.
• Applicant Name.
• Special Economic Zone proposed the area.
• Status of the recommendation of the proposal through the State Government, if available.
• Is the made proposal is for formal approval or in-principle approval.
• Whether it is multi-product SEZ.
• Whether it is sector-specific SEZ? If yes, the details of the sector.
• Projected investment in the project.
• Projected export from the project.
• Projected employment generation from the project.
• Source of fund of project.
• Applicant Net worth
• The extent of FDI, if any.
• Source of FDI.
0 Comments