Administration Fee for IMEI Allocation Not Royalty Under India–US DTAA: ITAT Delhi

GSMA Ltd. Vs ACIT (ITAT Delhi) ITAT Delhi Holds that Administration Fee and Subscription Fee Received by GSMA Ltd. Are Not Taxable as Royalty under Section 9(1)(vi) and Article 12(3) of the India–U.S. DTAA Executive Summary: The Assessee, GSMA Ltd., a U.S. tax resident and the sole global administrator for IMEI/TAC allocation, received Administration Fee from its Indian Reporting Body (MSAI) and Subscription Fee from Indian customers towards access to market intelligence data. The Assessing Officer characterized both the Administration Fee and the Subscription Fee as “Royalty” within the...