« Top Headlines » Open DEMAT Account in 24 hrs  Delhi HC Rules GST Registration Cannot Be Cancelled Retrospectively Without a Clear Show Cause Notice (SCN)  Belated income tax return AY 2026-27: How to file, late filing charges and what you may lose  Major Financial Changes from August 1, 2026: ITR Deadline, RBI MPC Meeting, Tatkal Ticket Rules & More  Government proposes to ease tax relief conditions for offshore funds  TallyPrime Connected Banking: Automating Banking and Accounting  ITR Filing Deadline 2026: Is July 31 the Last Date to File Your Income Tax Return? Latest Official Update  ITR filing deadline nears: How to file income tax return online on e-filing portal - quick 15-step guide  Will the ITR Filing Deadline Be Extended Beyond July 31 for FY 2025-26? Here's the Latest Update for Taxpayers  Income Tax Refund Delayed for AY 2026-27? 5 Common Reasons Your Refund May Be Stuck and How to Fix It  ITR Filing 2026: FM Nirmala Sitharaman Asks Tax Officials to Let Honest Taxpayers Correct Genuine Mistakes  Will Your FCNR Deposit Stay Tax-Free After Returning to India? Tax Rules Explained for NRIs «  CPI opposes move to cut tax rate... Tax saving funds top returns chart... » Assocham for adoption of Singapore's low-tax scheme November, 09th 2006 Industry chamber Assocham has asked the government to adopt the Singapore headquarters initiative, which, launched by the island nation in 1986, provides many tax incentives, including allowing group companies to offset losses through profits made by their subsidiaries and levy of a low corporation tax burden of 20 per cent.    The finance ministry has sought inputs from the corporate sector on the initiative. The proposal was made by Assocham at a recent meeting with revenue department officials.    D S Rawat, secretary general, Assocham, said, The government has told us that the proposal is being considered by the revenue department in order to attract investments from multinational corporations.    Of the 3,600 foreign companies located in Singapore, nearly a quarter use the country as their headquarters on account of the sops provided to them under the initiative.    In fact, several top names in the Indian telecom and information technology sectors, among others, have their regional headquarters in Singapore.    The country has reduced the corporation tax rate to 20 per cent from the 2005 assessment year. A company in Singapore is taxed at a flat rate of 20 per cent on its chargeable income.    This is far less than India's corporate tax rate of 33 per cent. Similarly, the individual top marginal tax rate in Singapore has been reduced to 22 per cent since the 2003 assessment year and personal income tax rates for all income bands have been correspondingly reduced.    Under the model, group relief is provided to companies since 2003. Group relief recognises group companies as a single economic entity and allows the entity to offset losses through profits made by its subsidiaries.    A loss-making company can choose to transfer its current year losses to another group company. This lowers the tax burden for the group.    However, foreign losses cannot be transferred for the purpose of group relief. This is because foreign income is not taxed in Singapore unless it is remitted to the country.    Also, the initiative provides unilateral tax credit, which is extended to cover all services income remitted from other countries. Companies are encouraged to use Singapore as a base from which services are provided to network companies and customers in the region.    Singapore also has a Not Ordinarily Resident (NOR) taxpayer scheme, under which a qualifying individual is only taxed on the portion of employment income based on the actual number of days spent in the country.    This is meant to benefit headquarters staff, who are usually required to travel extensively to provide management support to businesses in the region.