Union Budget 2026

Our expectations include:

• Mitigating potential US tariff impacts through strategic market diversification
• Promoting climate resilient agriculture, regenerative practices and robust risk protection mechanisms
• Funding the national scale-up of Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) frameworks for agriculture

• Clarification on Compensation Cess to ease working capital pressures
• Addressing the Inverted Duty Structure (IDS) for EV manufacturers
• Introduction of a streamlined customs classification framework for automobiles and auto components

Our expectations:

• Tax incentives for healthier FMCG products and sustainable packaging
• Ensuring neutral tax treatment for post-sale discounts
• Inclusion of Input Tax Credit (ITC) on input services in the Inverted Duty Structure (IDS) refund formula

Our expectations include:

• Introduction of a group tax consolidation regime for the renewable energy sector
• Direct tax incentives to support nuclear start-ups and domestic manufacturers
• Targeted tax incentives and GST rationalisation for Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS)

• Allowing tax deduction for the Head Office (HO) expenditure incurred by foreign banks
• Accelerating the growth and global positioning of IFSC GIFT City

Our expectations include:

• Re-evaluating concession agreement and risk reward sharing structures to improve private participation in railways and water and drive higher participation in the roads sector under the BOT model
• Establishing a defined asset monetisation plan across the Centre and States, with structured consultation on transaction design
• Clear policies to incentivise the build-out of digital infrastructure, including data centres, fibre networks, towers and associated value chains

• Introduction of a composite insurance licensing frameworkto enable scale and operational efficiency
• Rationalisation of GST and tax benefits to improve affordability and penetration
• Transition towards a risk-based capital framework to strengthen solvency and resilience

• Streamlining the existing regulatory framework through a"one regulator" approach
• Introduction of a clear policy for refurbished medical devices to enable efficient and compliant imports
• Reforms to the Intellectual Property landscape by further reducing patent approval timelines

• Tax credits for critical minerals and strategic mineral projects
• Re-introduction of a concessional tax regime to improve investment viability
• Conditional tax holidays or reduced tax rates for greenfield strategic projects

Our expectations include:

• Exemption from anti-abuse provisions on acquisition of listed company shares (off the stock exchange)
• Restoration of holding period parameters for classifying unlisted debentures as long-term or short-term capital assets
• Reintroduction of a concessional tax rate for interest income on specified securities

• Relief in Safe Harbour margins for the IT/ITES sector amid AI-driven business model shifts
• Streamlining Advance Pricing Agreement (APA) and Mutual Agreement Procedure (MAP) regulations to reduce disputes and timelines
• Legislative clarity on the taxability of permanent transfer of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) and intangibles

• Introduction of a concessional tax regime for GCCs tosupport expansion and operational efficiency
• Clarity on taxation of secondment and cost-sharing arrangements to simplify cross-border operations
• Extension of targeted tax incentives for data centres to enable scalable digital infrastructure

• Enabling India’s data sovereignty through robust AI data centre infrastructure
• Incentivising sustainable practices and outcomes in data centre development
• Promoting project-based learning initiatives to build AI knowledge and skills for all

• Deployment of secure cloud infrastructure for the Indiancentral government to safeguard sensitive data
• Establishment of a national command for cybersecurity to coordinate strategy and responses
• Implementation of sectoral CERTs and SOCs to strengthen cybersecurity across key industries

• Launch of a “National Digital Infrastructure Mission 2030”to build scalable, secure and future-ready digital platforms
• Creation of a “Public Digital Infrastructure Fund” to support innovation, startups and exports
• Establishment of a “National Data and AI Commons” to enable open and trusted access to critical datasets and AI resources

• GST and Customs Duty exemptions for ground systems, components of launch vehicles/satellites and other enabling services
• Scaling the INR 1,000 crore space venture fund to support startups and commercial ventures
• Establishing a "National Geospatial Mission" with ambitious adoption targets to unlock data-driven applications.