“interest on outstanding receivables”
The decision most relied on for interest on outstanding receivables is CIT v. EKL Appliances Ltd. (345 ITR 241), cited in 422 judgments on BharatTax.
Leading authorities on interest on outstanding receivables
Transfer pricing adjustments for outstanding receivables are permissible only if the Tax Officer establishes, through analysis over a period, a pattern indicating an international transaction intended to benefit an associated enterprise. The Tax Officer cannot question purely business decisions like royalty payments or exceed jurisdiction by applying cost-benefit analysis to determine the arm's length price of services.
The interest rate for benchmarking foreign currency loans advanced to Associated Enterprises should be the market-determined rate applicable to the currency of the loan, such as LIBOR for US Dollar loans, rather than a domestic lending rate like the Indian PLR.
Not every item of receivables appearing in the accounts of an entity dealing with foreign associated enterprises automatically constitutes an international transaction under Section 92B. A separate adjustment for interest on outstanding receivables is not permissible if the working capital adjustment has already factored in their impact.
The provision of an extended credit period or non-charging of interest on delayed receivables from associated enterprises constitutes an international transaction under Section 92B(1) and requires separate benchmarking at arm's length, even retrospectively due to the Finance Act, 2012 amendment.
The Delhi High Court holds that a detailed functional and working capital analysis, considering various factors, is essential before treating outstanding receivables as a separate international transaction for transfer pricing adjustments on notional interest. Simply making an adjustment based on receivables alone without such study distorts the transaction's character.
The use of LIBOR is upheld for benchmarking loans or advances given to foreign Associated Enterprises (AEs), and notional interest is to be computed using LIBOR rates for transfer pricing adjustments on amounts receivable from AEs.
Interest cannot be separately charged on outstanding receivables from an associated enterprise if these receivables are an integral part of the underlying international transaction for which the arm's length price has already been determined. Such outstanding receivables are not considered a distinct international transaction.
A transfer pricing adjustment for notional interest on delayed receivables from an Associated Enterprise (AE) may not be warranted if the assessee consistently does not charge interest from both AEs and non-AEs.
