. /.   WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  G/SCM/Q2/IND/15 
10 February 2011 
 (11-0661) 
Committee on Subsidies 
and Countervailing Measures Original:   English 
 
 
 
SUBSIDIES 
 
Questions posed by the UNITED STATES regarding the New and Full  
Notification of INDIA1 
 
  The following communication, dated 3 February 20 11, is being circulated at the request of the 
delegation of the United States.    
_______________ 
 
 
General Note
 
 
 The United States notes that, after several consecutive years of not submitting a subsidies 
notification, as required under Article 25 of th e Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures 
(Subsidies Agreement), India has recently notifie d to the Committee on Subsidies and Countervailing 
Measures (the Committee) a central-government prog ramme of preferential tax incentives related to 
Free Trade Zones, Special Economic Zones, and E xport Processing Zones.  In the introduction to its 
submission, India indicates that the submission cons titutes India's notification of programmes granted 
or maintained at the central government level for the years 2004 through 2009.     
  The United States considers that the notification provisions under Article 25 of the Subsidies Agreement are a core component of the overall WTO subsidies disciplines and a fundamental 
obligation of WTO Members.  In light of the im portance of these transparency requirements, the 
United States poses the following questions to the Government of India: 
 
Question 1 
 
 Please confirm that the submission in question contains a full notification of all specific 
subsidies provided at the central level by the G overnment of India for the years identified.   
 
 When does the Government of India expect to  provide a full notification of all relevant 
programmes provided at the sub-central level for these years?  
                                                     
 
1 G/SCM/N/IND/123 
 G/SCM/N/IND/155 
 G/SCM/N/IND/186   G/SCM/Q2/IND/15 
Page 2  
 
  Preferential Tax Policies for Certain Enterprises 
 
 According to the Government of India's notifi cation, the "Preferential tax policies for certain 
enterprises" programme provides various tax incenti ves to enterprises located  in Free Trade Zones 
(FTZs), Special Economic Zones (SEZs) or Expo rt Processing Zones (EPZs).  Based on the brief 
description provided in the notification, these tax in centives appear to be tied to the export activities 
or revenues of enterprises in those zones.    
 
Question 1 
  Could the Government of India please identify the names and locations of the FTZs, SEZs 
and EPZs across India in which these incentives are available.  Are there any FTZs, SEZs, or EPZs within India in which these incentives are not available? 
  Are there any other incentives (tax-related or otherwise) available in these FTZs, SEZs, or 
EPZs?  Please identify each additional type of incentiv e and, to the extent it meets the criteria for a 
subsidy, provide all the required information under the notification provision of Article 25 of the 
Subsidies Agreement.  
Question 2 
  To the extent the tax incentives identified rela te to central-government taxes within India, 
please explain what relationship these tax provisions have to sub-central taxes applicable in the 
regions in which these zones are located.  For exampl e, are there states within India that provide 
deductions or exemptions to state-level taxes fo r enterprises that qualify fo r the central-level tax 
incentives? 
 
Question 3 
 
 Please provide general information on the types of industrial sectors that are located in these zones and that are eligible for these tax incentives.  Do textile and apparel companies benefit from any 
of these programmes?  Are there any industries or sectors excluded from elig ibility to locate in these 
zones and/or from utilizing these tax incentives? 
 
Question 4 
 
 What is the total amount of benefits provided under each of the three programmes? 
 
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