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2019 (10) TMI 121 - AT - Income TaxPermanent Establishment, independent agent and business connection in India - fixed place of business maintained in India - Assessee is tax resident of Germany and India had entered in tax treaty with Germany - Indo-Germany DTAA - Whether the non-resident has business connection in India from or through which income profit or gain can be said to be accrue or arise to them within the meaning of section 9 or Article 5 of India Germany tax treaty? - HELD THAT:- There is no dispute that the activities of manufacturing of Car is completed by assessee (Audi AG) outside India and constitute a separate and independent activity. The assessee claimed that Cars are sold to Volkswagen Group Sales for further sales in India and Volkswagon Group sales is not acting on behalf of Audi AG nor Audi AG is selling Car through Volkswagon Group Sales. The assessee also claimed that Cars are sold to Volkswagon Group Sales principle to principle basis and thereafter, Volkswagon Group Sales it on a principle to principle basis to the dealers. The sales of goods/Car are completed outside India than income arising from sales by no stretch of imagination can be said to be taxed in India. The assessing officer has not brought any material to counter the stand of the assessee that Cars are not sold to Volkswagon Group Sales on principle to principle basis and thereafter, Volkswagon Group Sales it on a principle to principle basis to the dealers. As in case of Daimler AG [2012 (6) TMI 479 - ITAT MUMBAI] despite the fact that the AE was performing more activities as narrated in the chart above, it was held that the associated entity not created either fixed place PE nor dependent agent. Further, the income arising on the sales of Car by Volkswagen Group Sales to dealers in India is income accruing or arising in India and is taxed separately in the hands of Volkswagen Group Sales. In our view merely acting for non-resident principal would itself render an agent to be considered PE for the porpose of allocating profit. The assessee is not undertaking any definite activity to which profit can be attributed. We are of the V W Group sales is an independent and separate entity, which is engaged in selling of fully built up cars imported from the assessee, Volkswagen AG and Skoda India to dealers and distributors. Thus, VW Group cannot be regarded as a PE of assessee in India. Car is manufactured by the Audi AG outside India and constitutes a separate and independent activity. As noted earlier the car is sold to VW Group for further sale in India and VW Group sale is not acting on behalf of Audi AG nor is Audi AG selling cars through VW Group sales. Moreover, the cars are sold on principle to principal basis. Hence, we are of the view that Assessing Officer was not justified in invoking section 9 of the Act and the Article 5 of Indo-Germany Tax Treaty for taking view that assessee has PE in India. - Decided in favour of assessee. Levy of interest u/s 234B & 234C - HELD THAT:- Considering the fact that the assessee is a foreign company and tax resident of Germany. The entire income of the Audi AG is subject to tax deducted at source under section 195 of the Act. The assessee has no liability to pay advance tax and the fact that we have already hold that income earned by assessee is not taxable in India, we direct the Assessing Officer to recompute the tax/interest by following the decision of the jurisdictional High Court in case of NGC Network Asia LLC [2009 (1) TMI 174 - BOMBAY HIGH COURT]
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