A treatise-grade working reference on the licensing, capital, conduct-of-business and tax framework for Fund Management Entity at GIFT IFSC — every conclusion anchored in verbatim statutory and regulatory text.
For a fund manager, GIFT IFSC competes head-on with Singapore, Dubai and Mauritius — on tax, on currency, and on access to India. Here is what actually moves the decision.
100% deduction on business income for any 20 consecutive years in a 25-year block under Section 147 of the Income-tax Act 2025 (Finance Act 2026), then a 15% concessional rate. MAT capped at 9%.
An IFSC unit is treated as a person resident outside India under FEMA — you raise, hold and deploy in USD / EUR / GBP, with no rupee-conversion drag and full foreign-currency freedom.
NRIs and foreign investors can own up to 100% of GIFT IFSC fund units — without the aggregate caps that constrain onshore vehicles.
Section 47(viiad) treats relocation of an existing offshore fund into a GIFT IFSC resultant fund as a non-transfer for capital-gains — the sunset is extended to 31 March 2030.
IFSC-exchange trades are free of Securities and Commodity Transaction Tax and stamp duty; services rendered by IFSC units are zero-rated for GST.
A single unified regulator (IFSCA) under the IFSCA Act 2019, an independent judiciary, and a treaty-anchored legal order — certainty, not just headline rates.
The opportunity is real, but every benefit carries a condition — and that is where counsel at the threshold earns its place. See how the framework works ↓
Anyone wishing to carry on fund management in the IFSC must register with IFSCA as a Fund Management Entity under the IFSCA (Fund Management) Regulations, 2025, which replaced the 2022 regulations. Registration is in one of three categories, depending on the investors served. The FME is the manager — it structures funds, raises capital and runs portfolios — and may be a company, an LLP, or a branch of a foreign entity.
Fund management is the most active part of our GIFT City practice. We advise on choosing the FME category, the entity-versus-branch structure, net-worth and KMP requirements, scheme documentation, the discretionary PMS route, and the cash-flow benefit of the TDS exemption on FME fees.
An indicative model of the minimum net worth and the annual cost of running a lean FME at GIFT IFSC. Indicative only — not a quote.
Bands used: office rent ₹32–45L (Grade-A carpet); 2 senior KMPs ₹60L–1.5Cr; support staff ₹30–60L; IFSCA annual fee ~USD 3,000; auditor ₹5–25L; AML / KYC software USD 10–50k; custodian 3–10 bps where AUM exceeds USD 70M. Figures are indicative and move with scope; confirm with counsel.
Two authorities, in parallel: IFSCA through the SWIT portal, and the Development Commissioner, GIFT SEZ through SEZ Online. Select a stage.
Map your FME category, scheme/fund type, investor profile and counterparty origin to the applicable IFSCA framework, capital tier, scheme corpus floor, tax positioning and sanctions calibration. Indicative only.
IFSCA (Fund Management) Regulations 2025; CBDT Notifications under Section 10(4D); Sections 80LA and 115JB(7) of the Income-tax Act 1961. Indicative only — not legal advice.
The Firm's most extensively-developed practice area. Five linked monographs, four practitioner handbooks and one research volume, covering the FME architecture end-to-end.