The recent Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) Order in CAE Flight Training (India) Pvt. Ltd. (TS-440-ITAT-2019 (Bang)) clarifies how Compulsorily Convertible Debentures (CCDs) are to be treated under Income Tax Laws.

Before delving into the Order and what the ITAT said in making it, it is important to understand the legal context in which this question arose in the first place. To do this, we first need to understand the nature of a CCD. A debenture is a debt-based security that may or may not be secured against the assets of the company. Although debentures are undisputedly debt instruments, CCDs are debentures that are mandatorily converted into equity according to pre-determined terms at a pre-defined time. In the pre-conversion stage, the CCD holder is considered as a debtor by the company and is required to be paid interest on its investment. Post-conversion, the debt becomes equity capital in the company, which results in such investor earning dividends from its holdings.
Continue Reading ITAT Puts On It’s Thin(king)-Cap – Treatment of Interest Paid on Compulsorily Convertible Debentures Under the Income Tax Laws