RRBP RRBP AdvisorsGIFT IFSC · India · Overseas
Regulatory flash
15 Oct 2026IFSCAInternational Financial Services Centres Authority (Good Delivery) Guidelines, 202612 Oct 2026IFSCAPress Release on Formation of Technical Working Group on CICs in IFSC06 Oct 2026IFSCAIFSCA successfully organised Conference on Consumer Awareness and Protection in the Digital Era during IOSCO World Investor Week 202605 Oct 2026IFSCAMessage from Shri K. Rajaraman, Chairperson, IFSCA, on the occasion of the 10th edition of IOSCO World Investor Week 202630 Sep 2026IFSCAComments received in response to the Consultation Paper on Mapping of Services Accounting Codes (SAC) and Introduction of Foreign Currency Expense Reporting for IFSC Units under SERF and MPR12 Oct 2026RBIRisk Management and Inter-Bank Dealings10 Oct 2026RBIRisk Management and Inter-Bank Dealings10 Oct 2026RBIRisk Management and Inter-Bank Dealings - Foreign Exchange Risk Reserve15 Oct 2026SEBIReview of certain aspects of the Closing Auction Session, market timings and settlement methodology for derivatives contracts07 Oct 2026SEBIReview of provisions related to International Securities Identification Number (ISIN) for debt securities issued on private placement basis07 Oct 2026SEBIExemption from the requirement of mandatory merchant banker appointment for debt issued through private placement by certain listed issuers21 Sep 2026CBDTNotification No. 3 of 2026 – registration of reporting entity and Form No. 9809 Sep 2026IBBIDue diligence by Insolvency Professionals regarding misuse of the IBC framework01 Sep 2026CBDTNotification No. 114/2026 – Foreign Assets of Small Taxpayers Disclosure Scheme, 2026LiveSEZ IndiaLatest SEZ instructions, rules and notificationsLiveMCALatest circulars and notifications under the Companies Act and LLP ActLiveGSTLatest GST notifications, circulars and portal advisoriesLiveCBICLatest customs and indirect tax circulars and notificationsLiveICEGATELatest customs EDI advisories and system noticesLiveDGFTLatest DGFT notifications, public notices and trade noticesLiveIRDAILatest IRDAI circulars, regulations and master circularsLivePFRDALatest PFRDA circulars and regulationsLiveFIU-INDLatest FIU-IND advisories and FINnet reporting guidanceLiveNCLTLatest NCLT notices, cause lists and practice directionsLiveIndia INXLatest member circulars from India International ExchangeLiveNSE IFSCLatest member circulars from NSE International ExchangeLiveIIBXLatest bullion exchange circulars and member noticesLiveICAILatest ICAI announcements and pronouncementsLiveICSILatest ICSI announcements and secretarial standardsLiveInvest IndiaLatest policy and investment facilitation updatesLiveGovt. of GujaratLatest state industrial and IT / ITeS policy updates15 Oct 2026IFSCAInternational Financial Services Centres Authority (Good Delivery) Guidelines, 202612 Oct 2026IFSCAPress Release on Formation of Technical Working Group on CICs in IFSC06 Oct 2026IFSCAIFSCA successfully organised Conference on Consumer Awareness and Protection in the Digital Era during IOSCO World Investor Week 202605 Oct 2026IFSCAMessage from Shri K. Rajaraman, Chairperson, IFSCA, on the occasion of the 10th edition of IOSCO World Investor Week 202630 Sep 2026IFSCAComments received in response to the Consultation Paper on Mapping of Services Accounting Codes (SAC) and Introduction of Foreign Currency Expense Reporting for IFSC Units under SERF and MPR12 Oct 2026RBIRisk Management and Inter-Bank Dealings10 Oct 2026RBIRisk Management and Inter-Bank Dealings10 Oct 2026RBIRisk Management and Inter-Bank Dealings - Foreign Exchange Risk Reserve15 Oct 2026SEBIReview of certain aspects of the Closing Auction Session, market timings and settlement methodology for derivatives contracts07 Oct 2026SEBIReview of provisions related to International Securities Identification Number (ISIN) for debt securities issued on private placement basis07 Oct 2026SEBIExemption from the requirement of mandatory merchant banker appointment for debt issued through private placement by certain listed issuers21 Sep 2026CBDTNotification No. 3 of 2026 – registration of reporting entity and Form No. 9809 Sep 2026IBBIDue diligence by Insolvency Professionals regarding misuse of the IBC framework01 Sep 2026CBDTNotification No. 114/2026 – Foreign Assets of Small Taxpayers Disclosure Scheme, 2026LiveSEZ IndiaLatest SEZ instructions, rules and notificationsLiveMCALatest circulars and notifications under the Companies Act and LLP ActLiveGSTLatest GST notifications, circulars and portal advisoriesLiveCBICLatest customs and indirect tax circulars and notificationsLiveICEGATELatest customs EDI advisories and system noticesLiveDGFTLatest DGFT notifications, public notices and trade noticesLiveIRDAILatest IRDAI circulars, regulations and master circularsLivePFRDALatest PFRDA circulars and regulationsLiveFIU-INDLatest FIU-IND advisories and FINnet reporting guidanceLiveNCLTLatest NCLT notices, cause lists and practice directionsLiveIndia INXLatest member circulars from India International ExchangeLiveNSE IFSCLatest member circulars from NSE International ExchangeLiveIIBXLatest bullion exchange circulars and member noticesLiveICAILatest ICAI announcements and pronouncementsLiveICSILatest ICSI announcements and secretarial standardsLiveInvest IndiaLatest policy and investment facilitation updatesLiveGovt. of GujaratLatest state industrial and IT / ITeS policy updates
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Home / Jurisdictions / Why GIFT City

The opportunity

Why GIFT City IFSC

India’s first International Financial Services Centre — an offshore financial jurisdiction inside India, governed by a single unified regulator.

GIFT SEZ & the IFSC

Two regimes on one unit, under one regulator.

What GIFT SEZ is

GIFT City — Gujarat International Finance Tec-City, at Gandhinagar — is a planned financial district. Part of it is notified as a Special Economic Zone under the SEZ Act, 2005. A business operating there is an SEZ unit: it holds a Letter of Approval from the Development Commissioner that fixes what it is permitted to do, what fiscal benefits it gets, and which periodic returns it files for the life of the unit.

What the IFSC is

Within that SEZ sits India’s first International Financial Services Centre. The IFSC is a financial jurisdiction: units there deal in freely convertible foreign currency, serve non-residents and other IFSC units, and sit outside India’s domestic exchange-control perimeter. Geographically it is in India. For exchange control and for most regulatory purposes, it is not.

What makes it different

  • One regulator, not four. Banking, capital markets, insurance and pensions are supervised by a single authority for IFSC units.
  • Foreign currency by default. Capital, operations and settlement in USD and other major currencies, without the domestic exchange-control overlay.
  • A competitive tax position. A 100% deduction on business income for 20 consecutive years out of 25 under s.147 of the Income-tax Act, 2025, then s.218 at 15%.
  • Market infrastructure on site. India INX, NSE IFSC and the India International Bullion Exchange, with global brokers, custodians and clearing members present.
  • A wide activity set. Banking, funds, capital market intermediaries, insurance and reinsurance, aircraft and ship leasing, fintech, bullion, GCCs and ancillary services — all under the same authority.
The regulator

IFSCA — its role and its powers

The International Financial Services Centres Authority was established under the International Financial Services Centres Authority Act, 2019 and became operational in October 2020, with its headquarters at GIFT City, Gandhinagar. It regulates and develops financial products, financial services and financial institutions in India’s IFSCs.

OUTSIDE THE IFSC — FOUR REGULATORSRBIBankingSEBICapital marketsIRDAIInsurancePFRDAPensionsIFSCAOne authority · licensing, supervision and approvalsInternational Financial Services Centres Authority Act, 2019single windowYour IFSC unitBank · FME · broker-dealer · insurer · lessor · fintechINSIDE THE IFSC — ONE REGULATOR
For a unit inside the IFSC, IFSCA exercises the powers the four domestic regulators hold elsewhere in India — so one authority licenses, supervises and approves, instead of four.
Licensing

It authorises

Registration and authorisation across every permitted activity — banking units, fund management entities, capital market intermediaries, insurers and reinsurers, lessors, bullion participants, fintech and ancillary service providers.

Rule-making

It legislates for the IFSC

Regulations, circulars, directions, master circulars, FAQs and consultation papers — the operating rulebook for IFSC units, which is why tracking IFSCA issuances is a continuing obligation rather than an annual exercise.

Supervision

It supervises and enforces

Inspection, periodic reporting, compliance audits, AML/CFT oversight and enforcement — alongside a development mandate to grow the centre, which is unusual for a financial regulator.

Two regimes

The SEZ layer and the IFSC layer

This is the point most set-up plans get wrong: the Letter of Approval and the IFSCA registration are separate instruments, obtained from separate authorities, with separate return calendars that both run for the life of the unit.

SPECIAL ECONOMIC ZONE PERIMETER — SEZ ACT, 2005SEZ Letter of ApprovalDevelopment CommissionerGoverns permitted activityFiscal benefits and bondingMPR, SERF, CCR, APR, SOFTEXIFSCA registrationThe financial services licenceCapital and net worth conditionsAudits, certifications, AML/CFTPeriodic IFSCA filingsOne unit, two regimesBoth calendars run at the same time
Every GIFT IFSC unit sits inside a Special Economic Zone. The Letter of Approval and the IFSCA registration are separate instruments with separate return calendars — a unit has to keep both current.
The perimeter

Inside India, outside the exchange-control perimeter

INDIA — GEOGRAPHIC TERRITORYDomestic tariff areaIndian rupeeFEMA exchange control appliesRBI, SEBI, IRDAI, PFRDAIncome-tax Act, 2025 in fullGIFT IFSCUSD and other convertible currencyOutside the exchange-control perimeterIFSCA alones.147 deduction, then s.218 at 15%treated as non-resident for exchange controla transaction across this line is a cross-border transaction
The IFSC is inside India geographically but outside its exchange-control perimeter. A transaction between a domestic entity and an IFSC unit crosses that line and is treated as a cross-border transaction.

One unified regulator

IFSCA consolidates the powers of RBI, SEBI, IRDAI and PFRDA for IFSC units — a single window for licensing, supervision and approvals.

Competitive tax framework

A 100% deduction on business income for 20 consecutive years out of 25 under s.147 of the Income-tax Act, 2025, then a 15% rate under s.218.

Freely convertible currency

Operations, capital and settlement in USD and other major foreign currencies, outside the domestic exchange-control perimeter.

Deep market infrastructure

India INX, NSE IFSC and the India International Bullion Exchange, with global brokers, custodians and clearing members on the ground.

Broad permissible activity set

Banking, funds and FME, capital market intermediaries, insurance and reinsurance, aircraft and ship leasing, fintech, bullion, GCCs and ancillary services.

Inside the SEZ perimeter

Every IFSC unit is also an SEZ unit. The Letter of Approval governs permitted activity, fiscal benefits and a return calendar that runs alongside the IFSCA one.

Getting there

What setting up actually involves

Set-up touches the SEZ Development Commissioner, IFSCA, the MCA, your banker and the exchanges — usually in that order, and usually with dependencies running between them.

01

Assess & structure

Business model validation, licence mapping, entity and tax structure, cost-benefit analysis.

02

Incorporate

Name reservation, DSC, charter documents, incorporation, PAN, TAN and IEC.

03

SEZ approval (LOA)

SEZ application, liaison, Letter of Approval and post-LOA compliances.

04

IFSCA registration

Application, query handling, liaison and the registration certificate.

05

Go-live

Banking and AD code, office space, exchange membership, entry into the compliance calendar.

Our end-to-end set-up service
Activity set

What a GIFT IFSC unit can do

Banking units (IBUs)Fund Management Entities AIFs and retail schemesBroker-dealers Investment advisersResearch analysts Registered distributorsDepository participants Insurance and reinsuranceAircraft leasing Ship leasingBullion market participants Payment service providersFinTech sandbox entities TechFin and ancillary servicesGlobal capability centres
A note on tokenisation. IFSCA issued a consultation paper on tokenisation of real-world assets in February 2025, but a final framework has not been notified. The live route today is the IFSCA FinTech Sandbox Framework of 16 March 2026. Read our position →
Get in touch

Let’s map your route — with RRBP

Whether you are setting up a new IFSC unit, restructuring an existing one, or need ongoing compliance support for a regulated entity in India or a group company overseas — we would be glad to talk.

Book a consultation cs@rrbp.in