Review of the policy on Foreign Direct Investment in the Civil Aviation sector

Foreign airlines equity participation limited to minority stake under government approval route, subject to SEBI, security and control conditions.

The policy permits foreign airlines to invest in Indian companies operating scheduled and non scheduled air transport services up to a minority equity ceiling under the government approval route; the ceiling subsumes FDI and FII, requires compliance with SEBI's ICDR and SAST regulations, and imposes security clearances for foreign nationals and clearances for any imported technical equipment. A Scheduled Operator's Permit remains conditioned on Indian registration, principal place of business in India, specified Indian majority on the board, and substantial ownership and effective control vested in Indian nationals; the policy excludes the designated national carrier.