Validity of a tax withholding certificate under Section 197 was...

Validity of a tax withholding certificate under Section 197 was challenged; the court held that where factual and legal conditions remain unchanged from prior years in which nil-rate certificates were granted, the competent authority cannot substitute a 10% withholding rate. The court found prior tribunal and Supreme Court findings attributing a portion of revenue to the Indian PE and that such attribution was absorbed by distributor remuneration to be final, rejected the respondent's reliance on a subsequent demand as a basis for a higher rate, quashed the 10% certificate and directed issuance of a nil-rate certificate for AY 2026-27 within fifteen days.

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