Electronic trading platforms in International Financial Services Centres are addressed through the International Financial Services Centres Authority (Electronic Trading Platforms) Regulations, 2026. The regulations are made under powers conferred by the International Financial Services Centres Authority Act, 2019, and the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934, and come into force on and from publication in the Official Gazette.

Every IIO must maintain a Board-approved investment policy, value assets and liabilities, preserve solvency, and hold investment assets at least equal to liabilities while matching their nature, duration, currency and uncertainty. Investment assets must generally satisfy investment-grade asset and sovereign-rating criteria, comply with asset-class and concentration limits, remain free from encumbrances, and be subject to independent due diligence, risk monitoring, internal controls, audits and prescribed reporting. Exceeding exposure limits or a downgrade below investment grade requires additional capital as specified.

GST registration may be immediately suspended where return comparisons or other prescribed analysis reveal significant anomalies indicating contravention and a threat to revenue. The registrant receives electronic intimation and a cancellation notice and must respond through FORM GST REG-18 within thirty days, including pending returns where applicable. The proper officer may, after considering the reply or its absence, drop proceedings through FORM GST REG-20 or cancel registration through FORM GST REG-19. Suspension may be revoked while detailed verification and recovery of short-paid tax continue.

Rule 36(4) restricts input tax credit on supplier-uploadable invoices and debit notes that remain unuploaded. Such unmatched credit may not exceed 20 per cent of eligible ITC on uploaded invoices or debit notes, calculated on a consolidated basis as reflected in GSTR-2A on the supplier's GSTR-1 due date. The taxpayer must self-assess compliance and may claim deferred balance ITC in later months when suppliers upload the relevant details, subject to the continuing cap and ordinary eligibility conditions.

Registered International Financial Service Centre Insurance Offices must follow prescribed accounting and presentation requirements. Unincorporated offices use the accounting standards and accounting year of their parent entity; incorporated offices use ICAI standards subject to direct-method cash-flow reporting, mandatory segment reporting and non-application of the investment accounting standard. Financial statements require comparative information, disclosure of applicable standards, accounting policies and their changes, and USD reporting unless otherwise specified. Incorporated offices must submit annual reports containing governance, risk, audited financial, external audit and actuarial materials, while all offices must separately account for policyholders' and shareholders' funds.

Specified insurance regulations and product-filing guidelines cease to apply in the International Financial Services Centre, including requirements concerning insurance distribution databases, e-insurance policies, health insurance, linked and non-linked products, and product filing. A related operational guideline clause is omitted. Insurance contracts entered into before commencement remain valid unless otherwise provided. Existing insurance offices must comply with additional requirements within one month of commencement or within an extended period specified by the Authority.

The Authority may issue guidance notes or circulars to clarify difficulties in applying or interpreting the regulations. On an application accompanied by the specified non-refundable processing fee, it may relax strict enforcement of any provision for reasons recorded in writing.

The Authority may specify norms, procedures, processes and compliance manners for IIOs to implement, facilitate and regulate insurance products and matters incidental to them. This enables operational requirements governing IIO compliance with prescribed arrangements for insurance products and related incidental matters within the applicable regulatory framework for their effective administration.

An IIO must furnish the Authority with information concerning its products in the manner, at the intervals, and in the format specified by the Authority. The requirement creates a continuing product-information reporting obligation, with reporting modalities, frequency, and submission format determined through the Authority's specifications.

Referral arrangements require an IIO to comply with the regulatory framework specified by the Authority for arrangements between the IIO and a referral entity. The framework governs the regulatory conditions applicable to such referral relationships.

Inspection or copies of returns related to an IIO require an application to the Authority, which may charge up to USD 5 and must arrange inspection or provide the copy within thirty working days after fee receipt. Policyholders may apply to an IIO for its Memorandum and Articles of Association or similar documents, subject to a fee up to USD 5 per document and the same supply period. Fees must be paid electronically, excluding bank and transaction charges.

Life insurance IIOs may charge a fee not exceeding USD 5 for registration, cancellation, or change of a policyholder's nomination, including for e-insurance policies. No other fee may be collected for nomination-related services. A nomination made through the proposal form at policy inception and recorded in the policy schedule constitutes valid acknowledgement by the IIO.

Fees for acknowledging notice of transfer or assignment of insurance policies, including e-insurance policies, are capped at USD 5 for an IIO. No additional fee may be charged for other services connected with transfer or assignment, including recording the transfer or assignment. The restriction distinguishes the permitted acknowledgement charge from policy-servicing actions for which separate charges are prohibited.

An IIO must maintain proposal forms in physical or electronic form, capture an electronic Insurance Account number where available, and convert physical prospect information into electronic form. Where electronic issuance is proposed through the Insurance Repository System, creation of an electronic Insurance Account must be facilitated. Electronic policies are mandatory when prescribed sum-assured or premium thresholds are crossed. Policies may be delivered directly or through registered repositories, with physical copies supplied on request.

Regulation 15 requires every insurance policy to specify the grievance management procedures of an IIO, with those procedures conforming to principles specified by the Authority. The applicable grievance-management framework must be included in policy terms and remain consistent with the Authority's prescribed standards.

Policyholders may surrender or cancel life or general insurance policies at any time by giving the prior notice required under the policy, with processing governed by applicable policy terms. Life and health insurance policies must provide a free-look cancellation option, exercise timelines, and premium-refund provisions. General insurance policies must specify cancellation grounds and timelines. Mid-term cancellation by the IIO is confined to fraud, misrepresentation, or moral hazards.

Product withdrawal by an IIO requires notice to the Authority at least three months before the scheduled withdrawal date. An IIO conducting general insurance business must also give existing policyholders at least three months' notice before policy expiry. Policies already in force remain valid until their respective expiry dates.

Marketing of an insurance product is prohibited unless a Unique Identification Number (UIN) has been allotted. A modified or revised existing product must receive a separate UIN that clearly identifies it as a revised version of an earlier product. Each IIO must devise and submit its methodology or algorithm for issuing UINs, and that methodology or algorithm cannot subsequently be changed.

Product approval controls require an IIO, upon receipt of a direction from the Authority under regulation 10, to forthwith cease marketing and distributing the affected product. This cessation obligation applies to distribution in the same name and under any other name. It prevents the IIO from continuing to market or distribute the product by changing its designation following the Authority's direction.

Regulation 10 authorises intervention where an insurance product does not meet regulatory requirements or is not in the interests of prospects or policyholders. The Authority may suspend the product, require its modification, or direct its withdrawal to maintain product conformity and protect policyholder interests.