Union Budget 2023-24 + FINANCE Bill, 2023

Conversion of Gold to Electronic Gold Receipt and vice versa

Pursuant to the announcement in the Union Budget 2021-22 about Gold Exchange, SEBI has been made the regulator of the entire ecosystem of the proposed gold exchange. Accordingly, SEBI has come out with a detailed regulatory framework for spot trading in gold on existing stock exchanges through the instrument of Electronic Gold Receipts (EGR).

2. In order to promote the concept of Electronic Gold, it is proposed to exclude the conversion of physical form of gold into EGR and vice versa by a SEBI registered Vault Manager from the purview of ‘transfer’ for the purposes of Capital gains

3. It is also proposed that the cost of acquisition of the EGR for the purpose of computing capital gains shall be deemed to be the cost of gold in the hands of the person in whose name Electronic Gold Receipt is issued, and the holding period for the purpose of capital gains, would include the period for which gold was held by the assessee prior to its conversion into EGR. Similarly, provision for conversion from gold to EGR is also proposed.

4. For the above changes following amendments are proposed to be made:

i. To insert a new clause in section 47 of the Act so as to provide that any transfer of a capital asset, being physical gold to the Electronic Gold Receipt issued by a Vault Manager or such Electronic Gold Receipt to physical gold shall not be considered as ‘transfer’.

ii. For the purposes of this newly inserted clause, the expressions ‘Electronic Gold Receipt’ and ‘Vault Manager’ shall have the meanings respectively assigned to them in clauses (h) and (l) of sub-regulation (1) of regulation 2 of Securities and Exchange Board of India (Vault Managers) Regulations, 2021.

iii. To insert a new sub-section (10) to section 49 of the Act to provide that where an Electronic Gold Receipt issued by a Vault Manager, became the property of the person as consideration of a transfer, as referred in the newly inserted clause in section 47, the cost of acquisition of the asset for the purpose of the said transfer, shall be deemed to be the cost of gold in the hands of the person in whose name Electronic Gold Receipt is issued. Similarly, where the gold released against an Electronic Gold Receipt, which became the property of the person as consideration for a transfer, as referred in the newly inserted clause in section 47, the cost of acquisition of the asset (being gold) for the purposes of the said transfer shall be deemed to be the cost of the Electronic Gold Receipt in the hands of such person.

iv. To insert a new clause (hi) to Explanation 1 of sub-section (42A) of section 2 of the Act to provide that the holding period for the purpose of capital gain shall include the period for which the Gold was held by the assessee prior to conversion into the Electronic Gold Receipt.

v. To insert a new clause (hi) in Explanation 1 of sub-section (42A) of section 2 of the Act to provide that the holding period for the purpose of capital gain shall include the period for which the Gold was held by the assessee prior to conversion into the Electronic Gold Receipt and similarly the holding period for the purpose of capital gain shall include the period for which the Electronic Gold Receipt was held by the assessee prior to conversion into the Gold.

5. These amendments will take effect from the 1st day of April, 2024 and shall accordingly, apply in relation to the assessment year 2024-25 and subsequent assessment years.

[Clauses 3, 21, 23]

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Union Budget 2023-24 + FINANCE Bill, 2023