NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Carmakers and local authorities in India are embroiled in $6 billion worth of tax disputes spanning years of scrutiny by the income tax, customs and excise departments.
Here are some of the biggest of those disputes, based on a Reuters analysis of the companies’ latest financial disclosures.
MARUTI SUZUKI
Maruti Suzuki, majority-owned by Japan’s Suzuki Motor Corp, is disputing $2.4 billion in tax demands, of which about $2 billion is with the income tax department. Other major tax claims have been made by the excise and state authorities, with some dating back to the early 1990s.
SKODA AUTO VOLKSWAGEN INDIA
German automaker Volkswagen’s local unit, Skoda Auto Volkswagen India, is fighting disputes worth $1.2 billion mainly with the tax and excise authorities. This excludes India’s recent $1.4 billion import tax demand of the company.
MAHINDRA & MAHINDRA
Income tax and excise disputes make up the bulk of $694 million worth of demands faced by SUV-maker Mahindra & Mahindra.
HYUNDAI MOTOR INDIA
South Korea’s Hyundai Motor is disputing close to $490 million of demands, of which about $167 million is from customs tax authorities, making it among the highest customs tax demands from carmakers in the country.
HONDA MOTOR
Japan’s Honda Motor is battling tax disputes of $323 million, with income tax demands making up about 90% of the issue.
TOYOTA MOTOR
Japanese automaker Toyota Motor Corp is disputing $272 million of tax demands, mainly by the income tax and excise authorities.
(Reporting by Aditi Shah; Editing by Bernadette Baum)
