Industry body Nasscom on Sunday welcomed the Union Budget 2026, saying it firmly positions technology as a central driver of inclusive and sustainable economic growth under the government’s Viksit Bharat vision.
Reacting to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s ninth consecutive Budget, Nasscom described it as forward-looking and consultative, reinforcing the partnership between government and industry while strengthening India’s ambition to remain a global technology and services hub.
Tax Certainty, Ease Of Doing Business Boost For IT Sector
Nasscom said a key positive for the technology industry was the rationalisation of international taxation and transfer pricing rules, noting that tax policy has been effectively deployed as a competitiveness lever.
It highlighted the consolidation of software development services, IT-enabled services, knowledge process outsourcing and contract R&D into a single category of Information Technology services, along with a uniform safe harbour margin of 15.5 per cent. The move, coupled with the expansion of the safe harbour eligibility threshold from Rs 300 crore to Rs 2,000 crore, is expected to significantly widen access to certainty mechanisms for routine cross-border IT service models.
The industry body also welcomed steps to strengthen the Advance Pricing Agreement (APA) framework, particularly the proposal to fast-track unilateral APAs for IT services with a targeted two-year resolution timeline, addressing long-standing concerns over delays and uncertainty.
Cloud, Semiconductors And Digital Infrastructure In Focus
Nasscom said the Budget made a decisive intervention to strengthen India’s cloud and digital infrastructure ecosystem. It pointed to the proposed tax holiday till 2047 for foreign companies providing global cloud services using Indian data centres, calling it a strong signal to attract long-term global investment and expand India’s compute capacity.
The industry body also welcomed the emphasis on building domestic capability in strategic technologies, including the launch of India Semiconductor Mission 2.0 and the enhanced Rs 40,000 crore outlay for the Electronics Components Manufacturing Scheme.
Taken together, Nasscom said, the measures reflect a more mature policy approach that places technology, digital infrastructure and tax certainty at the core of India’s long-term competitiveness, setting a clear direction for sustainable growth driven by innovation and manufacturing depth.
Budget 2026 Puts Technology At Heart Of Inclusive Growth, Says Nasscom added by Sridhar P on
View all posts by Sridhar P →