Law firms draft special teams to help GCCs navigate India terrain

MUMBAI: As multinational companies expand their global capability centres (GCCs) in India, law firms are building specialist teams to help them navigate a widening range of regulatory and operational challenges, from corporate structuring and employment laws to data localisation, intellectual property and cross-border taxation.

Bharath Reddy, partner at law firm Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, said that beyond incorporation, obtaining the approvals required to start billing remains a challenge, with GCCs taking up to two months after incorporation to begin business operations.

"From GST and shops and establishments registrations to setting up payroll with linkages to labour and tax registrations, the process is highly time-consuming and requires a lot of work. The 'single window' dream is still not realised," said Reddy, who has assisted several multinationals in setting up businesses in India, including the GCCs of Chevron, Lloyds Bank and McDonald's.


The delays highlight the gap between India's ambition to attract global businesses and the paperwork companies face when translating that ambition into operational entities.

According to the NASSCOM-Zinnov report, India's GCC sector now comprises 2,117 active GCCs across 3,728 units, employs approximately 2.36 million professionals and is projected to generate $98.4 billion in market revenue in FY2026.

Komal Dani, partner at Trilegal, said key challenges include employee secondment, control and management, and reporting lines.

"Secondment arrangements require careful structuring to manage the risk of creating a taxable presence for the overseas entity in India, as well as withholding tax and GST implications," said Dani. "As GCCs take on higher-value functions, employee reporting lines, decision-making authority and the nature of services performed require closer scrutiny with respect to control and management. Reporting lines also need to be assessed to manage transfer pricing and permanent establishment risks," she added.