{"url":"https://lrlabs.ai/t/mfn_rate_denied_nestle","engine":"deterministic","llm_in_path":false,"id":"mfn_rate_denied_nestle","question":"Can a Netherlands, France or Switzerland payee claim a lower royalty/FTS rate through the MFN clause?","answer":"Not without a notification. AO v. Nestlé SA (2023 INSC 928, 19 Oct 2023) held that an MFN protocol altering existing law takes effect only through a separate s.90(1) notification — now s.159(1) of the 2025 Act. Absent one, the treaty's own scheduled rate applies, not the MFN-imported lower rate; CBDT Circular 3/2022 had taken the same position, and Switzerland revoked MFN treatment for India w.e.f. 1 Jan 2025 in response. No corridor-specific MFN notification had been verified as issued as at 14 Aug 2026 — check before relying.","pinpoint":"s.159(1), Income-tax Act 2025; AO v. Nestlé SA, 2023 INSC 928","confidence":"settled","as_at":"14 Aug 2026","quote":"may, by notification, make such provisions as necessary for implementing the agreement","quote_string_verified":true,"quote_source":"rule:WHT.IN.MFN-DENIED"}