A recently reported advance ruling has clarified the scope of the term 'technician', as contemplated by section 10(5B) of the Indian Income-tax Act, 1961. Section 10(5B) grants tax exemption to a foreign technician, in as much as the tax paid on his remuneration by his employer for a period not exceeding four years, (commencing from the date of his arrival in India) is exempt, subject to certain conditions. Technician has been defined to mean a person having specialized knowledge or experience in construction, manufacturing or mining operations or generation of electricity or any other form of power or agriculture and allied activities or such other fields as are notified by the central government. To quote few instances - in Monte Harris, a person with experience in software development was accepted as a technician; in Arthur E. Newell, the act of perforation of films according to international standards was held to involve expertise, which would qualify the employee to be characterized as a technician; in David Kenneth White, a specialist who had expertise in telecommunication networks was accepted as a specialist on information technology.
May 31 1999
