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Commitments and contingencies
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2022
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]  
Commitments and contingencies Commitments and contingencies
Capital commitments
As of December 31, 2021 and 2022, the Company has committed to spend $13,317 and $17,972, respectively, under agreements to purchase property, plant and equipment. This amount is net of capital advances paid in respect of such purchases.
Bank guarantees
The Company has outstanding bank guarantees and letters of credit amounting to $7,865 and $8,050 as of December 31, 2021 and 2022, respectively. Bank guarantees are generally provided to government agencies and excise and customs authorities for the purposes of maintaining a bonded warehouse. These guarantees may be revoked by the government agencies if they suffer any losses or damages through the breach of any of the covenants contained in the agreements governing such guarantees.
Other commitments
Certain units of the Company’s Indian subsidiaries are established as Software Technology Parks of India units or Special Economic Zone (“SEZ”) units under the relevant regulations issued by the Government of India. These units are exempt from customs and other duties on imported and indigenous capital goods, stores and spares. SEZ units are also exempt from the Goods and Services Tax (“GST”) that was introduced in India in 2017. The Company has undertaken to pay taxes and duties, if any, in respect of capital goods, stores, spares and services consumed duty-free, in the event that certain terms and conditions are not fulfilled.
Contingency
(a) In February 2019, there was a judicial pronouncement in India with respect to defined contribution benefit payments interpreting certain statutory defined contribution obligations of employees and employers. It is not currently clear whether the interpretation set out in the pronouncement has retrospective application. If applied retrospectively, the interpretation would result in an increase in contributions payable by the Company for past periods for certain of its India-based employees. There are numerous interpretative challenges concerning the retrospective application of the judgment. Due to such challenges and a lack of interpretive guidance, and based on legal advice the Company has obtained on the matter, it is currently impracticable to reliably estimate the timing and amount of any payments the Company may be required to make. Accordingly, the Company plans to obtain further clarity and will evaluate the amount of a potential provision, if any.
26. Commitments and contingencies (Continued)
(b) The Indian taxing authorities (“ITA”) have initiated proceedings to examine the availability of a tax exemption claimed by the Company in respect of exports of services and related refunds under the Indian Goods and Services (“GST”) tax regime and the previous service tax regime. In the second quarter of 2020, the ITA began to challenge or reject the Company’s Indian GST and service tax refunds in certain Indian states. In total, refunds of $28,137 have been denied or challenged by the ITA. Additional refunds may be denied. The Company had requested these refunds pursuant to the tax exemption available for exports under the previous service tax regime as well as the current GST regime in respect of services performed by the Company in India for affiliates and clients outside of India. In denying the refunds, the ITA have taken the position that the services provided are local services, which interpretation, if correct, would make the service tax and GST exemption on exports unavailable to the Company in respect of such services. Additional potentially material challenges and assessments may result from ongoing proceedings related to service tax recovery. The Government of India has issued an administrative circular which supports the Company’s position. Further, in the fourth quarter of 2022, the Punjab and Haryana High Court ruled in favor of the Company in respect of this issue. The ITA may appeal the High Court's ruling before the Supreme Court of India. The Company continues to believe that the denial of the refunds claimed pursuant to the service tax and GST exemption is incorrect and that the risk that the liability will materialize is remote. Accordingly, no reserve has been provided as of December 31, 2022.
(c) The ITA have also issued assessment orders to certain subsidiaries of the Company seeking to assess income tax on certain transactions that occurred in 2013 and 2015. The Company has received demands for potential tax claims related to these orders in an aggregate amount of $208,747, including interest through the date of the orders. This amount excludes penalties or interest accrued since the date of the orders. The Company is pursuing appeals before the relevant appellate authorities in respect of these orders. The Income Tax Appellate Tribunal of India (the “Tribunal”) has accepted the legal arguments made by the Company and ruled in favor of the Company in relation to a demand of $99,185 and the corresponding assessment order has been cancelled. The ITA may appeal the Tribunal's ruling before a higher court. Similarly, in respect of the transaction undertaken in 2015, the ITA has attempted to revise a previously closed assessment. During 2022, the Tribunal ruled in favor of the Company quashing the ITA's revision of the assessment, and the ITA have recently appealed the Tribunal's order to the Delhi High Court. In the first quarter of 2023, the ITA issued the Company a revised assessment order contrary to the order of the Tribunal. The Company has appealed the ITA's revised assessment order, which the Company believes is without merit. The Company has been advised that the most recent order is not enforceable under applicable law and therefore the tax demand raised therein is invalid. Based on the foregoing, the Company believes that it is more likely than not that the Company’s position will ultimately prevail in respect of these transactions. Accordingly, no reserve has been provided as of December 31, 2022.
(d) In September 2020, the Indian Parliament approved new labor codes including the Code on Social Security, 2020 (the “Code”), which will impact the Company’s contributions to its defined benefit plans for employees based in India. The Code has not yet been made effective and the rules for different States are in the process of being framed. The Company will evaluate the impact of the Code on the Company in its financial statements for the period in which the Code becomes effective and the related rules are published.