Navigating Gratuity Trust Approval for a Foreign Liaison Office: Who Can Help?

Ours is a liaison office of a foreign company incorporated in 1995 with a staff strength of 22. We have tried to establish an employees' group gratuity trust with LIC/Kotak insurance. Insurance companies insist that we get approval from the Income Tax Department. We approached the insurance company, and they replied that since we are a liaison office of a foreign company that has not filed any annual returns with them, how can they provide approval?

RBI and MCA insist that liaison offices need to comply with PF, Shop and Establishment Act, Gratuity, and TDS requirements. Please advise whom we are supposed to approach for gratuity trust approval.

Regards,
Veera

Dear Veera, nobody has replied to your post. We are also a Liaison Office in New Delhi under approval from RBI and have to create a Leave Policy. Can you advise under which act/rule we will have to make the same?

Thanks,
Sunil Malik