The value ascribed to commodities or services supplied or sold between related parties is known as transfer pricing. To put it another way, transfer pricing refers to the price paid for goods or services that are transferred from one unit of an organisation to other units within the same organisation in different countries, or otherwise, with exceptions.
Transactions that will be subject to Transfer Pricing
Some of the international transactions that are governed by the laws or rules pertaining to transfer pricing would include the following:
- Purchase of raw material
- Purchase of fixed assets
- Sale or purchase of machinery, etc.
- Management fees
- Loan received or paid
- Sale of finished goods
- Sale or purchase of intangibles
- Reimbursement of expenses paid/received
- IT-enabled services
- Support services
- Software development services
- Technical Service fees
- Royalty fees
- Corporate Guarantee fees.
What is the Purpose of Transfer Pricing?
The major objectives of transfer pricing would include the following:
- Transfer prices would have an impact not only on the reported and furnished earnings of each centre or unit within the organisation, but also on how a company allocates its available resources among these units or centres. One thing to note here is that the cost incurred or expended by one centre or unit of the organisation accounts for the resources utilised by another unit or centre.
- Creating a separate profit for each division and evaluating each division’s performance on an individual basis provides clarity.
What is the Importance of Transfer Pricing?
Multinational corporations (MNCs) have established arrangements for determining how to allocate revenues and expenses to subsidiaries in various countries for management accounting and reporting.
A subsidiary of a firm may be separated into segments or accounted for as a separate entity at times. In these situations, transfer pricing facilitates the proper allocation of revenue and expenses to these subsidiaries.
The pricing at which inter-company transactions take place determines a subsidiary’s profitability. Governments are increasingly scrutinising inter-company transactions these days.
When transfer pricing is used, it can impact shareholders’ wealth, as it affects the company’s taxable income and after-tax free cash flow.
It is crucial for a firm conducting cross-border or international intercompany transactions to grasp the concept of transfer pricing, particularly to meet legal compliance requirements and avoid the risk of non-compliance.
Methodologies of Transfer Pricing
The transfer pricing methodologies that could be used to examine the arms-length price of controlled transactions are discussed in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) recommendations.
The price imposed, offered, or charged when unrelated parties engage in similar transactions in an uncontrolled situation is referred to as arm ‘s-length pricing. Three of the most widely utilised transfer pricing approaches are listed below.
For the sake of clarity, linked enterprises are businesses that participate directly or indirectly in the management, capital, or control of another business.
Comparable Uncontrolled Price (CUP) Method
The CUP methodology or transfer pricing technique recognises and evaluates a price charged in an uncontrolled transaction between comparable firms with a verified entity price to determine the Arm’s Length Price. Example:
X Ltd. buys 20,000 metric tonnes of metal from Y Ltd.’s subsidiary for INR 40,000 per metric tonne. It also bought 2,500 MT from Z Ltd. for INR 50,000 per MT.
Y Ltd. provided X Ltd. with a quantity discount of INR 500 per MT. Y Ltd. offers a one-month credit at 1.25% per month. The transaction with Y Ltd. is FOB (free on board), whereas the deal with Z Ltd. is CIF (cost-in-freight) (Cost, Insurance, and Freight). The freight and insurance costs are INR 2,000.
The terms of transactions differ here, and this has impacted the price of crude metal. As a result, changes are required. Differences in necessitate adjustments.
- Quantity discount: If Z Ltd. had offered a similar discount, the price charged by Z Ltd. would have been INR 500/MT lower.
- Freight & Insurance (FOB vs. CIF): If the purchase from C Ltd. were similarly FOB, then C Ltd. would have charged a lower price. As a result, the freight and insurance costs must be deducted from the purchase price.
- Credit period: If C Ltd. had extended equivalent credit, the price charged by them would have been higher, taking into account these additional costs. As a result, the purchase price must be increased by 1.25% per month.
Computation to be made on an Arm’s Length Price basis:
| Sl. No. | Particulars | Price Per MT (In INR) |
| 1 | Price per MT | 50,000 |
| 2 | Adjustments to be Made: | |
| 2.a | Less: Discount per Quantity | (500) |
| 2.b | Less: Freight and Insurance | (2,000) |
| 2.c | Add: Credit for Interest | 625 [50,000*1.25%] |
| 3 | Arm’s Length Price | 48,125 |
This method is the most dependable, consistent, and is regarded as a straightforward means of applying the arms-length principle and establishing prices for related-party transactions. However, extreme caution must be exercised when determining whether controlled and uncontrolled transactions are comparable. As a result, unless items or services meet the severe criterion of high comparability, this method is not used to determine transfer prices.
Resale Minus or Resale Price Method
The prices at which the associated business entities sell their goods to a third party are used in this manner. The resale price is the term used to describe this pricing method.
This resale price is then decreased by the gross margin, which is calculated by comparing gross margins in comparable unregulated transactions. Following that, all charges linked with the acquisition of such a commodity, such as customs duty, are subtracted. What’s left is an arm’s length pricing for a managed transaction between the related businesses.
For example, A Ltd. is dealing with the sales of electronics. For this purpose, it has purchased laptops and desktops from R Ltd. and NR Ltd. Here, R Ltd. is a related party, while NR Ltd. is a non-related party.
| Particulars | R Ltd. | NR Ltd. |
| Purchase Price for A Ltd. | 25,000 | 35,000 |
| Sales Price for A Ltd. | 30,000 | 41,000 |
| Miscellaneous Expenses incurred by A Ltd. | 500 | 750 |
| Margin (Gross) | 18% [[(25,000) -(30,000-500)]/25000] |
15% [[(35,000) -(41,000-750)]/35000] |
Computation of Arm’s Length Price
| Particulars | R Ltd. |
| Purchase Price for A Ltd. | 30,000 |
| Less: Expenses Incurred with regard to R Ltd. | (500) |
| Less: Resale Margin @ 15% | (4,500) [30,000*15%] |
| Arm’s Length Price | 25,000 |
| Price Paid to R Ltd. | 25,000 |
Cost Plus Method
The Cost-Plus Method focuses on the costs incurred by the supplier of goods or services in the controlled transaction. After you’ve determined the costs, you’ll need to factor in a markup. Based on the risks and functions performed, this markup must reflect the profit for the linked firm. As a result, the price is set at arm’s length.
In the cost-plus approach, the markup is typically determined after accounting for the direct and indirect costs of manufacturing or supply. However, an enterprise’s running expenses, which also include the overhead costs, are not included in this markup.
For example, X and Y are two associated entities. And X has asked Y to manufacture five laptops for X with a certain quality. Say the cost to be incurred by Y for manufacturing laptops would be INR 30,000, and the markup % which the company charges at Arm’s Length Price would be 40%.
So, the resulting price at which the transaction should occur between X and Y would be INR 42,000 [30,000*(1+0.40)].
Problems that are Associated with Transfer Pricing
There are certain problems which are associated with transfer prices, and these are listed below:
- There may be disagreements among organisational divisional managers over how the transfer price should be determined.
- Executing the transfer prices and building the accounting system to meet the criteria of transfer pricing standards would take more time, money, and labour.
- Managers of organisational units may engage in dysfunctional behaviour as a result of arm’s length pricing.
- Arm’s length prices don’t work as well for other divisions or departments, such as a service department, because such departments don’t provide measurable advantages.
- In a multinational setting, the issue of transfer pricing is quite complex.
- Until March 2013, transfer pricing provisions in the United States were limited to transactions involving overseas entities only. Transfer Pricing regulations have been extended to SDTs (Specified Domestic Transactions) since April 2013, and they are effective for the assessment year 2013-14. The Specified Domestic Transactions cover the following transactions:
Payments have been paid or will be made to a director, a relative of a director, or an entity in which a director or the firm has a voting stake of more than 20%.
- Transactions involving the transfer of goods or services under Section 80-IA (8) and (10), i.e., deductions which are related to gains and profits earned from enterprises engaged in industrial undertakings or the infrastructure development, or the producers and distributors of power or Telecommunication Service Providers.
- Section 80-IA (8) and (10) transactions relating to the transfer of goods or services (i.e., deductions which are related to profits and gains from enterprises engaged in infrastructure development or industrial undertakings, distributors and manufacturers or producers of power or Telecommunication Service Providers.
- SDT also applies to transactions involving an entity located in a tax-holiday area and one located in a non-tax-holiday area, if the same person manages both entities.
- For enterprises based in SEZs (special economic zones), EOUs (export-oriented units), or FTZs (free trade zones), that include the non-market price or the non-market transfer of products or goods and services to another unit under the same management.
It shall be noted that it is only if the total value of the transactions surpasses INR 5 crore in total that they will be classified as Specified Domestic Transactions or SDTs.
