India announced a major tax win for Apple on Sunday. The government will exempt foreign companies from taxes on owning machines used by their contract manufacturers in customs-bonded areas for five years. This applies until the 2030-31 tax year. Apple has been growing fast in India, with iPhone market share doubling to 8% since 2022. To avoid tax risks on its expensive manufacturing machines, Apple had urged India to change the income tax laws. Now, under the 2026-27 budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Apple can own machines without triggering tax on its sales profits in India. Revenue Secretary Arvind Shrivastava said, "We are saying that if you bring your machine, and that machine is used by a local manufacturer to produce something, we will ... exempt you for 5 years. We are giving them certainty." The law will only apply to factories in customs-bonded zones, considered outside India's customs border. Products sold domestically from these zones will face import taxes, so these factories mainly focus on exports. The government clarified, "Any income arising on account of providing capital goods, equipment or tooling to a contract manufacturer, being a company resident in India, is eligible for exemption." This change removes a major hurdle, encouraging Apple and others to invest more quickly in Indian electronics manufacturing. According to Shankey Agrawal, partner at BMR Legal, "This exemption removes a key deal-breaking risk for electronics manufacturing in India." Apple’s rival Samsung is less affected as it mostly manufactures phones in its own Indian factories. Apple did not immediately comment on the new rule.