The India-UAE BIT is a Bilateral Investment Treaty, a reciprocal international agreement between the two nations to promote and protect foreign private investments. The full title is the Bilateral Investment Treaty Between the Government of the Republic of India and the Government of the United Arab Emirates. The current BIT was signed on February 13, 2024, and came into force on August 31, 2024. It was created to replace the earlier Bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (BIPPA) signed in December 2013, which expired on September 12, 2024, ensuring continuity of investment protection.
The treaty works by establishing a stable legal framework, including a closed asset-based definition of Investment that notably covers Portfolio Investment, a significant deviation from India's 2016 Model BIT. Key provisions include National Treatment, which ensures investors receive treatment no less favourable than local investors. It also affirms the Right of the State to Regulate in pursuit of legitimate public policy objectives. For dispute resolution, the Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) mechanism requires investors to exhaust local remedies for three years before initiating international arbitration, a reduction from the five years mandated in the 2016 Model BIT. The treaty connects to the broader Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between India and the UAE. The 2024 BIT replaced the 2013 BIPPA and amended India's standard approach by including portfolio investments and shortening the ISDS local remedies period.