India’s Model BIT — a decade later, amid changes
India is reviewing its 2015 Model Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) to better align with current international investment standards and lessons learned over the past decade. Recent agreements with countries like the UAE and Israel suggest a shift toward greater flexibility in treaty negotiations.
Why it matters
Revising investment treaties is crucial for balancing investor protection with a state's regulatory autonomy in a changing global economy.
India’s effort to revise its Model Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) comes nearly a decade after the revised model was approved in 2015. The Union Budget 2025-26 had announced that the model would be revamped and made more investor-friendly. The review comes as both India’s treaty practice and the international investment regime are changing. The question, therefore, is not simply whether India should offer investors more or less protection. It is about what India has learnt from the past decade and how those lessons should shape its new model.
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