On 13 March 2023, the Bar Council of India notified the “Bar Council of India Rules for Registration and Regulation of Foreign Lawyers and Foreign Law Firms in India, 2022”. Foreign lawyers and firms can now practice foreign law, diverse international legal issues, and international arbitration matters in India, subject to a reciprocity condition. However, the foreign lawyers or foreign law firms shall not be permitted to appear before any courts, tribunals or other statutory or regulatory authorities.The Bar Council of India has further clarified in a press release of 19 March 2023 that foreign lawyers and law firms shall be allowed to advise their clients about foreign laws and international laws only. Therefore, domestic law counselling and court representation remain closed for foreign investment.
Prior to 2023, foreign law firms were not permitted to establish business in India. This issue was considered by the Bombay High Court in a judgment delivered in 2009 reviewing the judgment delivered on the so-called Lawyers Collective Case (W.P. 1526/1995) at the direction of the Supreme Court. In 2009, the Court ruled that the correct interpretation of the Advocates Act 1961 was that the 'profession of law' must be interpreted to include non-litigious as well as litigious areas of work and consequently both would be reserved to Indian Advocates. The Court therefore upheld the original 1995 judgement that the licences granted to three foreign law firms in 1991 by the Reserve Bank of India to establish representative offices were unlawful. This was later affirmed by the Supreme Court of India in Bar Council Of India vs A.K. Balaji case in 2018. A priori, the Advocates Act 1961 also provides for foreign lawyers to practice in India under reciprocity condition [similarly to chartered accountants]. However, this is not extended to their right to establish law practices in India as indicated per the above rulings. Rather, foreign lawyers have been able to practice in India on a temporary, "fly in - fly out" basis, as confirmed by the High Court of Madras judgement of 21 February 2012 (case no. W.P. 5614/2010). The "fly in - fly out" regime has been subsequently codified by the Bar Council of India Rules for Registration and Regulation of Foreign Lawyers and Foreign Law Firms in India, 2022.

Foreign law firms are not permitted to establish business in India. This issue was considered by the Bombay High Court in a judgment delivered in 2009 reviewing the judgment delivered on the so-called Lawyers Collective Case (W.P. 1526/1995) at the direction of the Supreme Court. In 2009, the Court ruled that the correct interpretation of the Advocates Act 1961 was that the 'profession of law' must be interpreted to include non-litigious as well as litigious areas of work and consequently both would be reserved to Indian Advocates. The Court therefore upheld the original 1995 judgement that the licences granted to three foreign law firms in 1991 by the Reserve Bank of India to establish representative offices were unlawful. This was later affirmed by the Supreme Court of India in Bar Council Of India vs A.K. Balaji case in 2018. A priori, the Advocates Act 1961 also provides for foreign lawyers to practice in India under reciprocity condition [similarly to chartered accountants]. However, this might be limited to the right to practice of the profession under specific circumstances, and not extended to their right to establish law practices in India as indicated per the above rulings.
"2. Definitions. :- [...]
(iii) ‘Foreign lawyer’ means a person, including a law firm, limited liability partnership, company or a corporation, by whatever name called or described, who/which is entitled to practice law in a foreign country. [...]
(iv) ‘Foreign Country’ means a country, which is recognized as such by the Government of India and it includes a constituent State thereof in case such as a foreign country has a federal structure of governance and such constituent State has its own justice-delivery system and a separate class of persons entitled to practice law.
(v) ‘Country of the primary qualification’ means a foreign country in which the foreign lawyer is entitled to practice law as per law of that country.
(vi) ‘Foreign law’ means a law, which is or was effective, in the country of primary qualification.
[...]
3. Registration of foreign lawyers or foreign law firms and eligibility criteria there for.:–
(1) A foreign lawyer or foreign law firm shall not be entitled to practice law in India unless he/it is registered with the Bar Council of India under these Rules: Provided that this prohibition will not apply to law practice by a foreign lawyer or foreign law firm in case such practice is done on a ‘fly in and fly out basis’ for the purpose of giving legal advice to the client in India regarding foreign law and on diverse international legal issues and provided further that such expertise/advise of such a foreign lawyer or foreign law firm had been procured by the client in a foreign country and foreign lawyer or foreign law firm does not maintain an office in India for the purpose of such practice and lastly such practice in India for one or more periods does not, in aggregate, exceed 60 days in any period of 12 months.
(2) ‘Right to practice law’ in the concerned ‘foreign country of the primary qualification’ shall be the primary qualification for practicing law in India under these rules.
[...]
8. Law practice by a foreign lawyer: nature and extent thereof:-
(1) A foreign lawyer registered under rules shall be entitled to practice law in India in non-litigious matters only subject to such exceptions, conditions and limitations as are laid down under these Rules and he/it shall be deemed to be an advocate within the meaning sections 29, 30 and 33 of the Act qua such acts and deeds as are envisaged to be performed by him under these Rules as a foreign lawyer. [...]
(2) The areas of practice of law by a foreign lawyer or Foreign Law Firm shall be laid down by Bar Council of India And if need be, the Bar Council of India may consult the Govt. of India, Ministry of Law and Justice in this regard. The foreign lawyers or foreign Law Firms shall not be permitted to appear before any courts, tribunals or other statutory or regulatory authorities. They shall be allowed to practice on transactional work /corporate work such as joint ventures, mergers and acquisitions, intellectual property matters, drafting of contracts and other related matters on reciprocal basis. They shall not be involved or permitted to do any work pertaining to conveyancing of property, Title investigation or other similar works. [...]" (Bar Council of India Rules for Registration and Regulation of Foreign Lawyers and Foreign Law Firms in India, 2022, Notification 10 March 2023, Sections 2, 3 and 8 [unofficial translation])
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"CHAPTER III - ADMISSION AND ENROLMENT OF ADVOCATES […]
24. Persons who may be admitted as advocates on a State roll.―(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, and the rules made thereunder, a person shall be qualified to be admitted as an advocate on a State roll, if he fulfils the following conditions, namely:― 
(a) he is a citizen of India:  
Provided that subject to the other provisions contained in this Act, a national of any other country may be admitted as an advocate on a State roll, if citizens of India, duly qualified, are permitted to practise law in that other country; 
[...]
CHAPTER IV - RIGHT TO PRACTISE
29. Advocates to be the only recognised class of persons entitled to practise law.―Subject to the provisions of this Act and any rules made thereunder, there shall, as from the appointed day, be only one class of persons entitled to practise the profession of law, namely, advocates. 
[...]
33. Advocates alone entitled to practise.―Except as otherwise provided in this Act or in any other law for the time being in force, no person shall, on or after the appointed day, be entitled to practise in any court or before any authority or person unless he is enrolled as an advocate under this Act
[...]
CHAPTER VI - MISCELLANEOUS [...]
47. Reciprocity.―(1) Where any country, specified by the Central Government in this behalf by notification in the Official Gazette, prevents citizens of India from practising the profession of law or subjects them to unfair discrimination in that country, no subject of any such country shall be entitled to practise the profession of law in India. 
(2) Subject to the provisions of sub-section (1), the Bar Council of India may prescribe the conditions, if any, subject to which foreign qualifications in law obtained by persons other than citizens of India shall be recognised for the purpose of admission as an advocate under this Act. [...]" (The Advocates Act 1961, as amended, Sections 24, 29, 33, 47)
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"CHAPTER - III (Conditions for right to practice) (Rules under Section 49 (1) (ah) of the Act) [...]
2. An advocate shall not enter into a partnership or any other arrangement for sharing remuneration with any person or legal practitioner who is not an advocate. [which includes not locally licensed lawyers].[...]" (Bar Council of India Rules 1975, as amended, Chapter III)
Bar Council of India Rules for Registration and Regulation of Foreign Lawyers and Foreign Law Firms in India, 2022, Notification 10 March 2023, Sections 2, 3 and 8
The Advocates Act 1961, as amended
Bar Council of India Rules 1975, as amended
[<a href="https://cdn.vahura.com/site/media/docs/Download-Files/The-Gazette-of-India-Foreign-Law-Firms-in-India-BCI-Rules-2023.pdf?v=1679057358">Rules</a>],[<a href="https://www.indiacode.nic.in/handle/123456789/1631?sam_handle=123456789/1362">Act</a>],[<a href="https://upload.indiacode.nic.in/showfile?actid=AC_CEN_3_46_00001_196125_1517807320172&type=rule&filename=BCI%20Rules,%20Part-V%20to%20IX.pdf">Rule</a>],[<a href="https://images.assettype.com/barandbench/2023-03/57a2a39d-a1a9-4d43-ae22-aa1a5fbf3e8d/Press_Release_Dated_19_03_2023.pdf">Other</a>]