As part of the Economic Reforms Programme initiated in 1991, the foreign investment policy of the Government of India was liberalised and negotiations undertaken with a number of countries to enter into Bilateral Investment Promotion & Protection Agreement (BIPAs) in order to promote and protect on reciprocal basis investment of the investors. Government of India have, so far, signed BIPAs with 63 countries out of which 50 BIPAs have already come into force and the remaining agreements are in the process of being enforced. In addition, agreements have also been finalised and/ or being negotiated with a number of other countries.

The important features of BIPA are : National Treatment for foreign investment; MFN treatment for foreign investment and investors; free repatriation/ transfer of returns on investment; recourse to domestic disputes resolution and international arbitration for investor-State and State-State disputes; nationalization/expropriation only in public interest on a non-discriminatory basis and against compensation etc.