Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) on Friday said that total collection reached almost one-third of the budget estimate between April 1 and August 10. Direct taxes include corporate income tax (CIT) and personal income tax (PIT).
“Direct tax collection, net of refunds, stands at ₹5.84 lakh crore which is 17.33 per cent higher than the net collections for the corresponding period of last year. This collection is 32.03 per cent of the total budget estimates of direct taxes for FY24” a statement issued by CBDT said. The Union Budget 2023 pegged the direct tax collection at ₹18.2 lakh crore, which is about 9.75 per cent more than last year’s tally of ₹16.6 lakh crore
During the period, gross collections were at ₹6.53 lakh crore. It is 15.73 per cent higher than the gross collections for the corresponding period of last year.
Refunds amounting to ₹0.69 lakh crore have been issued from April 1 to August 10, which are 3.73 per cent higher than refunds issued during the same period in the preceding year.
Commenting on collection, Divakar Vijayasarathy, Founder & CEO of DVS Advisors said the current trend is the result of sustained efforts on enforcement. The government has been forefront in using technology and analytics based focussed assessments have yielded results. Additionally, the widening of the scope of TDS and TCS also prepones the point of collection instead of waiting for advance tax and self-assessment tax.
“Last year, personal income tax grew close to 24 per cent and corporate by 16 per cent. This year, with reports about targeted scrutiny of fake rent receipts and fake deduction claims, the increase in personal income tax might again be higher when compared to corporate income tax growth. It would be good if the data regarding non-self-assessment tax collections (i.e., from search, seizure, regular and other assessments) is released. The same would give clear idea of the impact of enforcement,” he said.