BT Online New Delhi Last Updated: September 11, 2017 | 20:55 IST
The Direct Tax collections from April to August in the ongoing financial year reached Rs 2.24 lakh crore, said a statement by the Ministry of Finance. This translates to a 17.5 per cent growth in comparison to the same period during the last fiscal.
The revenue collected within the first five months of the current financial year is equivalent to 22.9 per cent of the total budget estimates of direct taxes for 2017-18, the Ministry report said. This includes both personal income and corporate tax. The steady growth in direct tax collections is a result of increase in tax collections from individuals. The government has set a target of Rs 9.80 lakh crore from direct taxes during the course of this fiscal year.
According to the Ministry of Finance, the growth rate for personal income tax collections, including Securities Transaction Tax (STT) increased 16 per cent. On the other hand, direct tax collections from corporate entities grew by five per cent. After adjusting refunds, corporate tax collections grew by 18.1 per cent whereas the growth rate for personal income tax collections reached 16.5 per cent.
A total of Rs 74,089 crore was issued as tax refunds during the first five months of financial year 2017-18. This amounts to a decline of 7.2 per cent in refunds issued during the corresponding period last year.
