Net direct tax mopup jumps 20% to ₹18.9lakh cr in FY24 on rising income, compliance

Improved compliance, along with rising income levels, helped the government collect over ₹18.9lakh crore as net direct taxes from April 1 to March 17 of 202324 fiscal. With this, 97 per cent of the Revised Estimate of ₹19.45lakh crore has been achieved, and the expectation is that the collection will exceed the target.

Data released by the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) on Tuesday showed that net collection rose around 20 per cent over the ₹15.77lakhcrore mopped up during the corresponding period of FY23. Net collection includes Corporate Income Tax (CIT) at ₹9.14lakh crore and Personal Income Tax (PIT), including the Securities Transaction Tax (STT), at ₹9.72lakh crore.

If this trend continues, this fiscal will close with PIT exceeding the CIT.

Incometax data for the period from FY 2001 to FY 2023 showed that there have only been two instances (FY21 and FY23) when PIT collection exceeded CIT. The Budget document for FY25 has revised the PIT collection to over ₹10.22lakh crore as against ₹9.22lakh crore for FY24. It will be the second successive year of PIT topping the CIT and over the third time in the last 23 years.

ADVANCE TAX MOP-UP

Provisional figures of total advance tax collections for FY24 (as of March 17) stood at over ₹9.11lakh crore, which is over 22 per cent higher than the previous year figure of over ₹7.45lakh crore. The advance tax collection comprises CIT at over ₹6.73lakh crore and PIT at ₹2.39lakh crore.

Sumit Singhania, Partner, Deloitte India, said: “A nearly 20 per cent yearonyear growth in tax revenues underlines the continued momentum of tax policy reforms carried out round the year and not necessarily as a part of the annual budgetary exercise. What also stands out is the significant growth in advance tax collections that arguably can account for growing voluntary compliance across taxpayer categories.