Apr-Dec direct tax collections up 18.2%

Direct Tax collections from April to December went up 18.2%, or Rs 6.56 lakh crore, the Finance Ministry said on Tuesday, raising hopes of a part of tax revenue exceeding its target in fiscal 2017-18, if the compliance remains the same in the remaining three months.

"The net direct tax collections represent 67% of the total Budget estimates of direct taxes for FY2017-18 at Rs 9.8 lakh crore," the ministry said in a statement.

It said gross direct tax collections before adjusting for refunds have increased by 12.6% to Rs 7.68 lakh crore, during the April-December period. Refunds amounting to Rs 1.12 lakh crore have been issued during the first nine months, it said.

Direct taxes consist of individual income tax, corporation tax paid by companies and wealth tax.

The ministry said that Rs 3.18 lakh crore has been received as advance tax from April to December, 2017, reflecting a growth of 12.7% over the advance tax payments of the corresponding period of last year.

The growth in corporate income tax advance tax is 10.9%, and that in personal income tax advance tax is 21.6%.

Jaitley in his Budget for 2017-18 said that formalisation of the unorganised sector on account of the demonetisation drive and various tax reforms will further improve the tax-to-GDP ratio. His Budget estimates had pegged direct tax collection growth at 15.7%.

If the direct tax collection keeps pace, it may come as an aid to the Centre struggling to rein in its fiscal deficit in the wake of lower Goods and Services Tax collections and lower non-tax revenues.