Budget 2019: 'Uniform corporate tax would be welcome'

Neetish Sarda, Founder, Smartworks

Amidst the growing demand for commercial real estate globally, co-working spaces have emerged as a new asset class in commercial realty enabling a greater fluidity of space in the market. For the corporate sector, while there has been capital inflow from investors, the ease on External Commercial Borrowings (ECB) would help foreign investors gain more confidence in the market which would result in a sustained and steady in-flow of capital from them.

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For co-working firms particularly like ours, we hope that the government will extend Input Tax Credit to the commercial segment, especially on work contracts and construction services which would help reduce our cash outflow. Likewise, keeping up a uniform corporate tax structure would be welcome. The government should also look at modifying or eliminating Angel Tax to enable more leasing of space to small and medium sized enterprises as well as improving infrastructure in Tier 2 cities which are emerging co-working hubs.

The author is the Founder of Smartworks