<p>Finance Minister <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/tags/nirmala-sitharaman">Nirmala Sitharaman</a> will present the <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/union-budget-2026">Union Budget</a> on February 1, the date landing on a Sunday for the first time in history.<br><br>In light of the upcoming Budget, let us take a look at a much used financial term - cess.</p>.<p><strong>What is cess?</strong></p><p>Unlike the regular taxes, cess is charged when the State or the federal government needs funds for a specific reason. Cess is a type of tax which is charged in addition to a taxpayer's base tax liability.</p><p>The government generally removes this tax when the purpose of imposing cess is served. Hence, cess is not a long-term source of income for the government.</p>.Union Budget 2026 | FAQs: What are tax and non-tax revenues?.<p>Cess differs from the regular taxes like income tax, GST and excise duty in many ways. Below are some of the basic differences.</p>.<p>1. Unlike other taxes, cess may not be paid to the Consolidated Fund of India (CFI), and it has to be used for the specific purpose it was collected for.</p><p>2. If the amount is not spent in a given year, the cess funds will be carried over to the next year, and even then, it cannot be used for any other purpose except for the one it was collected for.</p><p>3. Another difference between cess and other taxes is that the central government has no obligation to share the cess fund with the states.</p>
<p>Finance Minister <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/tags/nirmala-sitharaman">Nirmala Sitharaman</a> will present the <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/union-budget-2026">Union Budget</a> on February 1, the date landing on a Sunday for the first time in history.<br><br>In light of the upcoming Budget, let us take a look at a much used financial term - cess.</p>.<p><strong>What is cess?</strong></p><p>Unlike the regular taxes, cess is charged when the State or the federal government needs funds for a specific reason. Cess is a type of tax which is charged in addition to a taxpayer's base tax liability.</p><p>The government generally removes this tax when the purpose of imposing cess is served. Hence, cess is not a long-term source of income for the government.</p>.Union Budget 2026 | FAQs: What are tax and non-tax revenues?.<p>Cess differs from the regular taxes like income tax, GST and excise duty in many ways. Below are some of the basic differences.</p>.<p>1. Unlike other taxes, cess may not be paid to the Consolidated Fund of India (CFI), and it has to be used for the specific purpose it was collected for.</p><p>2. If the amount is not spent in a given year, the cess funds will be carried over to the next year, and even then, it cannot be used for any other purpose except for the one it was collected for.</p><p>3. Another difference between cess and other taxes is that the central government has no obligation to share the cess fund with the states.</p>
