Indian Public finance: Indian tax system

<–2/”>a >India has a well developed Taxation structure. The tax system in India is mainly a three tier system which is based between the Central, State Governments and the Local Government organizations. In most cases, these local bodies include the local councils and the municipalities.

According to the Constitution of India, the government has the right to levy taxes on individuals and organizations. However, the constitution states that no one has the right to levy or charge taxes except the authority of law. Whatever tax is being charged has to be backed by the law passed by the legislature or the parliament. ARTICLE 246 (SEVENTH SCHEDULE) of the Indian Constitution, distributes legislative powers including taxation, between the Parliament and the State Legislature. Schedule VII enumerates these subject matters with the use of three lists;

• List – I entailing the areas on which only the parliament is competent to makes laws, Taxes consist of Direct Tax or Indirect Tax, and may be paid in Money or as its labour equivalent (often but not always unpaid labour).

• List – II entailing the areas on which only the state legislature can make laws, and

• List – III listing the areas on which both the Parliament and the State Legislature can make laws upon concurrently.

Direct Taxes: They are imposed on a person’s income, wealth, expenditure, etc. Direct Taxes charge is on person concern and burden is borne by person on whom it is imposed. Example- Income tax.

Indirect Taxes: They are imposed on goods/ Services. The Immediate liability to pay is of the manufacturer/ service provider/ seller but its burden is transferred to the ultimate consumers of such goods/ services. The burden is
transferred not in form of taxes, but, as a part of the price of goods/ services. Example- Excise Duty, Customs Duty, Service Tax, Value-Added Tax (VAT), Central Sales Tax (CST).

Progressive tax is a tax in which the tax rate increases as the taxable amount increases. The term “progressive” refers to the way the tax rate progresses from low to high, with the result that a taxpayer’s Average tax rate is less than the person’s marginal tax rate.

Proportional tax is a tax imposed so that the tax rate is fixed, with no change as the taxable base amount increases or decreases. The amount of the tax is in proportion to the amount subject to taxation.

Tax Reforms IN INDIA

Sience 1990 ie the Liberalization-2/”>Liberalization of Indian economy saw the beginning of Taxation reforms in the nation. The taxation system in the nation has been subjected to consistent and comprehensive reform. Following factors arise the need for tax reforms in India:-

Tax Resources must be maximized for increased social sector Investment in the economy.
International competitiveness must be imparted to Indian economy in the globalized world.
Transaction costs are high which must be reduced.
Investment flow should be maximized.
Equity should be improved
The high cost nature of Indian economy should be changed.
Compliance should be increased.

Direct & Indirect Tax Reforms

Direct tax reforms undertaken by the government are as follows:-

Reduction and rationalization of tax rates, India now has three rates of income tax with the highest being at 30%.
SIMPLIFICATION of process, through e-filling and simplifying the tax return forms.
Strengthening of administration to check the leakage and increasing the tax base.
Widening of tax base to include more tax payers in the tax net.
Withdrawal of tax exceptions gradually.
Minimum Alternate Tax (MAT) was introduced for the ‘Zero Tax’ companies.
The direct tax code of 2010 replace the outdated tax code of 1961.

Indirect tax reforms undertaken by the government are as follows:-

Reduction in the peak tariff rates.
reduction in the number of slabs
Progressive change from specific duty to ad valor-em tax.
VAT is introduced.
GST has been planned to be introduced.
Negative list of services since 2012.

Tax Laws: Laws relating to income, Profits, Wealth tax, Corporate tax

The Income-tax Act, 1961

The Income Tax Act, focusing on the rules and regulations of tax regulation, was initially put into existence in the year 1961. Under this act, everything related to taxation and more are mentioned which also includes collection and levy.

The Income Tax Act was enacted in the year 1961 and is the statute under which everything related to taxation is listed. This includes levy, collection, administration and recovery of income tax. The act basically aims to consolidate and amend the rules related to taxation in the country.

The Income tax Act contains a long list of sections, each of which deal with different aspects of taxation in the country. Let us look into each of these chapters of the IT Act and their related sections and sub-sections.

Chapter I: This is the first section and is hence for introducing the IT Act and to give a basic idea about the same.

Chapter II: This chapter talks about the commencement and the extent of the Income Tax Act.

Chapter III: The third chapter of the IT Act is basically about the charge of income tax, the scope of total income, dividend income, and income arising as a result of working abroad and so on.

Chapter IV: This chapter deals with all forms of income that do not form part of the total income. These include income from property, trusts, institutions, incomes of Political Parties etc.

Chapter V: The fifth chapter is about incomes of other individuals that form part of the assessee’s income. This includes income from capital gains, from businesses, from house property etc.

Chapter VI: This deals with the transfer of income when there is no actual transfer of assets. This includes transfer as well as revocable transfer. Chapter VII: Chapter VII is basically about the deductions that are applicable on certain payments and certain incomes

Chapter VIII: Chapter VIII deals with rebates and share of member in an association or body

Chapter IX: This talks about double taxation relief that is rebate on income tax and relief in income tax.

Proposed Direct tax code

The direct taxation of the income of individuals, companies and other entities is governed by the Income Tax Act, 1961. The Direct Taxes Code seeks to consolidate the law relating to direct taxes. The Bill will replace the Income Tax Act, 1961, and the Wealth Tax Act, 1957. The Bill widens tax slabs, and lowers corporate tax rates. It removes a number of exemptions and grandfathers some others.

The new direct tax code will try to bring more assessees into the tax net, make the system more equitable for different classes of taxpayers, make businesses more competitive by lowering the corporate tax rate and phase out the remaining tax exemptions that lead to litigation. It will also redefine key concepts such as income and scope of taxation. Globally, governments are racing to woo investments and boost job creation by offering lower corporate tax rates. In December, the US enacted a Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, lowering the country’s corporate tax rate from 35% to 21%. A month later, Apple Inc. said it would invest $30 billion to expand US operations. India’s new direct tax code will take forward the plan to lower the corporate tax rate from 30% to 25% for all firms gradually as revenue collection improves. From 2018-19, the 25% tax rate is available to all firms with sales less than Rs250 crore.

The wealth tax, 1957

The Wealth Tax Act, 1957 governed the taxation process associated with the net wealth that an individual, a Hindu Undivided Family (HUF), or a company possesses on the valuation date. The valuation date was an important component in the calculation of the Wealth Tax. The net wealth that an assessee possessed on the valuation date determined the amount of tax. The valuation date was the day of 31 March immediately preceding the Assessment Year.

Government of india decided to abolish the levy of wealth tax under the Wealth-tax Act, 1957 with effect from the 1st April, 2016. The objective of taxing high networth persons shall be achieved by levying a surcharge on tax payer earning higher income as levy of surcharge is easy to collect & monitor and also does not result into any compliance burden on the assessee and administrative burden on the department.

corporate tax laws in india

Corporate Income Tax (CIT) refers to the corporate tax rate imposed on: the ‘net income’ of companies registered under the Companies Act, 1956 or foreign companies earning income in India. India has among the highest corporate tax rates in the world, but the effective tax liable differs across Industry and sector. In this article, we briefly discuss the structure of corporate taxation in the country.

A company, whether Indian or foreign, is liable to pay CIT under the country’s Income Tax Act, 1961. While a resident company is taxed on its worldwide income, a non-resident (foreign) company is taxed only on income that is received in India, or that arises, or is deemed to accrue in India.

Previously, a foreign company was considered a resident company only if the control and management of their affairs were wholly situated in India in the financial year. Companies that were partly or wholly controlled and managed from outside India were treated as non-resident companies. This was amended by the Finance Act of 2015 to align the rules with international best practices.

India’s Finance Act 2015

Properly determining tax residency is critical for foreign companies doing business in India. A spate of recent court cases challenging the tax residency status of foreign companies spurred the government to enact changes clarifying the law. The Finance Bill as introduced provided that a company would be considered a resident of India if its place of effective management (POEM) was in India “at any time” during the year. This wording would potentially cause a company to qualify as a resident in India even if it were to have a POEM in India for only one meeting during the year. Under this scenario, a foreign company with Indian operations could be deemed a resident in India, which could lead to taxation in India on the company’s worldwide income.

Minimum Alternative Tax

Following criticism of the multiple minimum alternative tax assessments (MAT) on Foreign Institutional Investors, the Lok Sabha (or lower house of parliament) introduced a change to the original bill. The change clarifies the government’s position on the applicability of the MAT to foreign companies.

The Finance Act extends the explicit exemption from the MAT to any foreign company that earns income in the form of capital gains on securities, interest or royalties and fees for technical services. The exclusion applies as long as the tax payable on such income is less than 18.5 percent; that is, the rate of the MAT. However, the Finance Act stops short of providing retroactive relief for foreign investors that received tax notices on MAT applicability to past gains on investments.

General Anti-Avoidance Rules

Another timely provision of the Finance Act is the deferral of the general anti-avoidance tax rules (GAAR). GAAR represents a major area of concern and uncertainty for foreign investors doing business in India; the government has not yet issued guidelines explaining its implementation.

The Finance Act defers GAAR’s effective date so that it applies to transactions taking place on or after April 1, 2017. This is the fourth time that the government has postponed implementation. As written, GAAR provisions would give tax authorities greater powers to examine cross-border transactions for signs of Tax Evasion. Such powers would include the power to override all tax treaties and to disregard, look through, or re-characterize business arrangements that are deemed to be impermissible avoidance arrangements.

The Indian tax system is a complex and ever-changing web of laws and regulations. It is made up of a variety of taxes, including direct taxes, indirect taxes, and other taxes.

Direct taxes are taxes that are levied on individuals and businesses. The most common direct taxes in India are income tax, corporate tax, and wealth tax.

Indirect taxes are taxes that are levied on goods and services. The most common indirect taxes in India are excise duty, customs duty, value-added tax (VAT), and service tax.

Other taxes include stamp duty, land revenue, cess, and local taxes.

Tax administration is the process of collecting taxes and enforcing tax laws. The main tax administration bodies in India are the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC), and the state tax authorities.

Tax reforms are changes to the tax system that are designed to improve its efficiency and fairness. The Indian government has undertaken a number of tax reforms in recent years, including the introduction of the Goods and Services Tax (GST).

The Indian tax system is a complex and ever-changing system. It is important to stay up-to-date with the latest changes in order to comply with the law.

Table of Contents

Direct taxes

Direct taxes are taxes that are levied on individuals and businesses. The most common direct taxes in India are income tax, corporate tax, and wealth tax.

Income tax is a tax on the income of individuals and businesses. The income tax rate in India is progressive, which means that higher-income earners pay a higher Percentage of their income in taxes.

Corporate tax is a tax on the profits of businesses. The corporate tax rate in India is 30%.

Wealth tax is a tax on the wealth of individuals. The wealth tax rate in India is 1%.

Indirect taxes

Indirect taxes are taxes that are levied on goods and services. The most common indirect taxes in India are excise duty, customs duty, value-added tax (VAT), and service tax.

Excise duty is a tax on goods that are manufactured in India. The excise duty rate varies depending on the type of good.

Customs duty is a tax on goods that are imported into India. The customs duty rate varies depending on the type of good and the country of origin.

Value-added tax (VAT) is a tax on the value added to goods and services at each stage of the production and distribution process. The VAT rate in India is 18%.

Service tax is a tax on services provided in India. The service tax rate in India is 14%.

Other taxes

Other taxes include stamp duty, land revenue, cess, and local taxes.

Stamp duty is a tax on documents that are used to transfer property or assets. The stamp duty rate varies depending on the type of document and the value of the property or asset.

Land revenue is a tax on land that is owned by individuals or businesses. The land revenue rate varies depending on the location of the land.

Cess is a tax that is levied on specific goods or services. The cess rate is usually used to fund specific government programs.

Local taxes are taxes that are levied by local governments. The local taxes that are levied vary depending on the local government.

Tax administration

The CBDT is responsible for administering income tax and corporate tax. The CBEC is responsible for administering excise duty, customs duty, and service tax. The state tax authorities are responsible for administering VAT and other local taxes.

Tax reforms

The GST is a comprehensive indirect tax that was introduced in India on July 1, 2017. The GST is levied on the supply of goods and services across India. The GST rate is 18% for most goods and services. However, the GST rate is lower for certain goods and services, such as food items and essential medicines.

The GST is a major tax reform that has simplified the Indian tax system and made it more efficient. The GST has also made it easier for businesses to comply with the tax laws.

What is the Indian tax system?

The Indian tax system is a complex and ever-changing set of rules and regulations that govern how individuals and businesses are taxed in India. The system is designed to collect revenue for the government and to redistribute wealth among different segments of Society.

What are the different Types of Taxes in India?

The main types of taxes in India are income tax, corporate tax, sales tax, and customs duty. Income tax is levied on the income of individuals and businesses. Corporate tax is levied on the profits of companies. Sales tax is levied on the sale of goods and services. Customs duty is levied on goods imported into India.

Who pays taxes in India?

All individuals and businesses that earn income in India are liable to pay taxes. The amount of tax that is payable depends on the type of income, the amount of income, and the taxpayer’s residency status.

How are taxes collected in India?

Taxes are collected by the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) and the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC). The CBDT is responsible for collecting income tax and corporate tax. The CBEC is responsible for collecting sales tax, customs duty, and other indirect taxes.

What are the benefits of paying taxes?

There are many benefits to paying taxes. Taxes help to fund essential government services, such as Education, healthcare, and Infrastructure-2/”>INFRASTRUCTURE. Taxes also help to redistribute wealth and to promote economic Growth.

What are the consequences of not paying taxes?

There are serious consequences for not paying taxes. Individuals and businesses that do not pay taxes may be subject to fines, penalties, and imprisonment. They may also be barred from doing business with the government and from obtaining certain government benefits.

How can I learn more about the Indian tax system?

There are many resources available to learn more about the Indian tax system. The CBDT and the CBEC both have websites that provide information about taxes in India. There are also many books and articles available on the subject.

Which of the following is not a direct tax in India?
(A) Income tax
(B) Corporate tax
(C) Wealth tax
(D) Excise duty
Which of the following is not a indirect tax in India?
(A) Custom Duty
(B) Excise duty
(C) Service tax
(D) Value added tax
The central government of India collects taxes on which of the following?
(A) Income
(B) Corporate profits
(C) Wealth
(D) All of the above
The State Government of India collects taxes on which of the following?
(A) Sales
(B) Excise
(C) Entertainment
(D) All of the above
The local government of India collects taxes on which of the following?
(A) Property
(B) Profession
(C) Vehicles
(D) All of the above
The total tax revenue of the Indian government in 2020-21 was approximately:
(A) â¹20 lakh crore
(B) â¹25 lakh crore
(C) â¹30 lakh crore
(D) â¹35 lakh crore
The percentage of GDP that is spent on public expenditure in India is approximately:
(A) 15%
(B) 20%
(C) 25%
(D) 30%
The largest component of public expenditure in India is:
(A) Defence
(B) Education
(C) Health
(D) Social security
The Fiscal Deficit of the Indian government in 2020-21 was approximately:
(A) â¹10 lakh crore
(B) â¹15 lakh crore
(C) â¹20 lakh crore
(D) â¹25 lakh crore
The Public Debt of the Indian government in 2020-21 was approximately:
(A) â¹100 lakh crore
(B) â¹150 lakh crore
(C) â¹200 lakh crore
(D) â¹250 lakh crore