Page 17 - Tax

Commercial Taxes dept detects multiple QR code use by hotels to evade tax

The vigilance wing of the Commercial Taxes department unearthed some hoteliers who were using 30 QR codes to suppress actual turnovers and evade taxes. The search operation also led to the detection of Rs 1.47 crore cash from the residence of one of the proprietors. In a statement on Monday, the Commissioner of Commercial Taxes (Karnataka), C Shikha said the Vigilance wing conducted searches in Hoskote, Bengaluru Rural District and successfully unearthed the modus operandi used by some hoteliers wherein suppression of GST turnovers was detected. After conducting multiple surveys and reconnaissance, searches were made by a team of 50 officers at the business premises and residences of such hoteliers who were mainly engaged in supply of biriyani and other non-vegetarian items, she said. "The modus operandi is receiving payments by using numerous UPI accounts (in addition to cash) and constantly changing the UPI accounts, so that the actual turnovers are suppressed and taxes are evade

GST Council approves 'amnesty scheme' for appeal filing till Jan 2024

The GST Council on Saturday came out with an amnesty scheme, giving taxpayers time till January 31, 2024, to file appeals against demand orders passed by tax officers till March 2023. As per the GST law, an assessee can file an appeal against an assessment order seeking taxes within three months of the tax officer passing such an order. This can be extended by one more month. The 52nd GST Council in its meeting on Saturday gave extra time to GST-registered businesses to file appeals with an enhanced pre-deposit of 12.5 per cent of the tax demand, against 10 per cent currently. Briefing reporters after the Council meeting, Revenue Secretary Sanjay Malhotra said the council has recommended that a period till January 31, 2024, may be given for filing of appeals by taxpayers for all orders passed till March 31, 2023, with an enhanced pre-deposit. Of the pre-deposit of 12.5 per cent of the tax under dispute, at least 20 per cent (i.e. 2.5 per cent of the tax under dispute) should be ...

GST Council 'cedes right' to states on taxing neutral alcohols: FM

Strap: GST Council has slashed rates on molasses, millet mix, cleared air on corporate guarantee

GST Council decides to slash rates on millet products, molasses: FM

The GST Council on Saturday decided to reduce GST on molasses to 5 per cent, from 18 per cent, and exempt alcohol for human consumption from the levy. Chhattisgarh Deputy Chief Minister T S Singh Deo, who is a member of the GST Council, said extra neutral alcohol (ENA) for industrial use will continue to attract Goods and Services Tax (GST). "ENA (potable alcohol) for human consumption will be exempt from GST and the same will be communicated to the Supreme Court," Deo told reporters after the 52nd GST Council meeting. The tax rate on molasses, a by-product of sugarcane and used as raw material for alcohol production, has been reduced to 5 per cent from 18 per cent currently, Deo added. He further said that some states like Delhi and Goa raised the issue of online gaming companies facing GST demand notice for alleged evasion. "There were discussion on charges (tax demand notice) on these companies retrospectively. Because DGGI is an independent body, there cannot be any interferen

Online gaming, casinos liable to 28% GST since beginning: Revenue Secy

As states like Delhi and Goa raised the issue of tax demand on online gaming companies and casinos retrospectively, Revenue Secretary Sanjay Malhotra on Saturday reiterated that 28 per cent GST was levied on online gaming and casinos even before. "Certain members had raised the issue of retrospective taxation. It was informed to them that this is not retrospective, and this was the law earlier. These liabilities already existed because money online games played with bets...They were already attracting (28 per cent GST) by way of betting or gambling," Malhotra told reporters. In the 52nd GST council meeting, Delhi and Goa raised the issue of tax demands on e-gaming companies and casinos. Delhi Finance Minister Atishi said tax notices for the past 6 years calculated at a much higher rate of 28 per cent are being sent to online gaming cos, even though on October 1, this 28 per cent GST was to be implemented. "An industry whose revenue is Rs 23,000 crore, you are slapping a tax notice

Union excise duty collection fell 12% in first five months of FY24

Experts were not sure why excise duty yielded fewer revenues in August year-on-year since the production of petroleum rose during the period

Govt increases windfall tax on petroleum crude, cuts levy on diesel, ATF

The windfall tax on petroleum crude will be raised to 12,100 rupees ($145.65) per ton from 10,000 rupees ($120.37), effective Sept. 30

Delta Corp gets tax notice for $1.34 bn along with interest, penalty

The tax notice comes at a time when the company, valued at over $566 million, is already facing heat over the recent move in July by the country's GST Council to impose a 28% indirect tax

SMEV writes to Gadkari, seeks unified policy of road tax exemption for EVs

Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles (SMEV) on Tuesday urged the government to formulate a unified policy of road tax exemption for Electric Vehicles (EVs) across the country. In a letter to the Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari, SMEV said a consistent and favourable policy environment is essential to accelerate the shift towards electric mobility in India. "I am writing to request your esteemed office to weigh in on a unified policy of road tax exemption for EVs that will play a pivotal role in encouraging the adoption of clean and sustainable transportation options, which is vital for our nation's environmental and economic future," SMEV Chief Evangelist Sanjay Kaul wrote. In July, SMEV had named Kaul as its Chief Evangelist to help revise the association's agenda. In view of the Ministry of Heavy Industries' decision to reduce the subsidy component mid-way through the FAME II scheme, this input (unified policy of road tax exemption for EVs) from t

ISC raises concern on WHO report suggesting nutrition-based tax on food

Indian Sellers Collective has raised concerns over a recent WHO Report, which suggested the implementation of a taxation system based on nutritional content. The WHO report titled 'The growth of ultra-processed foods in India: An analysis of trends' suggests increasing tax on non-packaged and unlabelled foods, which are currently taxed at 5 per cent under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime. It also advocated for the implementation of point-of-sale marketing restrictions, curbing of freebies and discounts offered by small grocers or Kirana stores, and a crackdown on the unorganised food manufacturing sector, said a statement from Indian Sellers Collective. Moreover, the report also said that zero-sugar carbonated drinks should not be classified under the same GST category in line with carbonated drinks, currently taxed at the highest 40 per cent, which consists of a GST rate of 28 per cent along with a sin tax of 12 per cent. Opposing the report, the Indian Sellers Collective s

Hunter Biden sues IRS over tax info disclosures after agent testimony

Hunter Biden sued the Internal Revenue Service on Monday, alleging that two agents who claimed interference into the case against him wrongly shared his personal tax information amid escalating legal and political struggles as the 2024 election looms. The suit says the agents targeted and sought to embarrass Mr. Biden." Biden says federal whistleblower protections sought by the agents don't include the sharing of confidential information in press interviews and testimony before Congress. The suit comes as a long-running investigation into Hunter Biden continues to unfold against a sharply political backdrop, including an impeachment inquiry aimed at his father, President Joe Biden. Hunter Biden was indicted days ago on federal firearms charges alleging that he lied about his drug use to buy and possess a gun in October 2018. His defense attorneys have indicated they plan to fight the charges. The case could be on track toward a possible high-stakes trial as the 2024 election ...

Govt extends deadline for filing tax returns by companies, audit reports

The government on Monday extended the due date for filing income tax returns by companies by one month till November 30. Also, the due date for furnishing audit reports by companies who need to get their accounts audited has been extended by one month till October 31. "The due date of furnishing of Return of Income in Form ITR-7 for Assessment Year 2023-24, which is 31.10.2023 is extended to 30.11.2023, the finance ministry said in a statement.

Net direct tax collection rises 23.5% to Rs 8.65 trn in April-Sept

The tax collection includes corporate tax of 4.16 trillion rupees and personal income tax of 4.47 trillion rupees, said the statement from Ministry of Finance

Lower tax on imported EVs will help test India market: Audi official

Dhillon said that the India arm is in talks with the German parent to initiate assembling "some" of its electric cars locally, but declined to provide details on timeline or potential models

Cognizant liable to pay dividend distribution tax on shares buyback: ITAT

The Chennai bench of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) has dismissed an appeal of Cognizant Technology Solutions India and ruled that the company is liable to pay Dividend Distribution Tax (DDT) on buyback of Rs 19,000 crore worth of shares under a scheme of arrangement. Dismissing the appeal of Cognizant Technology Solutions India, ITAT held that the consideration paid by the company for purchase of its own shares in accordance with the scheme sanctioned by the Madras High Court "amounts to distribution of accumulated profits which entails release of all or part of assets of a company on reduction of capital which attracts provisions of Sec.2(22) of the Income Tax Act, 1961." Cognizant Technology Solutions in the assessment year 2017-18 purchased 94,00,534 equity shares of face value Rs 10 from its shareholders based in the US and Mauritius at Rs 20,297 apiece for a total consideration of Rs 19,080.26 crore in accordance with a scheme approved by the Madras High Court. On ..

Tax exemptions to space sector to help boost growth: Deloitte-CII report

Government measures such as tax exemptions and holidays for companies directly or indirectly engaged in space sector activities will help in further promoting the growth of the sector, a report said on Thursday. The Deloitte India-CII report also suggested to undertake a detailed study on the tax reforms for supporting the industry growth as well as making the end products fiercely competitive in the global market. "While the Indian government has started to provide tax impetus to the space sector, it needs to take more initiatives for tax exemptions/tax holidays/accelerated depreciation for companies directly or indirectly engaged in space sector activities, so that the benefits are available to the entire value chain and there is no embedded tax cost," it said. It added that an in-depth study on global initiatives and their impact on the sector and, benchmarking with India should be undertaken to further develop and outline additional initiatives and to refresh the Indian Space ..

Govt not planning to levy any tax on diesel vehicles: Nitin Gadkari

Seeking to clarify his remarks on taxation of diesel vehicles, Union minister Nitin Gadkari on Thursday said that he wanted to convey to automobile manufacturers to take steps to reduce pollution, and also added that there is no proposal to levy tax on such vehicles. Earlier this week, the road, transport and highway minister's remarks regarding the need to levy 10 per cent tax on diesel-run vehicles to help cut emissions had generated lots of controversy. "I am not against diesel fuel and neither we are going to levy any tax on diesel vehicles," Gadkari told CNBC-TV18. The road transport and highways minister noted that from the pollution point of view, diesel is very hazardous and it is really causing health problem in the country. Gadkari emphasised that he is not against any industry and pointed out that the government is already giving incentives for electric cars. "So my suggestion to the industry is that best way to (reduce pollution) is to concentrate on alternative fuel,"

Corporate tax collections seen in line with budget estimates: Ajay Seth

Corporate tax collections between April and July fell 10% to 1.76 trillion Indian rupees ($21.20 billion) from a year earlier, government data showed

GST dept imposes Rs 2.64 lakh fine on Pidilite on input tax credit issue

Pidilite Industries, a leading adhesive, waterproofing solutions and construction chemicals maker on Saturday said a fine of Rs 2.64 lakh has been imposed on the company by the GST department. The company, however, expects a favourable outcome at the appellate level. Based on the company's assessment, prevailing law and the legal advice of the external counsel, Pidilite Industries "reasonably expects" a favourable outcome after it challenges the penalty at the appellate level, the company said in a regulatory filing. "The company has received an order dated August 30, 2023, which was received by the company on September 7, 2023... from the office of the Assistant Commissioner of Central Tax, Division III, Bhosari, Pune imposing a penalty of Rs 2,64,844 under applicable provisions of the CGST Act, 2017," it said. The order has been passed with regard to disallowance of input tax credit (ITC) in the state of Maharashtra for CIPY, a company which has been merged with Pidilite Industr

Tax officials should exchange info with non-tax agencies, says OECD

Countries should adopt a 'whole-of-government' approach to address the challenge of illicit financial flows through sharing of information from tax authorities to non-tax agencies, like financial intelligence units, anti-corruption agencies, customs authorities and public prosecutors, an OECD report said. India has been pressing for expanding the scope of common reporting standard (CRS) at the G20 to include non-financial assets, like real estate properties, under the automatic exchange of information (AEOI) among OECD countries. In a report titled 'Facilitating the use of tax-treaty exchanged information for non-tax purposes', OECD said illicit financial flows (IFFs) have a cross-cutting nature and involve a diversity of crimes and offences transcending tax evasion, such as money laundering, terrorism financing and corruption. It is thus highly important for jurisdictions to adopt a whole-of-government approach to addressing them, notably through the sharing of information from ta