More Stories

Informist, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025

--Govt: Apr-Dec tax devolution to states INR 9.01 tln vs INR 7.47 tln yr ago 

--Govt Apr-Dec gross tax revenue INR 27.504 tln vs INR 24.825 tln year ago 

--Govt Dec gross tax revenue INR 4.895 tln vs INR 4.405 tln year ago 

NEW DELHI – The government's gross tax mop-up in the first nine months of the financial year 2024-25 (Apr-Mar) was up 10.8% year on year at INR 27.504 trillion as income tax collections continued to be the top contributor to the Centre's coffers, data released Friday by the Controller General of Accounts showed.

In December, income tax collections surged 15.9% to INR 1.370 trillion, taking the total for Apr-Dec to INR 8.378 trillion, or 22.2% higher over last year. On other hand, corporate tax collections in December rose a healthy 10.6%, taking the total collection under this head for Apr-Dec to INR 7.409 trillion, up 2.7% on year. Corporate tax collections were trailing for a while. 

The government expects to collect gross tax revenue of INR 38.402 trillion in FY25, which would be 10.8% higher than FY24. The budgeted growth in income tax and corporate tax collections is 17.4% and 12.0%, respectively. For the target to be met, the government has to collect corporate tax to the tune of INR 930 billion and income tax collections to the tune of INR 1.163 trillion in each of the last three months.

As such, on a month-on-month basis, December collections are higher owing to advanced tax payments. Advance tax is filed by individuals and corporates in four instalments, in the middle of June, September, December and March. 

While the overall gross tax figure may meet Budget expectations, on a net basis the Centre's tax collections in Apr-Dec were 6.5% higher from a year ago at INR 18.431 trillion, with December seeing a sharp 35.8% increase to INR 3.996 trillion. The Budget had projected a growth of 11.0% in net tax revenue to INR 25.835 trillion.

The sharp growth in the Centre's net tax revenue in December is because of a low base, as the Centre had devolved double instalment to states in December last year. Tax devolution to states in December was 38.9% lower at INR 890.87 billion, taking the total for Apr-Dec to INR 9.012 trillion, which is 20.6% more than what was transferred in the first nine months of FY24. The states, which usually get tax devolution from the Centre in 14 equal instalments every year, have already seen two months of double instalments in FY25 and have received 72.3% of the full-year devolution in Apr-Dec.

On the indirect tax front, December saw tepid growth in central goods and services tax and a fall in customs and excise mop-up. For Apr-Dec, central GST was up 11.7% against the budgeted growth of 11.0%, while customs were up 7.6%. Excise collections in Apr-Dec were marginally down 1.4% from the same period last year.

The details for the central government's tax collections for December and Apr-Dec are as follows (in billion INR):

End

Reported by Priyasmita Dutta

Edited by Akul Nishant Akhoury

For users of real-time market data terminals, Informist news is available exclusively on the NSE Cogencis WorkStation.

Cogencis news is now Informist news. This follows the acquisition of Cogencis Information Services Ltd by NSE Data & Analytics Ltd, a 100% subsidiary of the National Stock Exchange of India Ltd. As a part of the transaction, the news department of Cogencis has been sold to Informist Media Pvt Ltd.

Informist Media Tel +91 (11) 4220-1000

Send comments to feedback@informistmedia.com

© Informist Media Pvt. Ltd. 2025. All rights reserved.