What are the recent trends in the income tax collection?

The Central Board For Direct Taxes (CBDT), the policy making body for the income tax department, has released data which reveal the trends in the direct taxes in the country.

Highlights of CBDT data on tax mobilization

• The number of salaried and non-salaried taxpayers saw an increase between 2014-15 and 2017-18 assessment years (AY). This was due to the continuous efforts of the department initiated for widening and deepening the taxpayer base in the country.
• Average tax paid by corporates and individual taxpayers has seen a jump over the same time period.
• The number of salaried taxpayers has increased from 1.70 crore (assessment year 2014-15) to 2.33 crore (AY 2017-18) which is a rise of 37 per cent.
• The average income declared by the salaried taxpayers has gone up by 19 per cent from Rs 5.76 lakh to Rs 6.84 lakh.
• There has also been a growth of 19 per cent in the number of non-salaried individual taxpayers from 1.95 crore to 2.33 crore and the average non-salary income declared has increased.
• The contribution of direct taxes to the total revenue kitty of the country is the highest and stands at 52 per cent at present.
• There has been a constant growth in direct tax-GDP ratio over last three years and the ratio of 5.98 per cent in financial year 2017-18 is the best in the last 10 years.
• The number of people who file tax returns has also increased by about 65 per cent during this period from 3.31 crore in FY 2013-14 to 5.44 crore in 2017-18 financial year.
• A growth of more than 80 per cent has been registered vis-a-vis the number of returns filed in the last four financial years — from 3.79 crore in FY 2013-14 to 6.85 crore in FY 2017-18. a growth of more than 80 per cent has been registered vis-a-vis the number of returns filed in the last four financial years — from 3.79 crore in FY 2013-14 to 6.85 crore in FY 2017-18.

The data was released as part of the “time-series data” initiative. This data in the public domain would be useful for the academicians, scholars, researchers, economists, and the public at large in studying long-term trends of various indices of the effectiveness and efficiency of direct tax administration in India.