To digitise Customs processes, the Union finance ministry is planning to integrate the Indian Customs Electronic Gateway (ICEGATE), Risk Management System (RMS), and Indian Customs Electronic Data Interchange System (ICES) into a single unified national Customs platform, according to government sources.
The contrast with the old Income-Tax Act is stark. The 1961 law ran into 512,000 words; the 2025 one pares that down to 259,000. Chapters have been cut from 47 to 23, while sections have reduced from 819 to 536. One of the clearest changes is terminological. The confusing twin concepts of 'assessment year' and 'previous year' have been scrapped.
The government in FY26 Budget should announce an "effective" personal income tax cut to support consumption and demand, Barclays said on Thursday. In its FY25-26 Union Budget preview, Barclays said the key ask from the Budget, to be presented on February 1, is to support growth while adhering to fiscal consolidation path.
India's $280-billion IT industry heads into 2026, balancing visa-related headwinds and global trade uncertainty against its biggest-ever push into artificial intelligence and the rapid expansion of global capability centres (GCCs). Heightened scrutiny of the US H-1B visa programme - including a proposed $100,000 fee for new visas and concerns over a potential 25 per cent outsourcing tax - has complicated cross-border delivery for Indian firms, even as companies accelerate efforts to reduce reliance on onsite staffing.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday said that raising the FDI limit to 100 per cent in the insurance sector will help attract more capital, improve competition and increase insurance penetration by making policies more affordable.
Make sure the rider adds value rather than just adding to cost.
'...not merely in managing fiscal mathematics, but in demonstrating conservatism and prudence within that framework.' 'Looking forward, we believe sufficient growth drivers exist -- ranging from government reforms to revival in consumption to favourable monsoons. Numerous factors support the Indian economy.'
After a subdued first quarter of 2025-26 (Q1FY26), banks are now betting big on the festive season, rolling out attractive loan offers to boost credit growth in the second half of the current financial year (H2FY26) - a trend likely to be further accentuated by the second-order effects of the good services tax (GST) cuts.
India's gems & jewellery exports witnessed 30.6 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) contraction in October to $2.17 million, amid the imposition of a steep 50 per cent tariff by the United States (US) on several Indian products.
Manas Sood, a Class 12 student from the Delhi Public School, has distributed 2,650 boxes of Tax City Education and empowered over 12,000 students from 52 schools across India. His aim? To help young Indians understand taxes and become financially literate.
Master the online ITR filing process and then learn the differences between the old and new tax regimes to pick your best option.
The Delhi high court on Friday stayed a Rs 1,140 crore angel tax demand raised by the Income Tax department from hospitality and hotel aggregator Oyo's parent company Oravel Stays Private Limited for the assessment year 2020-21. The tax demand was issued under Section 56(2) (viib) of the Income Tax Act, commonly known as the "angel tax" provision, which applies when unlisted companies issue shares at a value exceeding their "fair" market price.
Defence expenditure was pegged at 1.4 per cent of GDP in the Budget for 2025-26 but it may widen, depending on tensions between India and Pakistan.
CAG warns most states of fiscal imprudence as March spending overshoots limits, with key departments exhausting large portions of budgets in the last month of FY24.
Pakistan on Tuesday increased its defence budget by 20 per cent, allocating PRs. 2,550 billion ($9 billion) for the fiscal year 2025-26, amid tensions with India.
The eighth Budget of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman continued to focus on 'GYAN' (Garib, Youth, Annadata, Nari) to maintain a consistent and coherent strategy initiated over the years in pursuing the government's vision for Viksit Bharat. The approach, characterised by incremental yet impactful steps, aims to create a compounding effect over time.
Some individuals opt for the new regime without a comparative analysis of the tax liability under the two regimes.
'The new Bill introduces no policy or rate changes, leaving financial planning strategies largely unaffected.'
'The considerations for choosing between the old and new tax regimes remain essentially unchanged.'
'The economy needed 3 or 4 major fixes. The major one was, of course, the direct tax structure, but we ended up complicating the existing convoluted tax structure,' says M R Venkatesh, chartered accountant and lawyer.
The government could look at providing deductions for expenses incurred by salaried employees while working from home in the upcoming Budget as it looks to boost demand, consulting firm PwC India said on Thursday. Addressing a pre-Budget session, Pwc India senior tax partner Rahul Garg said demand creation is particularly focussed on money being given or left in the hands of the individuals.
The demand for passenger vehicles (PVs) is expected to sustain even beyond the ongoing festival season as a new set of customers, those who gained confidence to buy cars following the recent GST rate cuts, will begin to visit dealerships now, said Shailesh Chandra, president of the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (Siam), on Wednesday.
For every rupee in the government coffer, the biggest pie of 63 paise will come from direct and indirect taxes, according to the Union Budget 2024-25 documents.
His victory means that his party will have to learn from him, because after the rise of Donald Trump, the Democrats have been in disarray. They have had no real answer to the Trump phenomenon and Zohran, with his emphatic and clear policies aimed at working class Americans offers them a national path for a return, asserts Aakar Patel.
Netizens broke out into a meme fest as they welcomed Nirmala Sitharaman's tax break.
If he cannot do it this term by using his bureaucracy and experts from different fields, it will be a tragedy, asserts Ramesh Menon.
Despite a strong 7.8 per cent growth in the first quarter, the Indian economy is expected to grow at 6.5 per cent in the current financial year as the impact of US tariffs on Indian exports will reduce prospects, particularly in the second half, ADB said on Tuesday.
Indian government's decision to cut GST rates on various products will increase purchasing power of consumers and boost demand for residential properties in the upcoming festive season, according to realtors' body CREDAI. The association, which has a 13,000 members from across India, said the construction cost is expected to come down because of reduction in GST rates on cement and few other building materials.
'Ek baar aap GST dekh lo!' - Prime Minister Narendra Modi's gentle nudge to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in December last year sparked the beginning of a mammoth exercise to overhaul the tangled goods and services tax regime. And the final outcome is a significantly simplified system with lower tax rates and easier compliance for businesses.
A string of welfare schemes and promises tests the state's budget, which is already heavily dependent on central support and spends little as capital outlay.
'It must become faceless, just as the entire direct tax assessment system has already become fully online, without any human intervention in the normal course,' recommends A K Bhattacharya.
'Some buyers get carried away by festival offers and purchase higher variants or larger vehicles than they truly need, which impacts running cost and long-term affordability.'
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented her eighth budget on Saturday.
'The incentives to switch to the new tax regime... are viewed as a negative due to potential loss of customers who buy policies for saving tax.' 'The tax-saving value proposition for the sector reduces.'
The old tax regime remains unchanged. 'Taxpayers opting for it will continue to follow the existing slab rates and deductions.'
After three straight quarters of decline, India's housing market is pinning hopes on the ongoing festival season to revive sales momentum. While 2025 may still end with sales volumes below 2024 levels, developers believe the seasonally strong October-December quarter could narrow the gap, aided by stable interest rates, festive incentives, and resilient demand in the premium segment.
With lower GST rates taking effect, fast-moving consumer goods players face challenges in setting reduced prices for their products in round figures, but expect the magical price points to be restored within two months.
'... that it once again shies away from renewing its commitment to strategic divestment,' points out A K Bhattacharya.
Banking on the Budget's tax relief, the BJP seeks to energise Delhi's middle class; the AAP is doing its bit too. But will their outreach mobilise this politically crucial yet disengaged electorate?
'Do exhaustive research and then select the one that best fits your budget and requirements.'
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