This Budget positions India's taxation ideology as not merely a revenue source but as a strategic catalyst for growth, inclusion and long-term confidence.
The proposals outlined in Budget 2026-27 represent a carefully crafted, multi-year strategy designed to strengthen India's big bets on the path to Viksit Bharat 2047, says Sameer Gupta.
The India-US trade deal has offered a much-needed breather for the Indian information technology (IT) industry, which has been grappling with global macroeconomic uncertainty and subdued client spending over the past few years.
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The Supreme Court has said that selling land or property is not a service under the Finance Act, 1994, so such sales cannot be charged with service tax.
After the last Budget's announcement of a major tax relief for those earning an annual salary of less than Rs 12 lakh, there is not much that individuals can look forward to in the forthcoming Budget, points out A K Bhattacharya.
India is a global leader in software development services, IT enabled services, knowledge process outsourcing services and contract R&D services relating to software development, Sitharaman said noting these business segments are quite inter-connected with each other.
Nearly two-thirds of external commercial borrowings (ECBs) raised so far in the ongoing financial year (2025-26/FY26) have been routed through Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City), a sharp jump from the 36 per cent recorded in 2024-25.
The Union Budget on Sunday proposed a tax holiday till 2047 for foreign companies that provide cloud services to customers globally using data centres located in India, signalling the government's push to make the country a major hub for AI and digital infrastructure.
The Union Budget on Sunday proposed a tax holiday till 2047 for foreign companies that provide cloud services to customers globally using data centres located in India, signalling the government's push to make the country a major hub for AI and digital infrastructure.
The most common mistake is investing without assessing suitability and long-term implications.
Around 24 paise will come from borrowings and other liabilities, 10 paise from non-tax revenue like disinvestment, and 2 paise from non-debt capital receipts, the Budget documents showed.
A shift appears underway in India's tax landscape. States with relatively smaller tax collections like Odisha and Telangana are emerging as the fastest-growing contributors to indirect and direct tax collections, respectively.
The Delhi High Court has directed the GST Council to consider lowering or abolishing the goods and services tax on air purifiers, citing worsening air quality in the national capital. The court has asked the council to meet at the earliest, even via video conference if necessary, to address the issue.
Gross GST collections rose 6.2 per cent to a three-month high of over Rs 1.93 lakh crore in January, indicating increased consumption is making up for rate cuts late last year, sources said on Sunday.
The idea of back-loading the target of fiscal consolidation is perhaps guided by the government's desire to be prepared for any adverse developments in the coming year, points out A K Bhattacharya.
'Global uncertainty is something which definitely occupies the minds of officials when we are preparing for the Budget.'
Taxpayers should consider ITR-U if they omitted income, wrongly claimed deductions or exemptions, or made reporting errors that led to a shortfall in tax payment.
Cigarette-to-soap conglomerate ITC on Thursday reported a consolidated net profit (attributable to owners) of Rs 4,931.19 crore for the third quarter (October-December/Q3) of 2025-26 (FY26), affected by a one-time provision related to the new labour codes and a base effect from an exceptional item in Q3 of 2024-25. In the year-ago period, net profit had stood at Rs 4,934.8 crore.
Building on last year's clearance of 172K cases, I-T department is pushing for faster appeal disposals, penalty reforms and system-driven processes to curb litigation and boost tax certainty.
The 2026-27 Budget, seeking to harmonise the government's imperative to grant certainty while ensuring a rational tax policy, had several notable announcements to usher in halcyon days, says Mukesh Butani.
Greer said that India has taken down some digital services taxes and is moving tariffs down.
'Repeated adjournments are one of the largest contributors to lengthy litigation cycles.'
Investors and startup executives are calling for extending the period for an entity to be recognised as a startup from 10 to 15 years for deep-tech companies.
Here are the key numbers to watch out for in the Union Budget for 2025-26:
Any reduction on purifiers would need consensus among state finance ministers.
India has clarified its position on the proposed interim trade agreement with the US, stating that the joint statement remains the basis for mutual understanding. Amendments to a White House fact sheet reflect shared understandings, with both sides working towards finalizing the agreement.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday proposed to exempt Minimum Alternate Tax (MAT) for non-residents who pay tax on presumptive basis.
With the Union Budget three months away, major industry chambers have submitted to the government proposals on common taxes, seeking simpler compliance and a quicker resolution of tax disputes.
India Inc on Sunday hailed the Union Budget 2026-27 as a 'structural shift' in the country's technology landscape, noting that the government is moving beyond fragmented pilots to build foundational layers where AI serves as a 'horizontal enabler' for the entire economy.
Budget 2026 is an intentional and ambitious one - From manufacturing growth to services supremacy, from technology consumption to AI-powered transformation. This is the blueprint for a $7 trillion economy built on intelligence, not just scale.
'Despite a challenging FMCG environment, ITC Foods has grown at or above the industry rate.'
ICICI Bank on Thursday said tax authorities have slapped a demand notice of Rs 238 crore on it for alleged short payment of GST.
UltraTech Cement on Saturday said it has received a GST demand notice for a total payment of Rs 782.2 crore, which it plans to contest before the appropriate forum.
India's electric two-wheeler (e2W) manufacturers have urged the government to extend subsidies under the PM E-Drive (Electric Drive Revolution in Innovative Vehicle Enhancement) scheme beyond March 2026, cautioning that a withdrawal could slow near-term demand even as confidence in long-term electric mobility adoption remains intact.
A GST Deputy Commissioner, Prashant Kumar Singh, resigned in protest against Shankaracharya Avimukteshwaranand's remarks against Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, citing attempts to divide the nation on caste and religious lines.
A pickup in freight rates, rising fleet utilisation and a long-awaited replacement cycle are breathing fresh life into India's commercial vehicle (CV) market, strengthening the investment case for Tata Motors' CV arm (TMCV). Despite a broadly steady December quarter (Q3) performance, brokerages remain divided on whether the upswing is strong enough to offset margin pressures.
India is growing fast, but to keep growing strong, the government must make more things at home, create jobs, and spend money wisely, suggests Rajiv Memani, regional managing partner, Africa-India Region, EY.
The domestic cigarette industry is expected to see a 6-8 per cent volume contraction next fiscal following the imposition of additional excise duties and increase in goods and services tax (GST) rates from February 1, Crisil Ratings said on Wednesday.
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