New Delhi: The Interim Budget 2024 being presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, was on the expected lines –devoid of any fireworks for the salaried class. As was anticipated, FM announced no changes in the Income Tax rates both direct and indirect. This means that tax payers, opting for the new tax scheme, will continue to pay zero tax on income up to Rs 7 lakh.
However, an announcement that will benefit 1 crore taxpayers is the withdrawal of old disputed direct tax demands of up to Rs 25,000 till FY2009 and Rs 10,000 for 2010-11 to 2014-15.
Reading out her Interim Budget speech, FM said, “I wish to make an announcement to improve tax payer services. There are a large number of petty, non-verified, non-reconciled or disputed direct tax demands, many of them dating as far back as the year 1962, which continue to remain on the books, causing anxiety to honest tax payers and hindering refunds of subsequent years. I propose to withdraw such outstanding direct tax demands up to twenty-five thousand rupees (Rs 25,000) pertaining to the period up to financial year 2009-10 and up to ten-thousand rupees (Rs 10,000) for financial years 2010-11 to 2014-15. This is expected to benefit about a crore tax-payers.”
Sanjay Sanghvi, Partner, Khaitan & Co said that the FM’s announcement to do away with and withdraw old outstanding tax demands of up to Rs 25,000 which are still appearing in the government’s books as ‘outstanding tax demand’, will provide relief to a large section of small and mid-level taxpayers.