Govt may exceed direct tax collection target of FY18 Budget estimates

Buoyed by the 18.2 per cent rise in direct tax collections in the first nine months of fiscal year 2017-18, the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) is confident about achieving its collection target for the current financial year.

The apex body has even set itself a target of crossing the Rs 10-trillion milestone. The Union Budget 2018 had estimated direct tax collection at Rs 9.8 trillion for the current financial year, which was internally raised by Rs 200 billion in the last quarter, sources said.

"As things stand now, we will definitely reach the collection target. The collection, under all categories such as personal tax, advance tax, and tax deduction at source (TDS), are showing good results,” said a senior CBDT official.

Official data revealed net direct tax collection surged 18.2 per cent year-on-year to Rs 6.56 trillion during the April-December period. This is 67 per cent of the full-year direct tax collection target. Net tax collection stood at Rs 5.54 trillion in the corresponding period the previous year, which represented 65.3 per cent of the total direct tax collections in FY17.