Net tax revenues up 5% in FY21, says FM Nirmala Sitharaman

New Delhi: Net tax revenues grew 5% in the financial year ended March 31, 2021, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha on Monday. The net tax (sum of direct and indirect taxes) revenue in 2020-21 was over Rs 14.24 lakh crore, a nearly 5% growth from Rs 13.56 lakh crore in the previous financial year.

Non-tax revenue collection dropped 36% to Rs 2.08 lakh crore in 2020-21 from over Rs 3.27 lakh crore in 2019-20. Centre’s net revenue (tax+non-tax) collection in FY21 fell 3.09% to Rs 16.32 lakh crore.

The government has taken many steps to boost both direct and indirect tax revenue collection and curb tax evasion, the finance minister said.

Total cess and surcharge collection under indirect taxes (GST+non-GST) jumped 53% year-on-year to over Rs 4.39 lakh crore in FY21, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said in reply to a separate question. In FY19 and FY18, the cess collection under indirect taxes stood at Rs 2.67 lakh crore and Rs 2.17 lakh crore, respectively.

“States’ share of central taxes and duties are determined after deducting cesses and surcharges apart from cost of collection of the respective tax,” Chaudhary said. Cesses form part of Consolidated Fund of India and are used for the purpose for which they are levied, which in many cases involves grant to sates, he added.