India’s net direct tax collections for the ongoing financial year 2025-26 declined by 1.39 per cent to Rs 4.59 lakh crore as of June 19, mainly due to a sharp surge in refund issuances, according to government data released on Saturday. In the same period last year, net direct tax collections had stood at Rs 4.65 lakh crore, according to news agency PTI.Gross direct tax collections, however, rose by 4.86 per cent to Rs 5.45 lakh crore, up from Rs 5.19 lakh crore collected during the corresponding period in FY24. The fall in net collections is attributed to a 58 per cent increase in refunds, which touched Rs 86,385 crore so far this fiscal, indicating improved processing and faster taxpayer services.Advance tax collections between April 1 and June 19, 2025, showed a modest growth of 3.87 per cent at Rs 1.56 lakh crore, a significant slowdown from the 27 per cent year-on-year growth recorded in the same period last year.Corporate advance tax collections rose 5.86 per cent to Rs 1.22 lakh crore, while non-corporate advance tax collections fell 2.68 per cent to Rs 33,928 crore.Corporate tax collections overall fell by over 5 per cent to Rs 1.73 lakh crore, while non-corporate tax collections, largely personal income tax, saw a marginal rise of 0.7 per cent to Rs 2.73 lakh crore.Securities Transaction Tax (STT) collections also grew by 12 per cent, reaching Rs 13,013 crore during this period.Meanwhile, the Income Tax Department has introduced the ‘e-Pay Tax’ feature on its official portal to simplify the tax payment process, according to news agency ANI.The broader tax reform agenda is also advancing, with the Income Tax Bill 2025 currently under review by a Select Committee. Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman had earlier announced that the new Bill, which aims to replace the existing Income Tax Act of 1961 with a more concise, litigation-free law, will be taken up in the monsoon session of Parliament.The proposed structure also ensures zero tax liability for individuals earning up to Rs 12 lakh annually due to a raised rebate of Rs 60,000, as stated by the finance minister in her Budget speech.The government has invited stakeholder suggestions on the draft Bill to fine-tune the reforms.
