Finance Minister P Chidambaram has said that he will not propose amendments to direct taxes such as income tax, customs tax, excise act, but any proposal short of amending a law can be made during the interim budget announcement due later in the day.
Here are the tax rates you should know about before Mr Chidambaram's speech:
Likely to be modified:
1) Excise duty, which currently stands at 12 per cent. Duty cuts on products like autos may be announced to support the manufacturing sector because of sluggish growth. Car sales declined by about 5 per cent in 2013.
2) Service tax, which currently stands at 12 per cent, can also be tinkered with.
3) The government may extend an interest subsidy on bank loans to exporters and farmers
4) Tax concessions for poorer regions may be announced.
5) Import duty on gold, which were hiked to a record 10 per cent last year, may be cut. A rule that says 20 per cent of all imports must leave the country as exports might be relaxed. UPA chairman Sonia Gandhi had written to the central government in January to ask for a cut in the record import duty on gold and for other restrictions to be eased.
Unlikely to be touched:
6) Personal income tax: The slabs are as follows,
i) Rs 2 lakh to Rs 5 lakh: 10 per cent (A tax rebate of Rs 2,000 from tax calculated will be available for people having an annual income upto Rs 5 lakh)
ii) Rs 5 lakh to Rs 10 lakh: 20 per cent
iii) Above Rs 10 lakh: 30 per cent
7) Surcharge for high earners: Individuals who earn more than Rs 1 crore per year have to pay a 10 per cent surcharge on their income.
8) Corporate tax rate for domestic companies, which stands at 33.99 per cent.
9) Minimum alternate tax (MAT) rate stands at 20.96 per cent.
10) Corporate tax rate for foreign companies stands at 43.26 per cent.
Essential Business Intelligence, Sharp Market Insights, Practical Personal Finance Advice, Daily Fuel, Gold and Silver Prices and Latest Stories — On NDTV Profit.
