More than 7.3 crore income tax returns (ITRs) were filed for Assessment Year 2026, exceeding the number filed a year earlier, Revenue Secretary Arvind Shrivastava said on Friday, highlighting the government's continued push to simplify tax laws, strengthen faceless tax administration and enhance taxpayer services.
Shrivastava said the Income Tax Department should increasingly be seen as a facilitator for honest taxpayers rather than merely an enforcement agency, stressing that technology must make tax administration smarter, more efficient and less intrusive.
He said the government remains focused on greater automation, reducing human interface and delivering faster services to taxpayers.
Deepening and widening the faceless tax ecosystem, along with ensuring tax certainty, consistency and ease of compliance, will remain key priorities, he added.
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Highlighting the department's performance, Shrivastava said 2.24 lakh tax appeals were disposed of in FY26, marking a nearly 30% year-on-year increase.
The department also resolved almost 4 lakh taxpayer grievances, achieving a disposal rate of around 95%.
On tax collections, he said both gross and net direct tax collections registered growth of around 4-5% in FY26, reflecting steady revenue mobilisation despite a challenging economic environment.
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Shrivastava also described the new Income-tax Act as a genuine effort to simplify India's tax framework.
As part of the overhaul, the number of sections has been reduced to 536 from 819, making the law easier to understand and comply with for taxpayers and businesses.
He said the reforms are aimed at building a more transparent, technology-driven and taxpayer-centric direct tax administration.
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