2:21 am - Wednesday April 24, 2024
Home » Business Pages » Taxation

Taxation

Taxation of Individuals

Taxation of Individuals

  • Who is liable to pay income tax

  • Sources of Income

  • Compute the taxable income

Individuals are subject to income tax. Income tax is a direct tax levied on the income earned by individuals, corporations or on other forms of business entities. The Indian constitution has empowered only the Central Government to levy and collect income tax. The Income Tax department set up by the Government, is governed by the Central Board for Direct Taxes (CBDT). The CBDT is a part of Department of Revenue in the Ministry of Finance. It has been charged with all the matters relating to various direct taxes in India. It provides essential inputs for policy and planning of direct taxes in India and is also responsible for administration of direct tax laws through the Income Tax Department. For all the matters relating to Income tax, the Income Tax Act, 1961 is the umbrella Act which empowers the Central Board of Direct Taxes to formulate rules (The Income Tax Rules, 1962) for implementing the provisions of the Act.

The Income Tax Act provides that in respect of the total income of the previous year of every person, income tax shall be charged for the corresponding assessment year at the rates laid down by the Finance Act for that assessment year. In other words, the income earned in a year is taxable in the next year and the income-tax rates prescribed for an assessment Year are applicable in respect of income earned during the previous Year.

Note that : The financial year in which the income is earned is known as the previous year. The financial year following a previous year is known as the assessment year. The assessment year is the year in which the salary earned in the previous year is taxable. Any financial year begins from 1st of April of every year and ends on 31st of March of the subsequent year.

In case of a business or profession which is newly started, the previous year commences from the date of commencement of the new business or profession up to the next 31st March, unless the person is an existing assessee. The Income Tax Act is subjected to annual amendments by the Union Budget every year. The Finance Bill in the budget contains various amendments which are sought to be made in direct and indirect taxes levied by the Central Government. The bill also mentions the rates of income tax and other taxes. The bill once approved becomes a Finance Act and provisions in it are incorporated in the Income Tax Act.

 

Other Categories

Taxation
Taxation of Individuals
Who is liable to pay income tax
Sources of Income
Income from Salaries
Income from Capital Gains
Income from House property
Income from Profits & gains of business or profession
Income from other sources
Taxation of Partnerships
Customs Duties (Import Duty and Export Tax)
Wealth Tax
Taxation of Corporates
Taxation of Agents
Excise Duty
Permanent Account Number (PAN)
Taxation of other forms of business entities
Taxation of Trusts
Taxation of Small Scale Industries
Joint Venture Companies
Cooperative Societies
Taxation of Representative offices
Service Tax
TDS,TCS,TAN
Value Added Tax (VAT)


Introduction

India has a well developed tax structure. The power to levy taxes and duties is distributed among the three
tiers of Government, in accordance with the provisions of the Indian Constitution. The main taxes/duties that
the Union Government is empowered to levy are:- Income Tax (except tax on agricultural income,
which the State Governments can levy), Customs duties, Central Excise and Sales Tax and Service Tax. The principal taxes levied by the State Governments are:- Sales Tax (tax on intra-State sale of goods), Stamp Duty (duty on transfer of property), State Excise (duty on manufacture of alcohol), Land Revenue (levy on land used for agricultural/non-agricultural purposes), Duty on Entertainment and Tax on Professions & Callings. The Local Bodies are empowered to levy tax on properties (buildings, etc.), Octroi (tax on entry of goods for use/consumption within areas of the Local Bodies), Tax on Markets and Tax/User Charges for utilities like water supply, drainage, etc.

In the wake of economic reforms, the tax system in India has under gone a radical change, in line with the
liberal policy. Some of the changes include:- rationalization of tax structure; progressive reduction in peak
rates of customs duty; reduction in corporate tax rate; customs duties to be aligned with ASEAN levels;
introduction of value added tax; widening of the tax base; tax laws have been simplified to ensure better compliance. Tax policy in India provides tax holidays in the form of concessions for various types of investments. These include incentives to priority sectors and to industries located in special area/ regions. Tax incentives are available also for those engaged in development of infrastructure.