Direct Tax Code

The Income Tax department plans to immediately capture on receipt the data of returns filed by taxpayers to enhance their investigation and enforcement action to curb tax evasion and reduce tax gap over the next few years. The department is also mooting developing a 'criminal investigation' system within its establishment to combat terror financing, money laundering, offshore tax evasion and other illegal trades which impact national security. Full Article

Parliament's Standing Committee on Finance has criticised the government for not doing a review of the tax exemptions given to Special Economic Zones (SEZs) and an evalutation of the losses due to these. In April, the committee had asked the governme Full Article

Don't you hate it when you look at your salary slip and find that sundry deductions have pared it down. But believe us, you should actually feel happy about one of these deductions-the monthly contribution to the Employees' Provident Fund (EPF). The Full Article

The Union Revenue Secretary, Mr Sunil Mitra, said here on Tuesday that domestic tax policy would gradually move towards treaty override and introduce measures against aggressive tax planning and tax avoidance. Addressing a FICCI function here, Mr Mit Full Article

The government's official auditor, Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG), has mooted lower corporate taxes to stop many non-resident firms from misusing the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreements (DTAAs) on account of higher levies in India. Full Article

If a foreign company pays interest on loan for carrying out operations in India it will be allowed tax exemption under the Income Tax Act, 1961, a tax tribunal has ruled. This has put to rest uncertainties on application of Thin Capitalisation rules Full Article

Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee is unlikely to go for any major changes in direct taxes when he presents the Budget in February. According to indications, he will restrict himself to minor tweaking in the policy on income and corporation tax, and Full Article

The Finance Ministry will make a presentation before a parliamentary panel on the bill on Direct Taxes Code (DTC), which is scheduled to replace archaic income tax act from April 1, 2012. "It''s a preliminary introductory meeting for the first time.. Full Article