gross assets

The finance ministry is likely to keep the corporate tax rate unchanged at 30%, as it faces stiff resistance from companies to the draft direct tax code's proposal to cut the rate to 25% and remove all exemptions. "Corporates are resisting the phasing out of exemptions even with a lower tax rate," said a senior government official. Full Article

The government looks all set to introduce the new Direct Taxes Code in the forthcoming budget session , a government official said. Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday to discuss the contours of the new code, billed as the major reform of the direct tax structure being undertaken by the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government in its second tenure. Full Article

The government will take inputs from various stake holders before giving final shape to Direct Taxes Code, said the Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee while addressing the second meeting of the parliamentary consultative committee attached to the Ministry of Finance, here today. Full Article

The government is likely to ease the incidence of minimum alternate tax, or MAT, on infrastructure companies. The department of revenue plans to change the proposed direct tax code to exempt these companies from MAT for the first few years since they execute projects with long gestation periods. The code, in its current form, says all companies must pay MAT based on their gross asset value. In the case of infrastructure companies, this is very high since their asset base.. Full Article

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Friday indicated the government could rewrite the new direct tax code to make it acceptable to all stakeholders. On the tax code, he said, the government would attempt to build consensus on the proposals. “I have laid a certain proposal in the form of a direct tax code. But it is not the Bhagwad Gita and it cannot be said that it cannot be changed,” he added. Full Article

The concept of Minimum Alternate Tax (“MAT”) was introduced in the Indian tax regime to widen the tax net. Often there were situations where companies declared both profits and dividends but were not liable to taxation on account of various incentives and exemptions provided under the income tax legislation. MAT ensured that such companies were liable to pay some tax. As per the existing provisions of the Income tax Act, 1961, certain companies are liable to pay a fi.. Full Article

With the mammoth task of garnering support on contentious issues like exempt exempt tax (EET) regime for savings and minimum alternative tax (MAT) still to be done, the Direct Tax Codes Bill, which will replace the archaic Income Tax Act, 1961, is not likely to be introduced in the ongoing Parliament session. According to official sources, the bill will be tabled in Parliament only in the Budget Session. Full Article

The gems and jewellery industry wants provisions such as search and seizure and tax on gross assets in the Direct Taxes Code to be modified.It says these provisions could be detrimental to the sector’s growth which has been showing signs of recovery afterreeling under recession. Industry representatives also appealed to the Government to incentivise units in SEZs and EOUs. Full Article