There are more than a lakh tax cases pending in courts and various tribunals, holding back Rs 64,244 crore in both direct and indirect taxes. “The major reasons for pendency of 1,31,780 tax cases are excessive burden on existing tribunals and courts, and shortage of human resources with tax departments, ” junior finance minister S S Palanimanickam told the Lok Sabha today.
Pursuant to the annual budget, the Government of India (Government) had introduced the Finance Bill 2010 (Finance Bill) in the Parliament on 26 February 2010. The Government has now proposed certain amendments to the Finance Bill (As a reply to the debate on the Finance Bill in the lower house of the Parliament) as initially presented before the Parliament. This Tax Alert summarizes the amendments proposed by the Finance Bill to the Direct Tax Law (DTL) and the Indirect Tax law (ITL).
The government proposes to set up a Directorate of Currency (DOC) in the Ministry of Finance. The Directorate of Currency (DOC) will have the mandate to : (i) Monitor & review best practices around the world;
If you have written ‘hundered’ instead of ‘hundred’ on a cheque, don’t just strike off the additional ‘e’ and issue the cheque. Use a fresh leaf instead, or it could cost you Rs100-550. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has notified banks in a recent circular to not accept cheques that have corrections or alterations in anything but the date. The measure has been taken to “help banks identify and control fraudulent alterations”. The banks have started informing customers about the policy change through mailers.
The airline industry can heave a sigh of relief with finance minister Pranab Mukherjee on Thursday capping the incidence of service tax on air travel at Rs 100 for domestic travel and Rs 500 for international travel.
The country’s leading mobile operators, including Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Essar, BSNL and Tatas, have questioned the government’s move to direct the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) to audit their books. The CAG is a constitutional body that conducts independent audits of all government accounts.
In a decision that could have a bearing on all cross-border transactions, including those related to the Indian Premier League teams that are currently being probed by tax authorities, the Delhi High Court has ruled that any liability to withhold tax would arise only if payments to overseas entities is liable to be taxed in India.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee’s decision to increase the tax concession on construction of real estate complexes from 67 per cent to 75 per cent of the gross value of property, including land value, has been welcomed by the industry and analysts.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India plans to tighten the rules for transfer of sub-accounts by foreign institutional investors. Sebi defines sub-accounts as entities that include foreign companies, foreign individuals and institutions, funds or portfolios established or incorporated outside India, on whose behalf FIIs propose to make investments in India.
Honourable Supreme Court on Friday issued notices to the Centre and 14 life insurers on a petition by market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India seeking transfer of cases from high courts relating to Unit Linked Insurance Products.
