Top corporate houses pay 20% more tax this fiscal, shows CBDT data

HDFC Bank tops the list, followed by SBI

Top corporate houses have paid over 20 per cent more tax this financial year than the corresponding period last year, according to data available with the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) as on March 25.

HDFC Bank leads the top 10 list, and has paid Rs 12,050 crore in taxes, which is an 18.5 per cent increase over the Rs 10,170 crore it paid in the corresponding period last year. State Bank of India (SBI) stands second, having shelled out Rs 11,294 crore, a 24 per cent increase over the Rs 9,086 crore it paid last year. It is followed by LIC, which has paid Rs 9,869 crore, an increase of 0.5 per cent over the Rs 9,821 crore it paid last year.  

Most sectors have improved their performance compared with a year ago, with many banks paying substantially higher tax. The figures signal a growth in margins for technology, engineering, and pharma firms, said a senior bureaucrat privy to the information. Collection from the top 10 corporate houses stood at Rs 61,872 crore, against Rs 50,203 crore last year, an increase of 23 per cent. The total corporate tax collection as on date grew 8.5 per cent to Rs 3.59 trillion, while tax deducted at source from corporates was Rs 1.87 trillion, a 2.2 per cent rise. Meanwhile, total refunds have risen 13.5 per cent, as the government paid out Rs 2.02 trillion, compared with Rs 1.78 trillion last year.

Banks

Apart from HDFC Bank and SBI, ICICI Bank paid 20 per cent more in taxes at Rs 4,265 crore, against Rs 3,550 crore last year.  Kotak Mahindra Bank’s outgo has increased more than 10 per cent as well.

OMCs

The rise in fuel prices have had a positive impact on revenues of oil marketing companies (OMCs) thanks to which corporate tax paid by Indian Oil Corporation, Bharat Petroleum (BPCL), Hindustan Petroleum (HPCL) has grown tremendously by 230 per cent, 160 per cent, and 180 per cent, respectively, till March 25. 

However, this was not the case for oil generation companies like ONGC, which paid 62 per cent lesser tax, and gas companies like GAIL, which saw 25 per cent fall in its tax outgo. 

Taxes paid by technology majors Infosys and Tata Consultancy Services have also grown. Infosys paid Rs 4,550 crore, a 24 per cent rise, while TCS’ tax outgo was Rs 5,963 crore.  

Major pharmaceutical companies also saw a huge jump in tax payments amid the vaccination drive. For instance, Divi’s Labs paid 44 per cent more tax at Rs 645 crore, compared with Rs 447 crore last year, followed by Cipla which paid Rs 923 crore, a 45 per cent rise. Aurobindo and Lupin, too, paid 51 per cent and 32 per cent more, respectively.  So far, the net direct tax collection stood at Rs 9.18 trillion as of March 24, exceeding the revised Budget target of Rs 9.05 trillion. This is the first time in four years that collections have exceeded the revised Budget target, spurred by the robust advance tax mop-up in FY21. 

The Budget estimate of the tax department was earlier set at Rs 13.19 trillion for FY21, which later revised to Rs 9.05 trillion in the wake of the pandemic.

The revenue department has attributed this to the pickup in economic activity and the advance tax mop-up in the fourth quarter. Officials are of view that they may even touch the earlier target of this fiscal. The fall in net direct tax collection has narrowed to 4 per cent year-on-year, compared with a 9 per cent decline seen in January.