Corporate tax refunds in West Bengal in the current financial year till mid-February have declined by 19 per cent. They fell to Rs 502 crore from Rs 617 crore in the same period last year.
The department has netted a total of Rs 1,865 crore till mid-February by way of tax collection. This is an almost 21 per cent increase compared to that in the same period, last year.
Some of the reasons why there has been a decline in the corporate refunds is the fact that most corporates have not paid excess tax in terms of tax deduction at source (TDS) and advance tax. With TDS, some corporate assessees have asked their assessing officers not to deduct tax at source as it would be more than the income earned, say senior department officials.
Net corporate tax collected during this period was Rs 905.81 crore, up by 18 per cent, while net income tax collected during this period was higher at Rs 960 crore, which is a 22 per cent jump over the previous year.
Meanwhile, the department has conducted surveys and served showcause notices to seven city-based software firms over the past couple of months for non-payment of TDS dues.
Some of the points being looked at are the perquisites given to employees of the firms, in terms of non-deduction of TDS on rent payment, outfit allowance, technical journal allowance, under section 133 (a) of the Income Tax Act.
Sources said these companies owe the department cumulatively about Rs 2 crore in TDS.
The income tax department in Calcutta had refunded Rs 392 crore to the corporate sector between April and September 1999, an increase of 22.4 per cent over the same period last year.
The spate of refunds was triggered by a Central Board of Direct Taxes circular which called for paying all refunds determined by the department including those that have been pending since last financial year, by September 30, 1999.
ITC Ltd paid a whopping Rs 322 crore as advance tax to the income tax department till December 22, 1999.
