Net GST mopup rises 11% to Rs 1.63 trillion in Nov amid drop in refunds

Gross collection grows 8.5% to Rs 1.8 trillion

Net goods and services tax (GST) collections rose by 11.1 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) to Rs 1.63 trillion in November amid sharp drop in refunds, according to provisional data released by the government on Sunday.

 

However, sequentially net GST collections were below the October level of Rs 1.68 trillion with 7.9 per cent growth.

 

The latest GST data comes ahead of the all-powerful GST Council meeting on December 21. The Council is expected to take up rationalisation of indirect tax rates among other issues.

 

The gross GST collection, which is the amount before adjusting for refunds, grew by 8.5 per cent in November to Rs 1.8 trillion. November marks the ninth consecutive month in which collections exceeded Rs 1.7 trillion.

 

 

In November, domestic refunds contracted 19.6 per cent while total refunds including import refunds (6.8 per cent) led to an 8.9 per cent dip to Rs 19,259 crore. However, total refunds during the April-November period rose 10.2 per cent to Rs 1.7 trillion.

 

Cumulatively, from April through November, the growth in total gross GST collection remained in single digit of 9.3 per cent, down from the 10.1 per cent growth recorded until April-August period. To be sure, the November figures reflect goods and services transactions related to October. 

 

Experts anticipate a slowdown in tax collections over the next four months considering the recent seven quarter low GDP growth at 5.4 per cent for the July-September period. The global geopolitical scenario and potential consumer spending cuts are also expected to further exacerbate short-term economic pain.

 

“While the recent surge in tax collections, especially in states like Delhi, Maharashtra, and Karnataka, can be linked to the festival season, it is too early to celebrate this as a broader economic trend. In fact, month-on-month collections have declined, even after the festive boost,” said Saurabh Agarwal, Tax Partner, EY India. 

 

Net GST collections came in at Rs 1.68 trillion in October, marginally higher than November print.

 

The double digit GST collections in states like Maharashtra (17 per cent), Karnataka (15 per cent), Bihar (12 per cent), Uttarakhand (14 per cent) and Jharkhand (12 per cent) indicate the robust consumption in these states accompanied by the measures undertaken by tax authorities to improve compliance and crack down on evasion.

 

However, the single digit growth in some large states like Haryana (2 per cent), Punjab (3 per cent), Uttar Pradesh (5 per cent) & Madhya Pradesh (5per cent), West Bengal (6 per cent), Tamil Nadu (8 per cent), Telangana (3 per cent) as well the negative growth in Rajasthan (-1 per cent), Andhra Pradesh (-10 per cent), Chhattisgarh (-1 per cent) would be an area of concern as these states have considerable economic impact.

 

“The import GST revenue growth of 6 per cent also backs foreign trade data which indicates slower growth of non-petroleum imports.  The projected GDP growth of 7 per cent in FY25 augurs well for GST collections in the remaining four months of the current fiscal year, considering the fact that the collections in the first 8 months of FY25 have exceeded that of FY25 by more than Rs 1 trillion and are ahead of the budget estimates for FY25,” said MS Mani, Partner, Deloitte India.