‘All tax slabs seeing around three times surge in return filing’: FM Nirmala Sitharaman

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday said that the income tax data released in August is the biggest signal of the wide-scale formalisation of the Indian economy.

Speaking at the Global Fintech Fest 2023, Sitharaman said that taxable workforce will rise to 85.3 per cent from the current level of 22.5 per cent. “There will be 48.2 crore income tax filers in 2047, as opposed to 7 crores in FY23,” said Sitharaman.

She further added that all tax slabs have seen a minimum three times increase in tax filing, some even seeing a four-times surge. “Each tax slab has seen a minimum of three-fold surge in tax filings. Maharashtra continues to be the leader in ITR filings,” she said.

"I want banking system, the financial ecosystem (including) the mutual funds, stock markets... everybody to keep in mind that when someone deals with his (customer's) money, the organisations will have to think about the future and ensure that they (customers) nominate their heir, give the name and address," said Sitharaman at the Global Fintech Fest (GFF).

Talking about changing global dynamics, FM Sitharaman called for collaboration across different areas, including regulating cryptocurrencies, tackling tax evasion, and easing global debt distress.

She said global collaboration in today's world with more intensity is the key. 

"Global cooperation is absolutely critical for financial ecosystems to thrive. Hence today we are gathering 100+ countries at this festival. Fintechs technologies like UPI and ONDC are driving more inclusion, resilience and sustainability in India. Technology is the common tool available to everyone regardless of the disparities globally,” Sitharaman said.