Karad asks I-T dept to be more taxpayer-friendly to expand tax base

Minister of state for finance Bhagwat Karad on Tuesday asked the income tax department to be more taxpayer-friendly so as to expand the assessee base and increase government's tax revenues.

Stressing that the faceless regime, transparency and friendly atmosphere are three important areas where the I-T department should focus on, he urged tax officers to increase the coverage of Permanent Account Number (PAN).

''We want to make the department more friendly so that the number of taxpayers increases and generate more income,'' Karad said while launching Pratidhwani -- an e-book on the evolution of the Income Tax (I-T) Department.

He said the reforms in the I-T department like Annual Information Statement (AIS) for easy information access, instant online PAN allotment based on Aaddhar without filing detail application form, faceless income tax assessment and efficient refund system has brought about convenience for taxpayers.

The government has estimated to collect Rs 14.20 lakh crore from direct taxes in current fiscal. This includes Rs 7.20 lakh crore from corporate taxes and Rs 7 lakh crore from personal individual tax.

In the last fiscal, direct tax collection rose by a record 49 per cent to Rs 14.10 lakh crore.