Top 22% enterprises, as stated by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, remit 90% of the GST fund
According to FM Nirmala Sitharaman on March 21, 2023, the top 22% of enterprises with a turnover exceeding Rs. 50 crore pay 90% of India’s Goods and Services Tax (GST) collects
The minister stated in Rajya Sabha that the Oxfam study “seems to be based on various improbable assumptions and not irrefutable or verifiable facts,” emphasizing that the GST is a consumption tax collected from providers of goods and services rather than from the final consumers of products and services.
“As a result, it is impossible to determine with precision who is responsible for paying how much GST. According to statistics from returns filed, the top 22% of Indian enterprises with a turnover of more than 50 crores pay 90% of the GST, Ms. Sitharaman continued.
To keep the incidence of taxation low on items of mass consumption, goods like unpackaged food grains, fruits and vegetables and services like education and health are exempt from the GST, she pointed out. “In addition, items like edible oil, lifesaving medicines, and fertilizers are in 5% slab,” she said.
According to the Oxfam Report on Indirect Taxes, 64.3% of the total GST collected from these food and non-food goods comes from the lower 50% income group and 3%-4% from the top 10% income group. These estimates are based on expected spending on specific food items and non-food items. The minister stated, “Therefore, the percentage is not with respect to the total GST revenue but GST from only some selected items,” adding that it is unknown which things were taken into account by Oxfam.
In response to an MP’s question on the contribution of different income groups to GST, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said it is not possible to calculate this “as neither the consumer invoice data is taken by the Government nor does the invoice have information on the income of the consumer”.
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