The Centre’s net direct tax collection rose 13.21 per cent annually to ₹13.38 trillion as of October 14, supported by strong corporate tax collection growth and a sharp jump in Securities Transaction Tax (STT), even as refunds accelerated, provisional data released by the income-tax department on Thursday showed.
Gross direct tax collections stood at ₹16.03 trillion during the period, registering an annual growth of 14.89 per cent. Refunds increased 24.22 per cent to ₹2.65 trillion, compared with ₹2.13 trillion in the corresponding period last year.
Corporate tax collections remained robust, with gross collections rising 17 per cent to ₹7.53 trillion, while net collections increased 20.6 per cent to ₹5.99 trillion after refunds.
Non-corporate tax collection, which mainly comprises personal income tax, grew at a slower pace as refunds surged. Gross collections increased 11.5 per cent year-on-year to ₹8.03 trillion, while net collections rose 5.8 per cent to ₹6.92 trillion. Refunds under this category jumped 67.2 per cent to ₹1.11 trillion during the period, compared with ₹66,550 crore a year earlier.
Richa Sawhney, Partner – Tax at Grant Thornton Bharat said the latest direct tax numbers reflect healthy tax buoyancy, with broad-based growth across key revenue streams. “Equally significant is the sharp increase in refunds, particularly for non-corporate taxpayers, which reflects the administration’s focus on faster processing of taxpayer claims.”
This suggests that revenue growth is being achieved alongside improved taxpayer service, pointing to a tax ecosystem that is increasingly focused on both compliance and facilitation, Sawhney added.
Hitesh Sawhney, partner at Price Waterhouse & Co LLP, said net direct tax collections had grown 13.2 per cent despite a more than 24 per cent increase in refunds, reflecting strong tax buoyancy and improved compliance.
He added that growth in net corporate tax collections of over 20 per cent indicated healthy business performance, while rising STT receipts pointed to sustained investor participation in financial markets.
Jayesh Sanghvi, tax partner at EY India, said net corporate tax collections were significantly ahead of non-corporate collections, partly because refunds in the latter category had risen nearly 67 per cent.
This could indicate excess tax withholding or advance tax payments by certain taxpayers, he said. The 51.6 per cent rise in STT collections also reflects continued activity in equity and derivatives markets, partly supported by the increase in STT rates on equity derivatives from April 2026, Sanghvi added.
The government had increased tax rates on derivatives transactions from April 1, 2026. The tax on the sale of futures was raised from 0.02 per cent to 0.05 per cent of traded value, while the rate on options premium increased from 0.10 per cent to 0.15 per cent.
Sanghavi said the trajectory of collections and refunds in the second half of FY27 would be important in assessing progress towards the full-year target.
For FY27, the government has budgeted ₹26.97 trillion in direct tax collections. Net collections as of October 14 accounted for about 49.6 per cent of the full-year target.
The actual net direct tax collection for FY26 stood at ₹23.40 trillion, against the revised estimate of ₹24.21 trillion.
