Indirect Tax Collections for Aug 15 increases by 36.7%

Indirect Tax Revenue (Provisional) Collections during Month of August 2015 Increased by 36.7% as Compared with August 2014 while, Overall Indirect Tax Collections During April-August 2015 Increased to Rs. 2,63,089 Crore from Rs. 1,92,677 Crore during the same Period Last Year and thereby Registering an Increase of 36.5%

In August 2015, indirect tax revenue (provisional) collections increased by 36.7% compared with August 2014; cumulatively, in April-August 2015 indirect tax collections increased by 36.5% percent over the same period last year, while, the asking rate for 2015-16 is 18.8%. Overall, in monetary terms, the indirect tax revenue (provisional) collections increased to Rs 2,63,089 crore during April-August 2015 from Rs.1,92,677 crore during April-August 2014. In the month of August 2015 alone, the collections increased to Rs.54,396 crore from Rs.39,781 crore in August 2014.

Collections on account of Central Excise increased from Rs.60,663 crore in April-August 2014 to Rs.1,02,945 crore in April-August 2015 and thereby registering an increase of 69.7 %. In case of Service Tax, collections increased from Rs.61,693crore in April-August 2014 to Rs.75,006crore in April-August 2015 and thereby registering an increase of 21.6 %. Collections on account of Customs increased from Rs.70,321crore in April-August 2014 to Rs.85,138crore in April-August 2015 and thereby registering an increase of 21.1 %.

These collections reflect in part increase due to additional measures taken by the Government from time to time, including the excise increases on diesel and petrol, the increase in clean energy cess, the withdrawal of exemptions for motor vehicles, capital goods and consumer durables, and from June 2015, the increase in Service Tax from 12.36 to 14 percent; customs duties collections have been aided by the rupee depreciation of 6 per cent between April and August this year.

However, stripped of all these additional measures, indirect tax collections increased by 12.2 percent during April-August 2015 as compared to April-August 2014.

These collections continue to suggest a healthy growth in the underlying tax base.

Details of overall Indirect Tax Revenue (Provisional) collections during April-June 2015 along with growth rate compared to the corresponding period in the previous year are as follows:

​