The Centre’s indirect tax collections have surpassed the revised estimate target of Rs. 7.04 lakh crore for 2015-16.
As against revised estimate target of Rs. 7.04 lakh crore, government had already collected Rs. 7.09 lakh crore.
Tax department has surpassed revised estimates in each of the three indirect taxes–customs, excise and service tax.
Centre’s move to raise excise duties on petroleum products even as global crude oil prices had slumped helped increase the excise duty collections.
As global crude oil prices plummeted from average price of $100 per barrel to $35 per barrel in a span of a year, the Centre had not completely passed on this benefit of falling crude oil prices to consumers.
It had on the contrary resorted to several rounds of excise duty hikes on petroleum products, leading to sharp spike in excise duty collections.
In the recent budget, the Centre had significantly revised upwards the excise duty collections target for 2015-16 to Rs. 2.84 lakh crore. This represented a 23.5 per cent increase over budget estimate of Rs. 2.30 lakh crore.
The revised estimates of both customs and service tax was only marginally up.
While customs duty collection target was revised upwards to Rs. 2.10 lakh crore (budget estimate of Rs. 2.08 lakh crore), service tax collection target was almost flat at Rs. 2.10 lakh crore (Rs 2.09 lakh crore).
For 2016-17, the Centre has pegged the budget estimate of indirect taxes collections at Rs. 7.80 lakh crore, a 20 per cent increase over budget estimate of Rs. 6.48 lakh crore for 2015-16.
CBEC Chairman is Najib Shah.