Consider the following with reference to Indian Tax System:

1. Corporation Tax

2. Dividends Distribution Tax

3. Minimum Alternative Tax

4. Stamp Duty

Which of the following is/are direct tax(es) applicable to private sector companies in India?

Solution

A direct tax is a tax levied directly on a taxpayer who pays it to the Government and cannot pass it on to someone else. ● Statement 1 is Correct: Corporate income tax (CIT) is imposed on the profits of the corporations/ companies/ entities. All profitmaking companies need to pay a flat rate of corporate income tax. To promote manufacturing, for new manufacturing firms (& electricity generation) set up after 1st October 2019 and commencing its operations before 31st March 2023, the Standard Corporate Income Tax is 15% (after Cess and Surcharge it will be 17.16%). ● Statement 2 is Incorrect: When a company announces dividends, it has to pay tax (DDT) on the dividend s and the owners also pay tax (as per their income tax slab) on the dividend received. Thus DDT is a tax on individuals and not on company. ● Statement 3 is Correct: Companies try to minimise giving taxes by taking advantage of depreciation, deductions, exemptions, etc from the government. The objective of introduction of MAT was to bring into the tax net "zero tax companies" which in spite of having earned substantial book profits and having paid handsome dividends, do not pay any tax due to various tax concessions and incentives provided under the Income tax Law. Minimum Alternate Tax is applied when the taxable income calculated according to the I-T Act provisions is found to be less than 15.5 per cent (plus surcharge and cess as applicable) of the book profit under the Companies Act, 2013. ● Statement 4 is Incorrect: Stamp duty is a legal tax payable in full and acts as evidence for any sale or purchase of a property. It is payable under Section 3 of the Indian Stamp Act, 1899. Although it is applicable to the companies, it is not a direct tax. The levy of stamp duty is a state subject and thus the rates of stamp duty vary from state to state. Beginning from July, 2020, all shares and mutual fund purchases will attract a stamp duty of 0.005 per cent