Types of Direct Taxes in India along with definitions

Covers topics of direct taxes in India, types of taxes in India, types of Indirect Taxes in India pdf, 

Power of taxation in Indian Economy:

Article 246 (SEVENTH SCHEDULE) of the Indian Constitution, distributes legislative powers including taxation, between the Parliament and the State Legislature. Schedule VII enumerates these subject matters with the use of three lists;

List- I entailing the areas on which only the parliament is competent to makes laws,

List - II entailing the areas on which only the state legislature can make laws, and

List - III listing the areas on which both the Parliament and the State Legislature can make laws upon concurrently.

Items of Taxation under List -1 of Seventh Schedule:

The thirteen heads List-I of Seventh Schedule of Constitution of India  covered under Union taxation, on which Parliament enacts the taxation law, are as under:

1. Taxes on income other than agricultural income;
2. Duties of customs including export duties;
3. Duties of excise on tobacco and other goods manufactured or produced in India except (i) alcoholic liquor for human consumption, and (ii) opium, Indian hemp and other narcotic drugs and narcotics, but including medicinal and toilet preparations containing alcohol or any substance included in (ii);
4. Corporation Tax;
5. Taxes on capital value of assets, exclusive of agricultural land, of individuals and companies, taxes on capital of companies;
6. Estate duty in respect of property other than agricultural land;
7. Duties in respect of succession to property other than agricultural land;
8. Terminal taxes on goods or passengers, carried by railway, sea or air; taxes on railway fares and freight;
9. Taxes other than stamp duties on transactions in stock exchanges and futures markets;
10. Taxes on the sale or purchase of newspapers and on advertisements published therein;
11. Taxes on sale or purchase of goods other than newspapers, where such sale or purchase takes place in the course of inter-State trade or commerce;
12. Taxes on the consignment of goods in the course of inter-State trade or commerce.
13. All residuary types of taxes not listed in any of the three lists of Seventh Schedule of Indian Constitution.

 Items of Taxation under List -2 of Seventh Schedule:

 The nineteen heads List-II of Seventh Schedule of the Indian Constitution covered under State taxation, on which State Legislative enacts the taxation law, are as under:

1. Land revenue, including the assessment and collection of revenue, the maintenance of land records, survey forrevenue purposes and records of rights, and alienation of revenues;
2. Taxes on agricultural income;
3. Duties in respect of succession to agricultural income;
4. Estate Duty in respect of agricultural income;
5. Taxes on lands and buildings;
6. Taxes on mineral rights;
7. Duties of excise for following goods manufactured or produced within the State (i) alcoholic liquors for human consumption, and (ii) opium, Indian hemp and other narcotic drugs and narcotics;
8. Taxes on entry of goods into a local area for consumption, use or sale therein;
9. Taxes on the consumption or sale of electricity;
10. Taxes on the sale or purchase of goods other than newspapers;
11. Taxes on advertisements other than advertisements published in newspapers and advertisements broadcast by radio or television;
12. Taxes on goods and passengers carried by roads or on inland waterways;
13. Taxes on vehicles suitable for use on roads;
14. Taxes on animals and boats;
15. Tolls;
16. Taxes on profession, trades, callings and employments;
17. Capitation taxes;
18. Taxes on luxuries, including taxes on entertainments, amusements, betting and gambling;
19. Stamp duty.

Provisions have been made by 73rd Constitutional Amendment, enforced from 24th April, 1993, to levy taxes by the Panchayat. A State may by law authorise a Panchayat to levy, collect and appropriate taxes, duties, tolls etc.Similarly, the provisions have been made by 74th Constitutional Amendment, enforced from 1st June, 1993, to levy the taxes by the Municipalities. A State Legislature may by law authorise a Municipality to levy, collect

and appropriate taxes, duties, tolls etc.

Important Committees on Tax Reforms
1956	Nicholas Kaldor Committee
1971	K. N. Wanchoo Committee
1981	L. K. Jha Committee
1991	Raja J. Clliah Committee
2001	Parthasarthy Scheme Committee
2002	Vijay Kelkar Committee
2003	M. Govinda Rao Committee

Read Indirect Taxes  to grasp thorough knowledge of the Topic

Direct Taxes:

A Direct tax is a kind of charge, which is imposed directly on the taxpayer and paid directly to the government by the persons (juristic or natural) on whom it is imposed. A direct tax is one that cannot be shifted by the taxpayer to someone else. Types of direct taxes in India are:

Income Tax: Income Tax Act, 1961 imposes tax on the income of the individuals or Hindu undivided families or firms or co-operative societies (other tan companies) and trusts (identified as bodies of individuals associations of persons) or every artificial juridical person. The inclusion of a particular income in the total incomes of a person for income-tax in India is based on his residential status. There are three residential status, viz.,

(i) Resident & Ordinarily Residents (Residents)

(ii) Resident but not Ordinarily Residents and

(iii) Non Residents.

There are several steps involved in determining the residential status of a person. All residents are taxable for all their income, including income outside India.

Non residents are taxable only for the income received in India or Income accrued in India.

Not ordinarily residents are taxable in relation to income received in India or income accrued in India and income from business or profession controlled from India.

Corporation Tax: The companies and business organizations in India are taxed on the income from their worldwide transactions under the provision of Income Tax Act, 1961.

A corporation is deemed to be resident in India if it is incorporated in India or if it’s control and management is situated entirely in India.

 In case of non resident corporations, tax is levied on the income which is earned from their business transactions in India or any other Indian sources depending on bilateral agreement of that country.

Property Tax: Property tax or 'house tax' is a local tax on buildings, along with appurtenant land, and imposed on owners. The tax power is vested in the states and it is delegated by law to the local bodies, specifying the valuation method, rate band, and collection procedures. The tax base is the annual ratable value (ARV) or area based rating. Owner-occupied and other properties not producing rent are assessed on cost and then converted into ARV by applying a percentage of cost, usually six percent. Vacant land is generally exempted from the assessment. The properties lying under control of Central are exempted from the taxation. Instead a 'service charge' is permissible under executive order. Properties of foreign missions also enjoy tax exemption without an insistence for reciprocity.

Inheritance (Estate) Tax: An inheritance tax (also known as an estate tax or death duty) is a tax which arises on the death of an individual. It is a tax on the estate, or total value of the money and property, of a person who has died. India enforced estate duty from 1953 to 1985. Estate Duty Act, 1953 came into existence w.e.f. 15th October, 1953. Estate Duty on agricultural land was discontinued under the Estate Duty (Amendment) Act, 1984. The levy of Estate Duty in respect of property (other than agricultural land) passing on death occurring on or after 16th March, 1985, has also been abolished under the Estate Duty (Amendment) Act, 1985.

Gift Tax: Gift tax in India is regulated by the Gift Tax Act which was constituted on 1st April, 1958. It came into effect in all parts of the country except Jammu and Kashmir. As per the Gift Act 1958, all gifts in excess of Rs. 25,000, in the form of cash, draft, check or others, received from one who doesn't have blood relations with the recipient, were taxable. However, with effect from 1st October, 1998, gift tax got demolished and all the gifts made on or after the date were free from tax. But in 2004, the act was again revived partially. A new provision was introduced in the Income Tax Act 1961 under section 56 (2). According to it, the gifts received by any individual or Hindu Undivided Family (HUF) in excess of Rs. 50,000 in a year would be taxable.

Securities Transaction Tax: A lot of people do not declare their profit and avoid paying capital gain tax, as government can only tax those profits, which have been declared by people. To fight with this situation Government has introduced STT (Securities Transaction Tax ) which is applicable on every transaction done at stock exchange. That means if you buy or sell equity shares, derivative instruments, equity oriented Mutual Funds this tax is applicable.          

Capital Gains Tax: Capital Gain tax as name suggests it is tax on gain in capital. If you sale property, shares, bonds & precious material etc. and earn profit on it within predefined time frame you are supposed to pay capital gain tax. The capital gain is the difference between the money received from selling the asset and the price paid for it. Capital gain tax is categorized into short-term gains and long-term gains. The Long-term Capital Gains Tax is charged if the capital assets are kept for more than certain period 1 year in case of share and 3 years in case of property. Short-term Capital Gains Tax is applicable if these assets are held for less than the above-mentioned period. Rate at which this tax is applied varies based on investment class.