Budget 2023: A list of expectations from salaried, crypto, corporate taxpayers

Abhay Aggarwal, CEO, and Founder, of Colexion shares a few pre-budget projections for the fiscal year 2023–2024.

The Salaried Class

The income tax system ought to undergo certain revisions as part of the budget. Since FY 2017–18, the tax rates have not been subject to review. Despite the introduction of a new tax system, the majority of taxpayers have not adopted it since it is less viable than the previous system. Therefore, the highest tax rate of 30% needs to be cut to 25% and the threshold for the highest tax rate needs to be raised from Rs10 lakhs to ₹20 lakhs to improve purchasing power and provide some tax relief.

The Indian Corporates

Currently, there are varying tax rates for various industries. The corporate sector anticipates that uniformity in tax rates should be implemented for India to stand as a center for both the manufacturing and services industries. India will have one of the most globally competitive company tax rates if the 15% corporation tax rate is implemented. In addition to boosting the manufacturing and industrial sectors, this will open the door for the services sector to expand and outperform itself.

The Crypto NFT Market

The Indian government introduced a formal tax system for digital assets as the first step toward legalizing cryptocurrency. Institutional investors now have the much-needed clarity and guidance to consider digital assets as an alternative asset class, thanks to the established tax structure.

The average age of cryptocurrency investors is under 30. We think the government should rationalise the 30% tax as this is the age when a person begins their journey toward financial planning and stability to promote a vibrant IT and web3 ecosystem that will fuel innovation and progress in the nation. Additionally, it becomes imperative to store digital assets in a secure and compliant manner when institutional investors are involved. For India to gain the trust of institutional and retail stakeholders, professional digital wallet infrastructure businesses that are regulated, compliant, and licensed are required.

GST subsidy on PoS devices

Bhaskar Chatterjee from Ezetap said that the budget could consider making devices such as the PoS (Point of Sale) terminals the most viable acquiring infrastructure for banks and fintech companies by offering incentives such as a GST subsidy on PoS devices.

Rollback of the 0% MDR on UPI & Rupay DC

Rollback of the 0% MDR on UPI & Rupay DC is another measure that the government could consider. In addition, rolling back the 0% MDR will incentivise the banks to improve the current infrastructure around UPI – leading to better success rates, said Bhaskar Chatterjee.