Central tax collections declined by 1.9% to ₹2.66 trillion in April 2025, despite growth across major tax categories. According to reports from Business Standard, this decline occurred even as no major central taxes including personal income tax, corporation tax, Customs duty, excise duty, or central goods and services tax (CGST) fell compared to April 2024 levels. This marks the third time in the past 10 years that overall central tax receipts fell year-on-year in April, highlighting the unusual nature of this decline.
Several major tax categories demonstrated robust growth during April 2025. Corporation tax receipts surged 17.4% to ₹25,194 crore, while personal income tax increased 6.8% to ₹1.17 trillion. The CGST collection rose significantly by 37.7% to ₹1.07 trillion, and Customs duty grew 25% to ₹17,424 crore. Additionally, Union excise duty increased to ₹447 crore against a negative balance of ₹39 crore in the previous year. The securities transaction tax (STT) rose 8.4% to ₹4,105 crore despite volatile conditions in the stock markets, as reported by Business Standard.
Despite strong performance in most categories, IGST and GST compensation cess declined sharply, according to Business Standard reports. These reductions in indirect tax collections were sufficient to offset the gains from other tax categories and contribute to the overall decline in total tax collections for April 2025. IGST stood at negative ₹6,841 crore in April 2025 against ₹31,097 crore in April 2024, while GST compensation cess was negative ₹187 crore against ₹12,696 crore in the previous year.
The securities transaction tax (STT) rose 8.4% to ₹4,105 crore despite volatile conditions in the stock markets, as reported by Business Standard. This growth in STT collections occurred even as market volatility created challenges for other financial market-related taxes during the month, demonstrating resilience in this tax category despite broader market uncertainties.
