India's net direct tax collections demonstrated robust performance with a 16.4% year-on-year increase to ₹6.51 lakh crore as of July 13, 2026. According to the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), this growth signals healthy revenue expansion in the early months of the current financial year. The strong collection figures reflect sustained economic activity and effective tax administration during this period. The data showed net collections increased from ₹5.59 lakh crore in the corresponding period of the previous financial year. On a gross basis, direct tax collections increased 16.11% year-on-year to ₹7.74 lakh crore, up from ₹6.66 lakh crore recorded as on July 13, 2025. Tax experts noted that the collections indicate a healthy start to the fiscal year, with corporate taxes emerging as the key driver. The growth was supported by healthy corporate earnings and resilient formal sector incomes despite the West Asia crisis.
The growth was driven by robust gains in both corporate and non-corporate tax collections. Net corporate tax collections grew over 22% to around ₹2.40 lakh crore, compared with ₹1.97 lakh crore in the year-ago period. Meanwhile, net non-corporate tax collections, which include taxes paid by individuals, Hindu Undivided Families (HUFs), firms, Associations of Persons (AoPs), Bodies of Individuals (BoIs), local authorities and artificial juridical persons, rose to ₹3.85 lakh crore from ₹3.44 lakh crore. On a gross basis, gross corporate tax collections rose to ₹3.35 lakh crore from ₹2.90 lakh crore, while gross non-corporate tax collections increased to ₹4.12 lakh crore from ₹3.58 lakh crore. Hitesh Sawhney from Price Waterhouse & Co LLP highlighted that net corporate tax collections have already reached around 19.5% of the Budget Estimates, while net non-corporate tax collections stand at 27.6%, suggesting direct tax mobilisation is on a firm footing for the year. As per The Economic Times, corporate earnings appear largely insulated from the war and slowdown, with profits remaining insulated from external shocks.
Collections from the Securities Transaction Tax (STT) registered a sharp increase, rising to ₹26,429 crore from ₹17,876 crore a year earlier. The latest figures show STT collections jumped over 47.85% to ₹26,429 crore, demonstrating the substantial growth in this segment. This growth in STT collections reflects increased trading activity and market participation during the period, with gross STT collections also increasing to ₹26,428.96 crore from ₹17,875.88 crore. Rohinton Sidhwa from Deloitte India noted that the sharp rise in STT collections was likely supported by higher trading volumes amid stock market volatility. The substantial increase in STT collections demonstrates the government's focus on capturing revenue from financial market transactions and the overall strength of the capital markets sector.
Despite higher refunds being issued, gross direct tax collections climbed past ₹7.74 lakh crore as of July 13, 2026. The government also issued refunds worth ₹1.22 lakh crore during the period, marking a 14.6% increase over ₹1.07 lakh crore refunded in the same period of FY26. Refunds under corporate tax stood at ₹95,145 crore, while non-corporate tax refunds amounted to ₹27,333 crore. However, net collections under the 'other taxes' category turned sharply negative at ₹2.02 crore, compared with ₹269.45 crore in the same period last year. The figures include taxes paid by corporates as well as non-corporate entities such as individuals, Hindu Undivided Families (HUFs), firms, associations of persons (AoPs), bodies of individuals (BoIs), local authorities, and artificial juridical persons. With the ongoing filing season, collections are expected to improve further as the last date for filing income tax returns for FY26 is July 31.
The 16.4% year-on-year growth in net direct tax collections serves as an important indicator of India's economic momentum in the early months of the current financial year. For FY27, the government has budgeted to collect ₹26.97 lakh crore from direct taxes, representing a 15% growth over the ₹23.40 lakh crore collected in FY26. According to Jayesh Sanghvi from EY India, the healthy growth reflects the combined impact of sustained economic expansion, continued formalization of businesses and incomes, improving tax compliance, and the increasing use of technology-led tax administration. The government has fixed a fiscal deficit target of ₹16.96 lakh crore for the full financial year, with the figures for the first two months reflecting a strong fiscal position and the country on track to meet the Budget target for 2026-27. Experts said the latest numbers indicate that tax collections remain robust and signal healthy revenue growth in FY27, providing fiscal headroom for the government.
