Vijayawada: Income Tax payers keep their fingers crossed

Vijayawada: With rising of inflation rate and economic slowdown for the past few years, the Individual Income Tax (I-T) payers are hopeful of getting some relief in the Union budget to be presented by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 1. So far, the income up to Rs 5 lakh is exempted from tax. If the income crosses Rs 5 lakh in a financial year, the minimum tax slab is 20 per cent.

Most taxpayers feel that the slab rate is very high and it should be slashed to 10 per cent. Now, the individual taxpayers are hopeful that the tax rebate shall be allowed on income up to Rs 7.50 lakh.

Moreover, the exemption under Section 80 C should be increased from Rs 1.50 lakh to Rs 2.50 lakh. Chartered accountant A Siva Prasad said tax exemption should be given up to Rs 7.50 lakh and exemption under the Section 80 c should be increased from Rs.1.50 lakh to Rs 2.50 lakh. He further said the government can collect 20 per cent tax on those whose income is more than Rs 10 lakh per year.

Employees too are expressing similar views. State Teachers Union president M Gauri Prasad said that I-T exemption should be given income up to Rs.7 lakh and five per cent tax could be collected if the income crosses that threshold.

He said most employees, who are going to retire in four or five years are paying more than Rs 50,000 I-T every year. They have grown up children and have to spend a lot on education or marriages. He said the exemption limit should be up to Rs 7 lakh.

The Union government has given tax concessions to corporate groups about six months ago and helped them to recover during the economic slowdown period. But the salaried persons and individual taxpayers were not given any concession.