Traders' body seeks lower tax on partnership firms

Kolkata: Owners of small businesses have demanded imposition of a special tax of five per cent on online retailers and lowering of income tax rate to 22 per cent on partnership and LLP firms in the next Union budget to help them survive, a traders' body said on Tuesday.

Traders and retailers, who have been going through a tough time in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, contribute about 22 per cent to the country's GDP and provides employment to lakhs of people, Federation of All India Vyapar Mandal (FAIVM) claimed in its budget proposal to the Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

"The traders' community of India has been in a miserable condition after the demonetisation and the complex GST system were implemented. The growing e-commerce business has further raised the question of survival of nation's brick and mortar trade. So it is very important to impose a special tax of five per cent on the total business of online retailers," FAIVM general secretary V K Bansal said.

The traders' body also claimed that the online retailers have experienced a surge in their revenue and reported sales of $ 4.1 billion in a week of October 2020 during the festive season. "An income tax on partnership firms and limited liability partnership entities should be levied at 22 per cent, instead of 30 per cent at present. This will bring it at par with income tax applicable to corporate," he said.

The FAIVM has also requested the government to offer an interest subvention scheme for loans being provided to traders so that they can continue their businesses under the present circumstances. Service sector retail businesses should also be given all benefits which are being extended to MSMEs, including the issuance of Udhyog Adhaar.