Only a week is left for the general budget of the country to come. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the budget on 1 February 2022. While this will be the 10th budget of the Modi government after coming to power in 2014, Sitharaman’s fourth budget as finance minister. This budget is expected to be populist amid the third wave of the Kovid-19 pandemic and rising inflation. Economists, India Inc., tax experts and the salaried class have these 13 key expectations from Budget 2022.
1- Due to Corona, employees of most areas are doing work from home. In such a situation, their expenditure on electricity, internet charges, rent, furniture etc. has increased. The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India has also suggested giving additional tax exemption to those working from home under Work Prom Home. It is expected that the Finance Minister can make a big announcement on this.
2- Health insurance has become a priority on people’s list since the start of the pandemic. Insurance experts want health cover to be kept in the 5% GST slab to make it more affordable. This reduction in GST rate will enable and encourage more people to buy health insurance.
3- The automobile sector is in favor of EVs. It wants EVs to be prioritized to encourage more people to opt for EVs at lower interest rates. Suggestions have been submitted by the automobile sector to the Finance Ministry regarding their budget demands.
4- The hospitality sector is included in the sector which has been affected the most by the corona epidemic. The hospitality sector, which is facing the brunt of the outbreak of this pandemic, is seeing a restored GST Input Tax Credit in Budget 2022. At the same time, the sector wants a system to save the restaurant business from another lockdown.
The banks and MSME industry sectors are seeking support in line with the Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme, which includes 100% credit guarantee by the National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company on loans given by banks and NBFCs.
6- The FMCG sector wishes that Sitharaman continues to put money in the hands of the people, especially in rural areas. After discussing various points on behalf of this sector, its suggestions have been sent to the Ministry of Finance. The region hopes that the Finance Minister will pay special attention to this.
7- The aviation industry is expecting tax exemption and suspension of Minimum Alternate Tax for at least 2 years. In addition, the pandemic-hit airlines also want to suspend the Minimum Alternate Tax. The Corona epidemic has also caused heavy damage to the aviation sector.
8- Stock market platforms also have great expectations on the budget. They want a reduction in the securities transaction tax. Experts from the stock market believe that the Finance Minister should abolish or reduce the Security Transaction Tax (STT).
9- The popularity of people towards cryptocurrencies is increasing continuously. The number of crypto investors in India is also increasing day by day. A draft crypto bill has also been prepared by the government. In this case, people want clarity on issues such as domestic crypto and blockchain startup taxation, laws, exemptions and regulations.
10- Industry body Indian Private Equity and Venture Capital Association has proposed a new definition for startups. Startups are demanding that the government should promote additional startup friendly policies and tax concessions, besides taking steps to empower entrepreneurs by providing more support to small businesses in the budget for the financial year 2022-23.
11- With climate change making headlines from time to time, India’s renewables sector is looking for investment-based tax incentives. They are looking for incentives for R&D, technology adoption and investment in the storage segment.
12- The need to increase the existing standard deduction limit from Rs 50,000 to a minimum of Rs 75,000 and a maximum of Rs 1 lakh is also an expectation from Budget 2022. Salaried people expect this to be increased. By increasing this, the salaried people will directly benefit from the tax.
13- This time also the general budget of the country is going to be presented in the shadow of Corona epidemic. This time experts are hoping to reintroduce the wealth tax and inheritance tax to address the growing inequality in COVID-19.