After adjusting refunds, net GST mop-up was up 7.3% to about ₹2.11 lakh crore.
| Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto

Image used for representation purpose only.
| Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto

Image used for representation purpose only.
| Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto

Gross Goods and Services Tax mop-up was ₹1.73 lakh crore in September 2024. Last month, the collection was ₹1.86 lakh crore, as per government data released. File.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Photo used for representation purpose only.
| Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto

India’s gross Goods and Services Tax (GST) collections rebounded sharply in January, rising 12.3% from December’s weak 7.3% uptick, to hit their second highest monthly tally of ₹1,95,506 crore, with domestic revenues rising 10% and revenues from imports up 19.8%.

Gross GST inflows had touched a three-month low of just under ₹1.77 lakh crore in December, with growth slipping to the second slowest pace in 43 months. Since its launch in July 2017, the GST regime’s highest monthly intake was recorded in April 2024, when gross receipts were a tad over ₹2.1 lakh crore.

After factoring in refunds to taxpayers, which grew 23.9% to about ₹24,000 crore, net receipts from GST were up 10.9% in January at ₹1,71,653 crore. Net receipts from domestic transactions were up 8%, while those from imports grew 21.7%. This marks a sharp improvement from December, when net receipts rose at just 3.3%, the slowest pace so far this financial year.

On a sequential basis, January’s net GST receipts, linked to transactions undertaken in December, were up 11.2% from December, while gross GST receipts were 10.5% higher.

January’s uptick in receipts lifted the overall growth in net GST revenues in 2024-25 to 8.7% from 8.6% as of December, with collections of almost ₹16.17 lakh crore. The Centre had penned in a growth of 11% in its Budget estimates for 2024-25.

Last month, three States recorded a contraction in GST revenues compared to four in December and seven in November — Mizoram (-10%), Himachal Pradesh (-7%) and Manipur (-1%). GST receipts were flat in Andhra Pradesh after two months of contraction. Thirteen States reported revenue growth below the 10% national average growth in domestic transaction revenues.

“This uptick comes after a muted December growth, which was largely attributed to the post-festive season dip. January’s performance signals a rebound in economic activity, underpinned by strong domestic demand,” said Mahesh Jaising, partner and leader of indirect tax at Deloitte India.

KPMG’s indirect tax head and partner Abhishek Jain said the growth in January collections is notable because it comes despite a significant uptick in refunds, suggesting improved efficiency in refund processing by the tax authorities.

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh. File
| Photo Credit: PTI

The Congress on Friday claimed that the last quarter of the current fiscal year (2024-25) witnessed the “second-slowest pace” of collection of Goods and Services Tax (GST) in the past three years and urged the government to focus on the complexities of the economy instead of imposing tax on popcorn.

Net GST growth slumps to 3.3% in December, as revenues slow and refunds rise 45%

In a statement on the latest GST numbers, Congress general secretary (communications) Jairam Ramesh claimed India was locked in a “pernicious cycle of low consumption-low investment-low growth-low wages”.

“The litany of demoralising news on the economic front from the deceleration in growth to the poor GST revenue collections – demands that the government apparatus shift its focus from administering tax on popcorn to engaging with the complexities of the economy,” Mr. Ramesh said.

The Congress leader said the Union Budget, to be presented next month, must provide income support to the poor and tax relief for the middle class. He also suggested that government expenditure must instead be used as a stimulus for the economy.

Editorial | ​Selective indecision: on the GST Council’s 55th meeting, decisions

“A GST 2.0 — a truly Good and Simple Tax like the Indian National Congress had envisaged in its Nyay Patra for the 2024 Lok Sabha Elections — must be instituted,” he said.

Mr. Ramesh also added that “tax and investigative agency terrorism that was deterring private investment and leading to flight of entrepreneurs must end”.

Editorial | Revenue repercussions: on GST revenue trends

The Congress leader said the latest data from December showed that GST collection receipts increased at the second-slowest pace in three-and-a-half years. “Net GST collections, after adjusting for refunds, slumped to 3.3 per cent growth — the lowest in FY25. This is concerning news, on several fronts,” he claimed.

Mr. Ramesh said the government recorded an increase in GST collections of 8.6% in the first three quarters of the current financial year while the Budget had estimated an 11% growth.

“This slowdown in revenue collections cannot be justification for the government to further cut down on social welfare programme like MGNREGA [Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act], at a time when rural wages have been stagnant and consumption slackening,” he said.

Representative image
| Photo Credit: Getty Images

Gross GST collection grew 9% to over ₹1.87 lakh crore in October on higher revenues from domestic transactions.

India’s Gross Goods and Services Tax (GST) collections surpassed ₹1.87 lakh crore in October, marking the second highest monthly collections on record, with growth rebounding to 8.9% in October from a 40-month low of 6.5% in September.

In October 2023, the mop-up was at ₹1.72 lakh crore.

Factoring in refunds, which increased 18.2% from a year ago, net GST receipts rose 7.9% to a tad over ₹1.68 lakh crore. This also marked a recovery from the September’s growth rate of 3.9% which was the slowest so far in 2024-25.

Growth in Gross GST revenues from domestic transactions improved to 10.6% from about 6% a month earlier, while import revenues were up 3.9% in October, halving from September’s 8% uptick. Net domestic receipts were up 8.7%, almost double the 4.5% growth recorded in September 2024.

Overall revenues from GST, prior to refunds, in the first seven months of this year, now stand at ₹12.74 lakh crore, 9.4% over the same period of 2023-24. Net revenues, after refunds, are also up 9% at over ₹11.27 lakh crore, as per an official statement.

GST from domestic transactions grew 10.6% to ₹1.42 lakh crore, while tax on imports rose about 4% to ₹45,096 crore during October 2024.

Also read: What is GST and how will it affect you? All your questions answered

Refunds worth ₹19,306 crore were issued during the month, registering 18.2% growth over the year-ago period.

After adjusting refunds, net GST collection grew 8% at over ₹1.68 lakh crore.

Photo used for representation purpose only.

Growth in India’s Gross Goods and Services Tax (GST) collections slumped to a 40-month low of 6.5% in September, yielding revenues of ₹1,73,240 crore, about 1% lower than the tally in August.

Net GST receipts, after adjusting for refunds made to taxpayers, were 3.9% higher than a year ago, marking the slowest growth in this financial year. However, net collections were 1.5% higher than August’s receipts of ₹1,52,782 crore.

In the preceding month, net GST receipts had grown 6.5% while gross collections were up 10%.

Domestic revenues were up 5.9% prior to refunds, and were 4.5% higher after adjusting for refunds, provisional numbers from the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) showed. Growth in gross revenues from imports outpaced domestic revenues for the third straight month, rising 8% in September.

GST refunds continued to grow at a healthy pace for the second successive month, with domestic refunds to taxpayers rising 24.3% in September, while export related refunds of Integrated GST (IGST) revenues were up 39.2%. Overall refunds were 31% higher, compared with a 38% uptick in August and an over 19% contraction in Jul

The gross GST collections in June stood at around ₹1.74 lakh crore. Image for representation purposes only. File
| Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto

The gross Goods and Services Tax (GST) collections in June stood at around ₹1.74 lakh crore, as per sources, reflecting a rise of around 7.7% from the ₹1,61,497 crore collected in June 2023.

This marks the slowest growth in GST collections since July 2021 and is well below the 10% and 12.4% growth recorded in May and April, respectively, this year.

While data for Central and State GST collections is not available, an official source said that about ₹39,600 crore has been settled to the central GST account from Integrated GST (IGST) collections, while States have been given ₹33,548 crore from the IGST pool.

In June 2023, IGST collections stood at ₹80,292 crore, including ₹ 39,035 crore collected on import of goods. From that kitty, the government had settled ₹36,224 crore to CGST and ₹30269 crore to SGST.

For this June, total IGST collections are not known at this point, nor is there a breakdown available of the revenues from domestic transactions, including services imports, and the GST revenues from goods imports.

While the Finance Ministry is yet to issue an official statement on the GST collections for June, it sent out a series of social media posts to mark the seventh anniversary of the GST regime’s launch to convey that it has brought “happiness for every home” with lower rates on household goods, a level playing field for all taxpayers, and lower compliance burden on small businesses.