In the backdrop of a 13 per cent shortfall in the expected revenue from stamp duty and registration fees in the last financial year of 2023-24, the West Bengal finance department has decided to remove the existing two per cent refund on the stamp duty and 10 percent. From now on, a percentage discount will be applied on circle rates.
As per the revised estimates for the financial year 2023-24, the stamp and registration fee heading in the 'state tax revenue' column was recorded at Rs 6,623.43 crore, below the budget estimate of Rs 7,473.79 crore. rupees for the same fiscal year.
However, sources in the finance department said that despite such decline, the state government has pegged the higher collection of stamp and registration fees as per the budget estimates of the current financial year 2024-25 at Rs 7,300.45 crore.
"Now that the first quarter of the current financial year has ended, the need has arisen to find alternative ways to increase stamp and registration fees and collection and therefore we have eliminated stamp duty refunds and circle rates," said a state finance department official who declined to be identified.
Officially, the state finance department has maintained that the move to allow refunds on stamp duty and circle rates was introduced in October 2021 amid the economic slowdown in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and now that crisis is over, the state administration has decided to end the sales.
However, economists say this is a fiscal reality, since subsidies cannot continue indefinitely in the economy of a state where its tax revenues depend heavily on excise taxes.
They also said that more such refunds could be rejected in the coming years unless the state administration finds alternative avenues to increase revenue, the prerequisite of which is to modify land and Special Economic Zone (SEZ) policies to encourage large investments. , both in the manufacturing and service sectors in the state.
As per the revised estimates for the financial year 2023-24, the stamp and registration fee heading in the 'state tax revenue' column was recorded at Rs 6,623.43 crore, below the budget estimate of Rs 7,473.79 crore. rupees for the same fiscal year.
However, sources in the finance department said that despite such decline, the state government has pegged the higher collection of stamp and registration fees as per the budget estimates of the current financial year 2024-25 at Rs 7,300.45 crore.
"Now that the first quarter of the current financial year has ended, the need has arisen to find alternative ways to increase stamp and registration fees and collection and therefore we have eliminated stamp duty refunds and circle rates," said a state finance department official who declined to be identified.
Officially, the state finance department has maintained that the move to allow refunds on stamp duty and circle rates was introduced in October 2021 amid the economic slowdown in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and now that crisis is over, the state administration has decided to end the sales.
However, economists say this is a fiscal reality, since subsidies cannot continue indefinitely in the economy of a state where its tax revenues depend heavily on excise taxes.
They also said that more such refunds could be rejected in the coming years unless the state administration finds alternative avenues to increase revenue, the prerequisite of which is to modify land and Special Economic Zone (SEZ) policies to encourage large investments. , both in the manufacturing and service sectors in the state.
