MUMBAI: India’s net direct tax collections rose 12.96% year-on-year to Rs 12.12 lakh crore as of September 17, 2026, driven mainly by higher corporate tax collections, according to data released by the Income Tax Department on Friday.
Gross direct tax collections rose 15.19% to Rs 14.32 lakh crore during the period, from Rs 12.43 lakh crore a year ago. Refunds, however, increased 29.19% to Rs 2.20 lakh crore from Rs 1.79 lakh crore last year.
“Direct tax collections continue to signal healthy underlying economic activity and the strength of the tax base. While higher refunds have moderated net tax collection growth, they also reflect improved efficiency in refund processing, ensuring timely relief and liquidity for taxpayers. The steady growth in advance tax payments remains a positive indicator of taxpayer confidence, business performance and expectations of sustained income growth,” said Richa Sawhney, Partner – Tax, Grant Thornton Bharat.
Corporate tax collections before refunds rose more than 16% to Rs 6.94 lakh crore as of September 17, 2026, from Rs 5.95 lakh crore in the corresponding period last year. Non-corporate tax collections increased 12% to Rs 6.97 lakh crore from Rs 6.21 lakh crore.
Securities transaction tax (STT) collections rose more than 50% to Rs 40,214.36 crore from Rs 26,305.72 crore during the same period last year.
Advance tax collections increased 16.18% year-on-year to Rs 5.21 lakh crore as of September 17, compared with Rs 4.49 lakh crore in the corresponding period last year.
Corporate advance tax collections rose 18.09% to Rs 4.16 lakh crore, while non-corporate advance tax collections increased 9.24% to Rs 1.05 lakh crore.