08/08/2025
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has withdrawn the Income Tax Bill, 2025, from the Lok Sabha.
A new Bill is set to be introduced on Aug 11, 2025 after incorporating suggestions from the Select Committee.
The Select Committee, chaired by Baijayant Panda, submitted a number of key recommendations after examining the Bill introduced on February 13, 2025.
One major change: anonymous donations will remain tax-exempt if received by purely religious trusts (for example, temples or mosques).
However, if a religious trust also runs charitable functions, like hospitals or schools, those anonymous contributions will be taxable under the revised draft.
The Select Committee also recommended allowing taxpayers to claim TDS refunds even after the ITR filing deadline, without penalty charges.
This marks another step in retiring the six-decade-old Income Tax Act, 1961.
All eyes are now on August 11, when the streamlined and updated Bill will be tabled in the Lok Sabha. Stay tuned.
[income tax, taxes, Nirmala Sitaraman, tax planning, tax savings, income tax department]
