1.07 crore new taxpayers added, dropped filers down at 25.22 lakh in 2017-18: Central Board Of Direct Taxes

New Delhi: The Income Tax department said Thursday it added 1.07 crore new taxpayers, while the number of ‘dropped filers’ came down to 25.22 lakh in 2017-18, showing the positive impact of demonetisation. In a statement, the Central Board Of Direct Taxes (CBDT) said 6.87 crore Income Tax Returns (ITRs) were filed during FY 2017-18 as compared to 5.48 crore ITRs filed during FY 2016-17, translating into a growth of 25 percent. Also, during FY 2017-18, the number of new ITR filers increased to 1.07 crore as compared to 86.16 lakh new ITR filers added during FY 2016-17, it added. [caption id=“attachment_5759311” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. Reuters[/caption] “Demonetization had a phenomenally positive impact on the widening of tax base and direct tax collections,” CBDT said. Dropped Filers, which is defined as a person who was earlier in the filer base but has not filed a return in any of the last three financial years, declined in 2017-18 to 25.22 lakh from 28.34 lakh in 2016-17. “The net direct tax collections for 2017-18 amounted to Rs 10.03 lakh crore, which is 18% higher than the collections for 2016-17. The growth rate of 18 percent for 2017-18 is the highest in the last seven financial years. A substantial part of this growth is attributed to the impact of demonetization,” CBDT said. The government had in November 2016 demonetised high-value currency notes of 500 and 1000 denominations to crack down on black money.