Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman introduced a new Income Tax Bill, 2025 in the Lok Sabha on Thursday. The aim of this new bill is to make the complex rules related to income tax simple and accessible. It will replace the current Income Tax Act of 1961 and will make processes easier for taxpayers.
Special things of the bill:
536 sections, 23 chapters and 16 schedules include
Language was simplified, difficult words removed
The words ‘Tax Year’ included, ‘Previous Year’ and ‘Assessment Year’ removed
Unnecessary rules and amendments were removed
The Finance Minister announced the introduction of this bill during the budget speech on 1 February. It was approved by the Union Cabinet on 7 February and now it has been introduced in Parliament.
Will this new bill change?
Complex vocabulary will be easy
The term ‘tax year’ will be used in the new income tax bill, which will remove words like ‘Assessment Year’ and ‘Previous Year’.
Language will be simple
The language of the law has been written in such a way that common citizens can understand it without the help of tax experts. Small and simple sentences have been used.
Old and useless streams were removed
In the old 1961 law, many streams and amendments had now become irrelevant, which have not been included in the new bill.
Opposition of some opposition parties
Some opposition members, including Trinamool Congress MP Saugat Roy, opposed the bill. However, the Finance Minister introduced the bill in the Lok Sabha despite his objections and requested Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to send it to the Select Committee.
Lok Sabha proceedings postponed
Meanwhile, the Lok Sabha proceedings have now been postponed till 11 am on March 10.
When will the new income tax bill be implemented?
The government plans that this bill should be implemented from 1 April 2025 after approval from Parliament. To pass it, first the Parliament’s Standing Committee will be reviewed, then it will be sent to the President for final approval.
