NE BUSINESS BUREAU
NEW DELHI, MARCH 25
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday said regulators and her ministry are monitoring developments and volatility in stock markets. She said the developments on stock markets are monitored thrice a day.
The government is working on an economic package to deal with the hardships caused by the lockdown to control the coronavirus crisis and the same will be announced soon, she said adding different sub-groups have held sectoral discussions.
Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday announced easier compliance norms for companies required to file under income tax, GST, customs and corporate laws, while allowing bank customers the flexibility to use their debit cards at ATMs without any fee, and waived the penalty for those who are unable to maintain the stipulated minimum balance in their accounts.
The digital trade transaction charge will also be lowered, the FM promised, while clarifying that the benefits will have to be offered by private and public sector banks.
Besides, small companies were sought to be protected from insolvency action by raising the threshold under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code to a loan of Rs 1 crore, instead of the current Rs 1 lakh floor. During a televised press conference, the minister also said provisions of the IBC may be waived in case the coronavirus crisis persisted till beyond April.
The announcements, which are a precursor to the much-anticipated economic package to aid industry and individuals facing income uncertainty, offer concessions of filings for a limited period and are not a permanent change of rules.
Sitharaman — who assured 24×7 customs facilities for exporters and importers — made it clear that the idea was to ensure that people stayed in lockdown and took care of their families instead of exposing themselves to the deadly virus by venturing out to be “honest taxpayers”.
As a result, the GST filing deadline for three months, starting February, has been deferred until June 30. Besides, companies with an annual turnover of up to Rs 5 crore do not have to worry about paying any late fee or interest. In the case of the larger entities, the penal interest has been halved to 9%.
On the income tax front, the last date for filing returns for the financial year 2018-19 has been extended from March 31, 2020, to June 30, 2020, which is also the new deadline for linking Aadhaar with PAN.
Last date for filing income tax returns extended to June 30
As a result, the GST filing deadline for three months, starting February, has been deferred until June 30. Besides, companies with an annual turnover of up to Rs 5 crore do not have to worry about paying any late fee or interest. In the case of the larger entities, the penal interest has been halved to 9%.
On the income tax front, the last date for filing returns for the financial year 2018-19 has been extended from March 31, 2020, to June 30, 2020, which is also the new deadline for linking Aadhaar with PAN. But it will benefit only a small section of the population
as the bulk of the returns have already been filed. There was a bigger gain for those looking to settle their direct tax disputes via the Vivad Se Vishwas scheme. Instead of the March 31 deadline, no additional 10% amount will be levied if the payment is made by the end of June 30, the FM said.
On the indirect tax side too, the payment deadline under the Sabka Vishwas scheme has been extended until the end of June and no interest will be levied.
The move was welcomed by the industry, which had been pitching for the concessions as they were finding it tough to comply with the norms due to a majority of employees working from home.
NSE, BSE to carry out normal operations on Wednesday
Leading stock exchanges NSE and BSE will conduct normal operations on Wednesday.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced a 21-day nationwide lockdown as part of efforts to curb the spreading of coronavirus infections.
An NSE spokesperson said operations would be normal at the exchange on Wednesday.
“BSE day to operations @BSEIndia will continue,” the bourse’s MD and CEO Ashishkumar Chauhan said in a tweet.
All capital and debt market services notified by markets regulator Sebi would be exempted from the lockdown, as per the government notification.
