Goods and services tax collection hits record high in April

New Delhi: The  goods and services tax (GST) collection in India  touched a record high of Rs 2.10 trillion in April.  The GST revenue crossed Rs 2 trillion mark for the first time. The GST collection in the country in April was 12.4% higher year-on-year.

‘This represents a significant 12.4% year-on-year growth, driven by a strong increase in domestic transactions, up 13.4%, and imports, up 8.3%,’ Union Finance ministry said in a statement.

After accounting for refunds, the net GST revenue for April stood at Rs 1.92 trillion, 17.1% higher than the same period last year. In March, the government collected the second highest monthly receipt of Rs 1.78 trillion.

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‘The consistent growth in GST collections with this one being the highest collection ever is a big cheer and reflects upon the strong domestic economy, especially given the fact that growth on account of domestic transactions is 13.4% as compared to imports which is at 8.3%,’ said Abhishek Jain, partner & national head, indirect tax, KPMG.

The Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) was Rs 43,846 crore in the month, with the state Goods and Services Tax (SGST) contributing Rs 53,538 crore. Integrated Goods and Services Tax (IGST) was Rs 99,623 crore, which included Rs 37,826 crore collected on imported goods. GST from cess levied on automobiles, tobacco and aerated drinks was Rs 13,260 crore, including Rs 1,008 crore collected on imported goods.

In FY24, the Centre and states reported gross GST collection of Rs 20.18 trillion for the first time, showing an 11.7% increase compared to the collections in FY23. This growth rate is higher than the 9.1% nominal Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth projected for FY24 by the statistics ministry.

The central government settled Rs 50,307 crore to CGST and Rs 41,600 crore to SGST from the IGST collected. This translates to a total revenue of Rs 94,153 crore for CGST and Rs 95,138 crore for SGST for April, 2024 after regular settlement.