Before High Courts, 4,791 Cases Were Withdrawn and 5,565 Appeals Were Not Filed, Cutting Demand by ₹9,218.71 Crore

The government's decision to raise the monetary threshold for filing tax appeals has cut disputed tax demand by about ₹16,690 crore, Parliament was told on Monday. In a written reply to the Lok Sabha, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman detailed the impact of the enhanced limits, effective from September 17, 2024. At the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT), 443 cases were withdrawn and 11,390 appeals were not filed, reducing disputed demand by an estimated ₹3,662.82 crore. Before high courts, 4,791 cases were withdrawn and 5,565 appeals were not filed, cutting demand by ₹9,218.71 crore.

At the Supreme Court, 744 cases were withdrawn and 534 appeals were not filed, leading to a ₹3,807.15 crore reduction. The Union Budget 2024-25 raised the appeal filing limits to ₹60 lakh for ITAT, ₹2 crore for high courts, and ₹5 crore for the Supreme Court. Sitharaman also highlighted CBDT measures over the past 12 years, including pre-filled IT Rs, new Form 26AS, updated return filing, Faceless Assessment and Appeal Schemes, and simplified safe harbour rules, which have eased compliance and improved taxpayer services. "These measures have significantly simplified tax compliance, reduced the compliance burden, enhanced transparency, promoted voluntary compliance and improved taxpayer services,"