Wealth tax: India

Girish Vanvari & Krishnan TA

Wealth and Policy, Working Paper 137


30 Oct 2020

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Pursuant to the recommendations of the Kaldor Committee, the Government of India introduced the Wealth Tax Act (WTA) in 1957 as a permanent measure. The wealth tax was abolished in 2015 due to several procedural difficulties such as extensive litigation, increased compliance burdens, heavy administration costs and generation of inadequate revenues. The paper explains the rates and bands applied, the scope of the tax base, the definition of the tax unit and administrative issues such as valuation and liquidity. It also considers the application to trusts and non-residents, and the scope for tax planning and avoidance.


DOI: 10.47445/137
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