Vivaad Se Vishwas direct tax scheme extended till June 30

The government has extended durations of the dispute settlement schemes for direct taxes (Vivaad Se Vishwas) and indirect taxes (Sabka Vishwas) till June 30.

Addressing the media through video link here on Tuesday, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said under the 'Vivaad Se Vishwas' scheme, 10 per cent additional charge would not be levied till June 30.

"We are saying, everything is extended to June 30, no additional 10 per cent payment at all," the Finance Minister said.

The scheme in its earlier version provided complete waiver of interest and penalty for payments made by March 31 and involved settlement with additional payment of 10 per cent between April 1 and June 30.

The Direct Tax Vivaad Se Vishwas Bill 2020 intends to resolve direct tax disputes and offers a waiver of interest, penalty and prosecution for settlement of these disputes.

Among other major decisions for taxpayers, the Minister announced extension of the deadline for filing the goods and services tax (GST) returns for March, April and May 2020 till June 30.

She also announced extension of the deadline for filing income tax returns for the financial year 2018-19 (FY19) till June 30 to provide relief amid the coronavirus crisis.

The government has also halved the interest rate on delayed TDS deposits to 9 per cent, she added.

The decisions come amid the coronavirus scare and total lockdown across 30 states and Union Territories in the country. IANS