NEW DELHI: Industry body Ficci has sought restoration of long-term capital gains tax (LTCG) exemption on listed securities, while “appropriately” raising the securities transaction tax (STT) on delivery-based transactions to protect govt revenue.During a pre-budget meeting with revenue secretary Arvind Shrivastava on Wednesday, the industry lobby group also suggested that the regime should be maintained for a long period — possibly 10 years — to provide stability and certainty to investors.Citing withdrawals of over Rs 3 lakh crore by foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) during the year, Ficci said there was a need to review capital gains taxation to improve investment attractiveness. It said the reintroduction of LTCG tax in 2018, without withdrawal of STT, resulted in a dual levy. Since July, govt has increased short-term capital gains tax to 20%, with LTCG beyond the Rs 1.25 lakh exemption threshold pegged at 12.5%.“Higher capital gains tax, continued STT and no forex adjustment erode post-tax equity returns,” Ficci said, while seeking simplicity, fairness and stability in capital gains taxation. In recent weeks, amid demands for a review of the tax regime, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said that govt will watch the debate before taking a call in the budget.Ficci called for exempting B2B payments liable to GST and made to GST-registered suppliers from 0.1% TDS on purchase of goods and e-commerce transactions. TDS for payments to non-GST-registered suppliers may be continued, it said.
