Last updated: March 16th, 2022 4:20 PM

Maharashtra Tax Arrears, Interest, Penalty, or Late Fees Settlement Scheme

The Maharashtra Government has introduced various schemes in Budget 2022 to settle old disputes. Considering the same, The Maharashtra government has announced the Amnesty Scheme called Maharashtra tax arrears, interest, penalty, or late fees settlement scheme 2022 to resolve problems relating to the payment of the tax. The term for payment will be from April 1st, 2022 to September 30th, 2022.

Synopsis of Maharashtra Budget 2022

The state government of Maharashtra presented the budget for the fiscal year 2022-2023 on 11^th March 2022. The budget was vocalized by the state finance minister, Shri Ajit Pawar Maharashtra.

• As mentioned above, The Maharashtra Government has introduced various schemes in Budget 2022 to settle old disputes.
• Shri Ajit Pawar proposes an amnesty scheme to provide relief to ordinary citizens, industries, and businesses.
• As per the budget estimates, a provision of Rs 1, 55,307 crores has been made for the annual plan.
• GST, VAT, Central Sales Tax, Professional Tax, and other key taxes are included in the updated estimate of Rs 1,55,307 crore.
• The minister has proposed to slash the existing 13.5 percent value-added tax (VAT) levied on compressed natural gas (CNG) to 3%. Lowering the VAT on natural gas will result in a revenue loss of Rs 800 crore.
• The government would spend Rs 1,500 crore on an amnesty scheme under the Stamp Act for pending penalty debts.

Benefits of Amnesty Scheme

• The amnesty scheme “Maharashtra Tax Arrears, Interest, Penalty, or Late Fees Settlement Scheme” will provide relief to ordinary citizens, industries, and businesses.
• Maharashtra tax arrears, interest, penalty, or late fees settlement schemes also provide assistance to the industry and commercial sector.
• Waiver of 80% of arrears will be granted if a lump-sum payment of 20% is made under this amnesty plan.
• Other benefits include a 3% stamp duty exemption on gift deeds and a 5% tax exemption on sale deeds. It is expected that about 2.2 lakh merchants will benefit from the scheme.

Applicability of Amnesty scheme 2022

• This Scheme applies to various taxes levied by the Sales Tax Department prior to the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax Act.
• This amnesty scheme applies to all pending dues for the period ending on June 30, 2017, i.e. prior to the implementation of GST.

Condition to avail the benefit of this scheme

In order to take advantage of this scheme, the dealers' appeal must be withdrawn unconditionally.

Relief on Sales Tax Arrears

In circumstances where the arrears are less than Rs. 10,000 per year, the arrears are completely waived. As a result, in nearly one lakh cases, small dealers will profit. Dealers with arrears of up to Rs. 10 lakhs or less would be required to pay a lump-sum payment of 20% of the total amount owed. As a result, in about two lakh and twenty thousand situations, midsize merchants will benefit. For pending cases up to March 31, 2005: Dealers having dues above 10 lakh or who do not opt for the lump sum option will have to pay 100% of the undisputed tax, 30% of the disputed tax, 10%of the interest, and five% of the penalty. For dues between April 1, 2005 - June 30, 2017: Dealers will have to pay 50% of the disputed tax, 15% of the interest, and five% of the penalty. Once payment is made, ba

Duration to Pay the Required Amount

As stated above, This scheme applies to various taxes assessed by the Sales Tax Department prior to the implementation of the GST Act, and it will run from April 1, 2022, to September 30, 2022.

Tax Concession on Stamp Duty

• To encourage construction businesses, the time period provided under article 5 (g-a) (ii) of the Maharashtra Stamp Act has been extended from one year to three years.
• For pending penalty dues, an amnesty scheme is suggested from April 1, 2022, to November 30, 2022.
• Importation of gold-silver delivery order documents into Maharashtra is exempt from stamp duty.
• A stamp duty exemption on gift deeds is suggested, with no regard for organizations and institutions under state government control.