Budget 2022 - What are your *Out of the Box* Suggestions?

HI Everyone ,

I’m fairly surprised to see that there is no buzz around budget this time around like good old days.

Those who are in the markets from years would know how all the interesting stories start circulating in the market coming up with innovative , out of the box ideas which can be implemented and which can revolutionise the economy and markets.

Here is one such article which I found while going through the content related to budget. (Do note that these are all crazy, out of the box ideas - the practical feasibility might not make sense, but it definitely improves our thought process in understanding various aspects of the economy and markets )

What do you feel about this? Do you have any out of the box suggestions of our own? Let’s discuss

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Interesting stuff @YS_Bhargav

I doubt if its out of the box but I hope the govt addresses these 2 points in this budget.

  1. Incentivising honest tax payers by giving them special incentives and social security schemes. (I will discuss this in detail later)

  2. Salaried employees should be given soon sops as well. Indian middle class families mostly rely on salaries. Business income is where most of the jhol happens. I’m looking forward to the steps that are taken in this regard.

  3. This is almost like mid term budget and we have high stake state elections coming up so expect it to be full of fireworks.

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@nithin It would be awesome to know what you watch out for in a budget every year as an entrepreneur and are you looking forward to any specific reforms this time around in the budget?

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The idea of just tax the rich, is proving detrimental to India. Every year large number of HNWI are moving to lower tax rate countries.
While it may be true that the rich pay lower percentage in taxes, their taxes are still very high as compared to salaried class. They contribute much more in terms of taxes and creating job opportunities.
A lot of European countries now provide investor resident programs which look very attractive. Unless our tax rates are competitive, we will have wealth drain just like brain drain. At times of low economic activity, the goal should be to make the rich spend more by encouraging them to make larger expenditures.
I hope the govt just simply doesn’t increase direct taxes and focusses on rationalising and improving indirect taxes which is many folds larger and bigger revenue for the govt.

Every year for the last 18 years, on the budget day I hope trading costs will reduce. So reduction of STT and Stamp duty. :slight_smile:

I also hope that tax arbitrage that exists today between earning through capital gains vs dividends also reduces. This arbitrage is what I think is the reason for so many unprofitable startups in the ecosystem. Unprofitable would mean non-resilient businesses, which isn’t good for the country.

https://zerodha.com/z-connect/rainmatter/bootstrapping-vs-funding-a-tax-arbitrage

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Yes STT and stamp duty are such pain points. Even more so, if you trade from Karnataka. One of the highest stamp duty in India.

Ah no, now stamp duty is standard across India.

https://zerodha.com/marketintel/bulletin/259741/uniform-stamp-duty-applicable-from-july-1-2020

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Nil income tax for income below Rs.20 lakh would be on my wishlist. One medical emergency is most often enough to topple the financial plans of most in the lower tax bracket. Also real inflation on ground is way more than the numbers that come out. The honest tax payer needs some heavy relief from tax burden.

One suggestion which I can guess can help Tourism and hospitality industry is…allowing a Income tax deduction of upto 50k-1 Lac for tours and travel expenses this year for individuals.

This is one of the most affected sectors in this pandemic and as some of u might be aware, tourism accounts for almost 8% of total work force in our country.

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Looks like a much needed move no?

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One more article which talks about what various industries are expecting.

Here’s one demand in the article :

Economists also want the re-introduction of wealth and inheritance tax to address rising inequality in Covid. A joint study by Ashoka University and think tank CBGA pitches for re-introduction of these taxes, while providing incentives for charitable donations. India’s richest families saw their wealth reach a record high in 2021, even as 84% Indian households saw an income decline amid the pandemic, said a report from Oxfam India.

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Most salaried employees already have tax deduction on travel expense in form of LTA (which is seriously misused with most people using fake invoices).
I doubt anything more would be done there

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Like PMJJBY and PMSBY 2L life and 2L accidental insurance as social security is available to all Indian citizens who have a bank account, bringing PM-JAY, the basic health insurance of 5L as social security to all Indian citizens (currently it is available only to below poverty line citizens). Enveloping all citizens would create equal access to basic healthcare, demonstrating that the Govt is keen on health and the insurance premium would generate revenue for the Govt.

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