Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary has said that the government has garnered Rs 60.46 crore through tax from entities for transactions in virtual digital assets (VDAs), including cryptocurrencies, since the introduction of Tax Deducted at Source (TDS) provisions in July. He noted that the government, from April 1, has brought in a 30 per cent income tax plus surcharge and cess on transfer of crypto assets, like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Tether and Dogecoin.
Also, the minister said to keep a tab on the money trail, a 1 per cent TDS under section 194S of I-T Act has been brought in on payments over Rs 10,000 towards virtual digital currencies from July 1. He also said CBDT conducts outreach/ awareness programmes for deductors/taxpayers and also takes appropriate action, including search & seizure operations, surveys, enquiries etc, as required. Post insertion of Section 194S in the Income-tax Act, 1961 through Finance Act, 2022, a total of 318 direct tax challans having TDS code 194S have been received having total amount of Rs 60.46 crore.
Chaudhary stated that under the Income-tax Act, 1961, Section 194S has been inserted through the Finance Act, 2022 for deduction of tax at source in respect of transfer of VDAs which is to be complied with by any person engaged in transactions related to VDAs. He further said currently, crypto assets are unregulated in India and the government does not register foreign crypto exchanges. Crypto assets are by definition borderless and require international collaboration to prevent regulatory arbitrage.
