What happened
India’s net direct tax collections rose 13.21% from a year earlier to about ₹13.38 lakh crore between 1 April and 14 October 2026, according to reports in the Economic Times, NDTV Profit and ThePrint, the last citing PTI. The period covers the first part of the 2026-27 financial year (FY27).
Net collections are what the government keeps after paying refunds. Gross collections, before refunds, increased 14.89% to ₹16.03 lakh crore. Times of India put the net figure at ₹13,37,866.98 crore and the gross figure at ₹16,03,066.12 crore.
Refunds rose 24.22% to ₹2.65 lakh crore, growing faster than gross collections. That is why net growth of 13.21% is a little lower than gross growth.
Corporate tax and others
According to the PTI report carried by ThePrint, net corporate tax collection grew 20.58% to over ₹5.99 lakh crore. Times of India gave the exact figure as ₹5,99,062.48 crore.
Reports said non-corporate tax, which is paid by individuals, firms and similar taxpayers, and Securities Transaction Tax (STT) collections also increased. STT is a tax charged on trades in listed shares and some other securities. The summaries available to us did not give the amounts for these two heads.
What it means for you
These figures describe what the government has collected, not what you personally pay. They do not signal any change in tax rates or rules.
If you are waiting for an income tax refund, the numbers show that the amount refunded so far this year is higher than at the same point last year. Individual refund timing still depends on your return and its processing. You can estimate your own liability with our income tax calculator for FY 2026-27.
Background
Direct taxes are taxes levied directly on income and profits, such as personal income tax and corporate tax. The tax department publishes running totals during the year, usually comparing them with the same period of the previous year. Our explainer on the tax year and assessment year shows how the financial year relates to the year in which income is assessed.
One report, from Hindustan Times, described the gross figure as covering 1 April to 13 October, while the others say 14 October. We have used 14 October as most reports state.
