HENCY R SHAH AND ASSOCIATES

Consequences of an Inoperative PAN: Financial Transactions You Can't Do Without PAN-Aadhaar Linkage  The government introduced the Permanent Account Number (PAN) to make it easier to access taxpayer information and match it with their investments, loans, and business activities. This helps detect and prevent tax evasion and broaden the tax base. According to the Income Tax Act of 1961, it became mandatory to link Aadhaar number with PAN by June 30, 2023. Failing to do so would render PAN inactive from July 1, 2023. If PAN is not linked with Aadhaar, it can create difficulties in certain transactions. For example, routine banking transactions such as depositing more than Rs. 50,000 in a bank account, paying insurance premiums exceeding Rs. 50,000, or applying for credit/debit cards may be affected. Senior citizens (except those aged 80 years or more) who haven't linked PAN with Aadhaar may also face consequences. However, residents of Assam, Jammu and Kashmir, Meghalaya, non-res...

“Massive Cyber Attack Targets 12,000 Indian Government Websites: National Security at Risk” A hacking group known as “Hacktivist Indonesia” has announced its intention to target 12,000 Indian government websites in the near future. The Ministry of Home Affairs’ Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (I4C) has circulated an alert to all agencies, Central and State government wings, stating that the group has circulated a list of websites they plan to attack. While authorities have noted that the hackers could be operating within or outside the country, the location or origin of ‘Hacktivist Indonesia’ remains unknown. The group has been linked to cyber attacks in Sweden, Israel and the US. However, the Indian government has reassured the public that its websites are “updated” and “capable” of handling such threats, and the alert was circulated on the basis of inputs received by its Cyber Threat Intelligence wing following open-source intelligence. The list reportedly includes thousands of...

New financial year:  N ew rules for investors From April 1, new income tax rates will come into effect. From now on, the new tax regime will be the default regime. Under the new tax regime, people earning up to Rs 7 lakhs per annum don’t have to pay taxes. It is the beginning of the new financial year 2023-24, individuals and investors should note a couple of significant amendments that the Central government would be following now. 1)        New tax regime From April 1, new income tax rates will come into effect. From now on, the new tax regime will be the default regime. People who want to save taxes under the old regime, need to declare it in their forms. Under the new tax regime, the basic exemption limit has been raised to Rs 3 lakh from Rs 2.5 lakh. The tax rebate has been extended on income up to Rs 7 lakh as per Section 87A, as against Rs 5 lakh.   2)        Changes in Income Tax slabs The Union Budget 20...

11 things to do before the new financial year 2023-2024   As the new financial year approaches, you may have already started planning your investments to achieve your financial goals. But before we dive into the new financial year 2023-24, it is necessary to complete certain tasks before 31 st  March 2023 to ensure maximum savings and a good start to the new fiscal year. Taking care of these important things will enable you to save on taxes and prevent yourself from paying certain penalties. So, let’s take a look at the things you need to do before 31 st  March 2023. 1.     Link your PAN with Aadhar The first thing that you need to do is link your PAN with your Aadhar. The last day to do so is 31st March 2023. However, you must do this after paying a penalty of ₹1000. If you do not link your PAN with Aadhar, your PAN will become inoperative from 1st April 2023. You will not be able to do certain things if your PAN becomes inoperative. For exa...

Crypto under PMLA: New rules of the game The central government has tightened regulatory control over virtual digital assets, more commonly known as cryptocurrencies. According to a gazette notification, the government has mandated that a host of trading activities in such assets will now come under the ambit of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). In other words, going ahead, trading between cryptocurrencies and fiat currencies or among cryptocurrencies and other such services can be investigated by agencies such as the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Income Tax department. The move should be seen in light of the government’s efforts to bring cryptocurrencies under greater regulation. In April 2022, for instance, the government introduced a 30% income tax on gains made from cryptocurrencies. Later in July 2022, the government brought in rules regarding 1% tax deducted at source on cryptocurrency. Broadly speaking, greater regulation of cryptocurrencies is advisable. ...

  Budget Expectation 2023 Countdown has begun for Budget 2023. Here are a few expectations from Union Budget 2023: Education sector deserves a top spot in this year's Union Budget Increase section 80C limit to Rs 2 lakh Expectations on Cybersecurity in India Government must enhance old regime tax slabs Startups seek a simplified tax regime, reduction in MAT Budget should encourage investments in core R&D on AI and Robotics Budget must create a favorable climate to make India a part of the worldwide supply chain Budget should focus on falling imports, the impact of a slowdown Industry looking forward to policy announcements and allocations designed to support startup ventures Enable SaaS start-ups to navigate compliance and legal requirements faster Corporates seek tax relief measures for work from home employees Digitization has eased tax compliance Hike standard deduction to Rs 1 lakh Unified income tax filing form Income Tax relief for small taxpayers Tax kit...

Here's how to manage finances after a job layoff Since your regular flow of money has stopped the next challenge is to have enough money in hand to meet your daily expenses. Following biggies like Meta, Twitter, Amazon, Microsoft, Indian corporates have also been issuing pink slips to thousands of employees. For example, Swiggy announced that it is firing 380 employees as part of its latest layoff process. Similarly, Exotel, a customer engagement platform based out of Bengaluru, has laid off 15 per cent of its employees in the latest layoff rounds. GoMechanic fires 70 per cent employees, founder admits to financial reporting errors At some stage, you will get back to earning, but you need to provide a bridge till such time. While we cannot avoid the situation, we can definitely protect us and our family financially by taking right decisions. The first right move is to take account of your expenses. The immediate action to take is to evaluate expenses into 3 buckets: a) must spend (...

Exploring tech, legal provisions to keep e-Rupee transactions 'anonymous' RBI is exploring technological solutions to keep retail transactions using the digital rupee ‘anonymous’. RBI could also explore legal provisions to keep the transactions anonymous. It will weigh its options as things evolve but will ensure the anonymity of transactions up to a certain limit, which is a basic feature of cash transactions. The basic distinction between Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions and digital rupee transactions is that UPI is a payment mode, which involves the intermediation of banks, and the digital rupee is money. So, all UPI transactions hit banks’ core banking solution (CBS). But in the case of a digital rupee, once the money is withdrawn from the bank and reaches the customer’s wallet, the transaction that takes place following this process is essentially a transfer of money between two wallets. Experts have suggested that when a bank ...