When Will Budget 2023 Be Presented? Know Date, Time of Union Budget

Data And Time Of Union Budget 2023-24: One of the biggest events of the year, the presentation of the Union Budget, is going to take place within the next month. The Budget affects every stratum of society — from the common man to businesses. It lays down the government’s financial and policy-related plans for the next financial year and allocates funds to various ministries to implements schemes.

When Will The Union Budget 2023-24 Be Presented?

The Union Budget 2023 will be as usual presented on February 1, 2023. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will deliver the Budget Speech, which usually starts at 11 am, to announce the major announcements of the Budget. This will be her fifth Budget Speech. In 2022, her speech lasted 1.5 hours, where the speech in 2021 was the longest in India’s history at 2 hours and 40 minutes.

The budget session of Parliament will start on January 31. Since 2016, the Budget is presented on February 1. This is the last full Budget of the current tenure of the government.

A day before the Union Budget presentation, Sitharaman will also present the data from the Economic Survey of India in Parliament on January 31.

Budget Expectations

There is an expectation that the government might give a relief to individual tax payers by raising exemption or rebate limit. Salaried employees are one of the major tax contributors in India. Their salary is tax-exempt up to Rs 2.5 lakh a year.

However, their salary is also tax-free if it is below Rs 5 lakh in a year. However, it is a rebate under Section 87A, not an exemption. If the salary goes above Rs 5 lakh in a year, the tax on the whole amount except the exemption limit of Rs 2.5 lakh will be applicable. Now, there are demands for raising the exemption limit to Rs 5 lakh.

Apart from this, the commerce ministry has sought a reduction in the import duty on gold in the forthcoming budget with a view to push exports and manufacturing of the gems and jewellery sector, according to a recent PTI report quoting sources.

The government had in July this year hiked gold import duty to 15 per cent from 10.75 per cent to rein in the country’s current account deficit (CAD) and rising import of the yellow metal. The basic customs duty on gold is 12.5 per cent. Along with the agriculture infrastructure development cess (AIDC) of 2.5 per cent, the effective gold customs duty will be 15 per cent.

According to a Reuters‘ report recently quoting sources, India may increase rural spending by nearly 50 per cent to Rs 2 lakh crore next fiscal year, as the country seeks to boost jobs and affordable housing before the national elections.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is likely to present the 2023/24 budget on Feb. 1, the last full budget before the 2024 national elections. India’s fiscal year starts on April 1 and runs through March.

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