Income Tax dept collects over Rs 1,260 crore in TDS from online gaming, crypto trade

The government has collected about Rs 1,260 crore in taxes till now this fiscal after a new TDS regime was brought in for online gaming and trade in cryptocurrency, CBDT Chairperson Nitin Gupta said Friday.

About Rs 1,080 crore in taxes (under the tax deduction at source head) has been collected from online gaming and around Rs 180 crore through TDS has been mopped up during 2023-24 fiscal from the taxation of virtual digital assets (cryptocurrency), he told PTI during a post Budget interview. The data is till January 31.

The Finance Act 2023 inserted a new section, 194BA, in the Income-Tax Act, 1961, with effect from April 1, 2023, which mandates online gaming platforms to deduct income-tax (TDS) on the net winnings in the person's user account.

Tax is required to be deducted at the time of withdrawal as well as at the end of the financial year.

Similarly, from April 1, 2022, income from transfer of virtual digital assets or cryptocurrencies is taxable at 30 per cent. Such income will be taxable even if taxpayers' total income is below the threshold limit of Rs 2.50 lakh and no deduction other than cost of acquisition is allowed while computing the taxable amount.

The earnings from these two sectors -- online gaming and crypto trade -- will also have to be shown by a taxpayer when they file their individual income tax return.