The recent outbreak of Coronavirus Covid-19 is expected to affect the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of all the countries in the world. India is also not left out of this.
The government is coming up with exceptions and is extending the due-dates of the returns for the convenience of the taxpayers because of the outbreak. The government has announced that the last date of all kinds of returns, to be filed between 20th March, 2020 and 29th June, 2020, will be extended to 30th June, 2020.
The returns included in this period ranges from Income Tax returns to GST returns. The interest to be charged for delayed payment of returns under Income Tax and GST is reduced to 9% 
The union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman has finally taken some relief measures on the basis of currently widespread coronavirus pandemic. Read more by the government.
Deloitte said that these decisions will no doubt ease the compliance process for the assessees of all kinds whether individuals, companies and others. Deloitte also said that these decisions will help the taxpayers in the time of the outbreak. But the experts say that approx INR 9 lakh crore of GDP will be affected because of the outbreak. The lockdowns and curfews will severely affect the total growth of GDP.
Gokul Chaudhri of Deloitte India said, “These steps will certainly give a lot of confidence to corporates and different sectors of the economy. The relief measures and easing of compliance deadlines will enable businesses to sustain themselves in the current atmosphere and is likely to have a positive impact on economic activities and more importantly remove uncertainty in the system”.
“From the tax point of view, the reliefs like tax breaks, accelerated depreciation, reliefs on payrolls, payments-weighted deduction, relief on contribution to PF will add up to 2-3 percent of GDP, which is much needed to help address the issue of liquidity and deferment of payment obligations,” he said.
He also said that the government has decided to remain the ports open for trade through customs for all the days which will help in reducing the problems and ensuring smooth trade in such hard times.
Jiger Saiya, partner and leader for tax and regulatory services at BDO India, said that the government’s decision to stretch the Vivad se Vishwas bill 
Know about the tax dispute settlement scheme (Vivad se Vishwas Bill) under the IT act. Under this scheme, taxpayers can settle all disputes before the end of 30th June 2020. Read more will make the bill successful in the long run as the timelines fixed by the government earlier were impossible to achieve.
“With the extension, taxmen will now have time to clarify more aspects and taxpayers will have reasonable time to evaluate and seek settlement of tax disputes, under the scheme,” Saiya said
Veena Sivaramakrishnan of Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co said that the measures taken by the government are very wise and such practical decisions are good for the future of the country too.
Klynveld Peat Marwick Goerdeler (KPMG) India’s Rajeev Dimri said that the measures taken will soothe the problems of the taxpayers in such harsh times. Naveen Aggarwal of the same said that the shift of the last date of the Vivad se Vishwas Bill from March 31, 2020 to June 30, 2020 without the penalty of 10% interest was ‘in line with the representations’ of the assessees. The liquidity that may be required by the taxpayers will be saved in such hard times.
Read Also: GST Impact on Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in India
The biggest tax reform i.e. Goods and Services Tax is now a part of Indian Economy. A new and unified tax structure is followed for indirect taxation on the place of various tax laws like Excise duty, Service Tax, VAT, CST etc. Read more
Manish Aggarwal of KPMG said that the alterations in Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) will be a positive step in reducing insolvencies. The government should take more such liquidity increasing decisions to maintain and withstand businesses in such a pandemic. Measures to alter the insolvency codes is not a full-proof plan but is surely a step towards stabilizing the conditions.
Rajesh Narain Gupta, managing partner of SNG & Partners said that the decisions made will hike trade and commerce, and lead in a positive direction.
