NEW DELHI: Over 7.40 crore persons filed income tax returns in the 2022-23 fiscal, of which 5.16 crore showed zero tax liability, the Finance Ministry said on Monday.

Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary informed the Lok Sabha there has been an increase in the number of returns filed in the last five years.

The number of persons filing ITRs increased from 6.28 crore in fiscal 2018-19, to 6.47 crore in 2019-20, to 6.72 crore in 2020-21.

The number of ITRs filed in the 2021-22 fiscal rose to over 6.94 crore and further to over 7.40 crore in the 2022-23 fiscal.

The number of persons whose I-T returns amount to zero tax liability during the last four years increased from 2.90 crore in fiscal 2019-20 to 5.16 crore in 2022-23. “There may not be proportionate increase in direct tax collection and number of income tax returns filed because the direct tax collection is dependent upon multiple factors which include tax rate applicable for relevant assessment year, admissible deductions/ exemptions under the law, overall economic growth in various sectors in economy, etc,” Chaudhary said.

Direct tax collection increased from about Rs 11.38 lakh crore in 2018-17, to over Rs 16.63 lakh crore in 2022-23, he said.