Business
FICCI Flags Tax And Customs As Key Demands From Union Budget 2026-27
New Delhi: The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) has set out its key expectations from the Union Budget 2026-27, calling for faster tax appeals, simpler TDS rules, clarity for cross-border supply chains and targeted customs facilitation to cut delays and disputes.
FICCI calls for immediate steps to reduce a large backlog of appeals before the Commissioners of Income Tax (Appeals), saying pending cases and blocked refunds strain taxpayers and the system according to a press release.
It recommends filling vacancies, setting differentiated, time-bound targets for small and complex cases, enabling virtual hearings on a fixed schedule, and granting stays on recovery if an appeal crosses two years without taxpayer fault. It also urges better coordination between faceless units and jurisdictional officers on remand reports, and proposes sharing draft orders with appellants to correct factual errors early.
On cash flow pressure during disputes, FICCI has asked that the current expectation of a 20 per cent deposit for a stay be rationalised. It proposes real-time integration of stay orders with the Central Processing Centre (CPC) to stop automatic refund adjustments against stayed demands and suggests allowing bank guarantees or indemnities as alternate security, with safeguards and monitoring.
To lower compliance burden, FICCI proposed a simpler TDS framework: slab-based TDS for salaries, maximum marginal rate for lotteries and online games, and only two standard rates for other payments. It suggests exempting B2B payments already reported under GST from TDS, removing low-yield TDS/TCS on purchase or sale of goods, and publishing a negative list covering items such as payments to senior citizens, exempt incomes, banks and registered GST entities.
For manufacturing supply chains, FICCI requests explicit assurance that storing components or deploying free-of-cost equipment in India for just-in-time production by contract manufacturers does not create a “business connection” for non-residents under the Income-tax Acts of 1961 and 2025. It says this clarity would support technology deployment and competitiveness while limiting unintended tax exposure and litigation.
FICCI also sought for restoration in the new Income-tax Act, the earlier definition of “Associated Enterprise” to avoid widening transfer pricing coverage to commercially unrelated parties, which could trigger fresh disputes for lenders, contract manufacturers, and brand owners.
On capital distribution, the chamber has recommended aligning taxation of buybacks with capital reduction at least where buybacks use share premium or fresh issue proceeds, noting that treating the full consideration as a dividend can tax capital rather than profits. It has also asked for clarity on interaction with anti-abuse provisions and treaty treatment to prevent inconsistent field practices.
For customs, FICCI has urged more benches of the Customs Authority for Advance Rulings beyond New Delhi and Mumbai to serve the south and east, and a mechanism to extend rulings when facts and law remain unchanged. It has recommended allowing newly incorporated companies in groups already accredited under the Authorised Economic Operator programme, domestically or abroad, to apply for AEO status, and to continue Tier-II status post-merger through simple intimation. It has further called for a single, real-time national database of trade notices to ensure uniform practices across ports.
FICCI stated that these measures would ease working capital stress, reduce litigation, and improve investor predictability as the government prepares the 2026-27 Budget.
BBCWe’ve all looked at our bank account and wondered why we don’t have as much money as we thought we did, and suddenly, the bills, shopping and socialising begin to add up.
For many of us, our relationship with money is strained and dealing with financial matters leaves us feeling overwhelmed or stressed.
If you’re struggling to get on top of your finances, here are four ways to help you manage your money better.
1. Look at when you spend money
Getty ImagesSitting down and thinking about what actually drives you to spend money can help you stop destructive patterns, says journalist and author Anniki Sommerville.
When she previously worked in a very stressful corporate role, she bought new clothes everytime she achieved something difficult or challenging.
“I felt like I deserved to reward myself.
“I had this pattern of spending, which was like ‘you’ve done a really good presentation, now you deserve to buy yourself something.'”
Abigail Foster, a chartered accountant and author, says the easiest way to discover these kinds of habits is looking through your bank statements, to see when you spend the most.
“Is it late at night? Is it the weekends? I have friends that have really bad habits of when they’re bored on the train, they start buying things.”
Understanding these instincts, enables us to put in steps to prevent them.
“You can be better equipped to make an alternative decision and go, ‘Do you know what? I can just take a deep breath and not purchase something.'”
2. Spend an hour a week on your finances
Getty ImagesAnniki says when she was younger, she often felt scared to check her bank balance and avoided dealing with money as much as possible.
This kind of behaviour is often linked to our education, says Claer Barrett, consumer editor at the Financial Times.
“How we felt about maths in school, maybe that burning feeling of shame of not knowing the answer or putting your hand up to answer a question and getting it wrong, that can often make us feel like, I can’t do maths. So therefore, I can’t do money.”
“We should be really pushing on that door and trying to understand more about our financial situation.”
Abigail says the only way to do this is to force yourself to tackle it head on, setting aside a set amount of time each week to look at your bank account and all your outgoings.
“It’s a minimum of an hour a week.
“Just go through your finances and kind of be hit with it. It sounds a lot, but it can be really calming for your nervous system.”
Doing this will often throw up outgoings that you’ve forgotten, such as a subscription for a gym you haven’t been to in six months or a random app you’ve forgotten you’ve subscribed to, she says.
3. Don’t let jargon put you off – ask questions
Getty ImagesOften the terms associated with money can be offputting.
Claer says don’t let words like investing, scare you, instead take time to learn about them.
“Whether we’re talking about stocks and shares, or investing in a pension. We need to give ourselves every advantage financially,” she says.
“So being shy or feeling shameful, not asking these interrogating questions is the worst thing we can do.”
She suggests making a list of things you are unsure about, whether that’s consolidating pensions or asking for a pay rise at work, and slowly working through them.
Don’t be too hard on yourself if you’re just starting.
“We’re all a work in progress. I’ve got my financial to do list at the back of my diary. There are some things that have been on it for more than a year.
“That’s just life, but as long as I can try and do something every week towards making my financial situation a better place, that’s moving forward.”
4. Set up a freedom fund
Getty ImagesMany of us are already too stretched keeping up with the costs of everday living to even think about saving.
But for those who can afford to, Abigail suggests setting up a “freedom fund” to give you options when life gets difficult.
She recommends setting up an easy access account only in your name and not joint, and to put a portion of your income away every month.
Unlike an emergency fund pot for things like unexpected car and house repairs, a freedom fund is money designed to “make you happier.”
“So when a job no longer serves you, you can think ‘I’ve got some money sat away so I can go and look for something else.’
“Or if you want to leave a partner, that freedom fund can give you the ability to walk out.”
Business Secretary Peter Kyle has pledged his support for British industries with an announcement of £420 million energy savings, but declined to comment on whether they would face tax rises in the upcoming Budget.
On Friday, the Government confirmed it was going ahead with plans to increase the discount on electricity network charges for businesses in the most energy-intensive sectors from 60% to 90%.
The move, which was proposed earlier this year and has been subject to a consultation, will see about 500 businesses save up to £420 million a year.
Making the announcement on a visit to the Encirc Glass factory in Elton, near Chester, Mr Kyle said: “This is targeted support for energy intensive industries, so we’ll be injecting into this £420 million worth of savings.
“That means that British businesses from today are going to be £420 million more competitive.”
When asked whether he could reassure businesses in the run up to the Budget next month, he said: “Don’t go on my words, go on my actions.”
Mr Kyle said the Budget, which will be delivered on November 26, would “build on” progress made by the Government since Labour came to power.
Asked whether the Government would stick to manifesto promises not to raise taxes in the Budget, he said: “The Budget will be in a couple of weeks time. But don’t just think about what might happen in the future. Take us at what we have actually done – planning reform, regulatory reform, a 10-year industrial strategy.
“We are making sure that we are targeting support to those high energy industries. We’re making sure we’re getting the infrastructure of our country, with 1.5 million homes, right through to the AI infrastructure that businesses will be depending on in the future right where it needs to be.”
Asked again by the PA news agency if he could confirm whether manifesto pledges not to raise taxes would be kept, he said he would not comment publicly on the Budget.
He said: “There are quite severe market sensitivities around conjecture about the Budget, so we are trying our best to focus businesses on what we are already doing, because that is a very good indication of how we will approach situations like this when we make decisions about the future.
“The Budget will come in a few weeks time and we will be building on all of the great achievements that this Labour government has had since we came into office.”
Mr Kyle was given a tour of the Encirc Glass factory, where bottles for a range of brands, including Guinness, WKD and Yellow Tail wine, are made.
The company’s managing director Sean Murphy said the announcement would be a “major boost” for the company.
He said: “By cutting the costs of energy in this way, the Government is helping our industry to support thousands of jobs across the country whilst we make the transition to renewable sources of power.
“We welcomed the opportunity to engage with the minister on the pressing challenges facing our sector. Continued government support for vital industries like glass manufacturing is essential to safeguarding jobs and unlocking investment across all regions of the UK.”
UK Steel welcomed the announcement, but director general Gareth Stace said it was “frustrating” that it would have to wait until 2027 for the savings.
He said: “The Government’s welcome move to uplift network charging compensation to 90% is a necessary step in the right direction, which will eventually save our sector £14.5 million a year.
“But a price gap will remain, and the wholesale price element must also be reformed next, or the UK steel industry will continue to decline.”
Mr Kyle said the Government was “bold” in supporting the British steel industry and he planned to release a steel strategy later this year.
Brian Roberts, chairman and CEO of Comcast, attends the annual Allen & Co. Media and Technology Conference in Sun Valley, Idaho, July 9, 2025.
David A. Grogan | CNBC
Comcast clued investors in to its potential M&A aspirations on Thursday. In short, executives think a deal could get done, despite recent naysaying.
Comcast is among the interested parties in a potential deal for Warner Bros. Discovery. WBD — the owner of TNT Sports, CNN, HBO, Warner Bros. studio and other media assets — officially put itself up for sale after “receiving interest from multiple parties,” WBD CEO David Zaslav said in a statement last week.
Several pundits and analysts have posited that Comcast has little to no chance to do a deal from a regulatory perspective, given President Donald Trump’s pointed words for Comcast CEO and controlling shareholder Brian Roberts. Others say the path forward may not be doomed.
On Thursday, alongside the company’s third-quarter earnings report, soon-to-be co-CEO Mike Cavanagh shed some light on how executives view the situation, without specifically naming Warner Bros. Discovery as a potential tie-up.
“I think more things are viable than maybe some of the public commentary that’s out there,” Cavanagh said Thursday.
Trump in April called Comcast and Roberts “a disgrace to the integrity of Broadcasting” in a post on his social media platform, Truth Social. Trump has also called Roberts a “lowlife” and has referred to Comcast as “Concast.”
Some equity research analysts have predicted that the Trump administration would block a Comcast acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery. WBD is still moving toward a planned separation into two publicly traded entities while it expands its strategic review.
Paramount is trying to buy the whole company, before it could split, and WBD has thus far rejected three separate offers from the David Ellison-run company.
“It is almost certain that the Trump DOJ would not allow CMSCA to buy WBD and the result would be decided in court,” New Street Research analyst Blair Levin wrote in a note to clients, citing Trump’s public comments about Roberts.
“We along with our cable colleagues believe [Comcast’s] political standing in this administration is very low and believe CMCSA would think long and hard about whether a deal is worth the long, arduous process of creating enough goodwill to close the deal,” wrote Raymond James analyst Ric Prentiss.
Structuring a spin-merge
Cavanagh reminded investors Thursday that just because the company takes a look at assets that are up for sale in the media industry, it doesn’t necessarily mean a deal, or even an offer, could materialize.
“I think we’ve said repeatedly, and I’ll say it again, that the bar is very high for us to pursue any M&A transactions, given how strongly we feel about the businesses we have, the strategies we’re pursuing and the opportunities we have ahead of us,” Cavanagh told investors.
Comcast’s NBCUniversal is in the process of spinning off its portfolio of cable networks, including CNBC, into a new entity called Versant.
Assuming an offer for WBD or other media assets were to come together, it would have to make strategic sense for the future NBCUniversal, which will be led by the broadcast TV network NBC and streaming service Peacock.
Many of NBCUniversal’s moves to date have been to boost Peacock’s place in the streaming ecosystem. The company reported Thursday that Peacock had 41 million customers as of the end of last month, a subscriber base that has remained flat throughout the year.
Cavanagh noted the company would be looking for media assets that complement its post-spin NBCUniversal business.
“So in this case, it would be streaming assets and studio assets, since there are no other parks assets out there,” he said.
Warner Bros. Discovery’s planned split would separate out exactly those businesses: streaming and studios in one company, which would also house streamer HBO Max, and its global networks into another.
While Paramount’s interest is in the entirety of Warner Bros. Discovery, negating a split, other prospective bidders have considered acquiring just some of the assets, CNBC has reported.
Cavanagh said, “In light of that, what we’d be looking for and what we’re going to look like post-Versant spin,” a deal isn’t as far-fetched as some view it.
In a hypothetical situation in which Comcast were to also spin off NBCUniversal, which is currently slated to remain with the company following the Versant transaction, and merge it with WBD, LightShed analyst Rich Greenfield predicted that deal could get through regulators.
Wolfe Research’s Peter Supino proposed a plan under which NBCUniversal would issue new stock to WBD at an exchange ratio, eliminating Roberts’ voting control over the new company, and appoint a chairman and CEO “not named Roberts.” That combination could lead to a deal, he wrote in a note to clients.
“The primary problems facing a Comcast bid — financing and politics — might be solvable,” Supino wrote.
While Comcast may shy away from pursuing a transaction that could be blocked by the Trump DOJ, even that may not be a dealbreaker.
In the first Trump term, his DOJ blocked AT&T’s acquisition of Time Warner, an earlier iteration of Warner Bros. Discovery. In June 2018, a U.S. District Court judge approved the $85.4 billion sale, ruling the government failed to prove the deal would harm consumers.
If it pleases the president
Some Comcast executives think the regulatory concerns are either overblown or, at least, far too early to ascertain, according to people familiar with the matter, who have knowledge of Comcast’s strategy but spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal thinking. There’s some evidence suggesting Comcast’s executives may have a point.
A Comcast spokesperson declined to comment for this article.
Skydance Media received long-awaited Federal Communications Commission approval for its merger with Paramount after the CBS parent agreed to a $16 million settlement with Trump over a “60 Minutes” episode.
While a deal for WBD won’t require FCC review, because Warner Bros. Discovery doesn’t own a broadcaster, a takeover of this size — WBD’s market capitalization is about $53 billion plus another $30 billion in debt — could still draw the scrutiny of Trump’s Department of Justice.
Trump’s reputation as a dealmaker suggests Comcast may be able to avoid any interference by endearing itself to the president.
Comcast is one of 37 companies donating to Trump’s efforts to build a $300 million ballroom for the White House through the Trust for the National Mall.
Trump’s public dislike toward Roberts and Comcast may be bloviation linked to Trump’s assertions that MSNBC, currently owned by NBCUniversal, is left-leaning. It’s unclear if Trump explicitly cares about Comcast or NBCUniversal owning any of the WBD assets other than CNN, which Trump has also routinely criticized.
If his primary issue with Comcast buying WBD is CNN, a divestiture or deal without the network could circumvent those issues. MSNBC will also be spun out into the Versant portfolio.
While Roberts will still be a shareholder of Versant, MSNBC will no longer be a part of Comcast once Versant becomes its own publicly traded company at the start of 2026.
Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal, which owns CNBC. Versant would become the new parent company of CNBC upon Comcast’s planned spinoff of Versant.
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