A Decade of Corporate Taxation: Empirical Evidence from BSE Sensex 30 Companies FY2016–FY2025
$ 42.5
Description
This study takes a data-driven look at how corporate taxation in India has evolved over the last decade, focusing on the thirty companies that make up the BSE Sensex. While statutory tax rates tell one story, what companies actually pay often tells another. By analysing cash taxes paid relative to profit before tax from FY2016 to FY2025, the report cuts through accounting noise to capture the real economic tax burden. The findings point to a clear structural shift. Pre-reform years show wide variation and frequent distortions across firms and sectors. The introduction of Section 115BAA in FY2020 marks a decisive inflection point, with effective tax rates declining and, more importantly, becoming more consistent across companies. However, this transition is far from uniform. Cyclical sectors such as metals and banking exhibit sharp volatility driven by profit swings, while consumer and technology firms display far more stable adjustment patterns. At its core, the report highlights a simple but important reality: tax reform in India did reduce the burden on large listed companies, but the impact is uneven, shaped as much by business fundamentals as by policy itself.