Impact of Uniform Civil Code on tax benefits to HUFs not assessed yet: FinMin

Over 8.75 lakh Hindu Undivided Families (HUFs) have filed income tax returns (ITRs) and claimed deductions worth Rs 3,803 crore during 2022-23, the Finance Ministry said on Tuesday. Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary in a reply to the Rajya Sabha provided details of the number of Hindu Undivided Families (HUF) availing tax benefits (in the form of deduction under Chapter VIA of the Income-tax Act) during the last five years.

To a question on whether the government has assessed the impact of the Uniform Civil Code on tax benefits to HUFs in the country, the minister said: “No such assessment has been made as there is no such Code at present”.

Currently, a debate is going on about the status of the HUFs, following the implementation of the Uniform Civil Code on which the Law Commission has invited comments from the public.

Under Hindu Law, a HUF is a family comprising all lineally descendants of a common ancestor, including wives and unmarried daughters. This provision also covers Jain and Sikh families.

The Income Tax Act accords legal person status to HUF and entitles them to all tax deductions under Chapter VI-A. HUFs are taxed at the same rate as individuals, and they can claim applicable deductions.

According to the minister, in fiscal 2022-23 fiscal, 8,75,948 HUFs claimed deductions of Rs 3,802.86 crore. As many as 8,77,303 HUFs claimed deductions worth Rs 3,745.51 crore in 2021-22.

In 2020-21 and 2019-20, over 9.25 lakh and 9.02 lakh HUFs claimed deductions of Rs 4,173 crore and Rs 4,161 crore, respectively. In 2018-19, over 8.84 crore HUFs claimed deductions worth Rs 4,044 crore.

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