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The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) has said that the new Income Tax Bill will simplify the country's six-decade old tax structure as well as help boost growth of MSMEs. The ICAI, a key stakeholder in tax matters, is also setting up a five-member group to closely examine various provisions of the bill.

ICAI said introduced in Lok Sabha on February 13, 2025, the bill seeks to achieve tax certainty by minimising the scope of litigation and fresh interpretation. It said with an intent to simplify the six-decade old tax framework, the main objective was to streamline the provisions, removing obsolete references and creating a simpler legal framework. It said the objectives have been sought to be achieved by replacing the concept/terminology of previous year and assessment year with 'tax year' and 'financial year succeeding the tax year', doing away with the provisos and explanations, among others. 

It further said the provisions relating to charitable trusts spread across different Chapters of the Income Tax Act, 1961 are being simplified and consolidated in a single chapter. All the TDS provisions are now contained in one section and presented in the form of a table. All presumptive income provisions for residents have been grouped and presented in a single clause. Also, all presumptive income provisions for non-residents have been grouped and presented in a single clause.