Budget 2017: Pharma bosses seek clarification in tax Structure
Pharmaceuticals industry has sought clarification from the government about the tax structure and also provided incentives for research and development as a part of the budget wishlist.
Indian Drug Manufacturers' Association (IDMA), which comprises wholly-Indian large, medium and small pharma, said all excisable goods used for research and development purposes should be exempted from central excise duty.
IDMA also asked to introduce parity in the input (12 per cent) and output (6 per cent) rate of excise duty for pharmaceutical products.
Organisation of Pharmaceutical Producers of India (OPPI) which comprises of MNC pharma companies, says, since innovation is an important part of government's agenda, it should provide some clarification on incentives under the National Intellectual Property Policy.
OPPI also expects to put an end to the inverted duty structure as and when GST is implemented.
The industry majors also seek a road-map for bringing down the corporate income tax down to 25 per cent as stated by the government in the past.
On the other hand, the Medical Technology Association of India (MTaI), has asked to rollback high custom duties on medical devices as the effective tax has reached as high as 62.70 per cent. It eventually passes on to the patients, which in turn, increases patients' expenses.