Why Pay Tax?

“Hey, have you filed your returns for the year? Last date is in a few days.”

“Leave it buddy. It does not matter. Moreover, It’s we the salaried citizens who pay tax and suffer on top of it.”

“Yeah, that’s true. The business class people do not even think about it or pay bare minimum.”

“Moreover, tax has already been deducted from my salary each month. Who wants to get into filling up those useless long forms and submitting them?”

I am sure everyone must have seen/heard/participated in some conversation similar to this. ‘Why should I pay the tax and on top of it, file a return for the same?’ is one question all of us ponder over sometime or the other.  Below are some of the reasons which encourage us to pay the income tax:

1. Standard Proof for most complicated facilities
1. Want a Loan? ITR  - Income Tax Return is the first document any legitimate organisation asks for. Producing the valid document completed more than half of the process.
2. Want a VISA? Again, all embassies around the world ensure that the person they are granting permission to enter their territory is safe to land there. The ITR document again helps a lot in proving your credibility and ensures that you are financially sound.
2. Want your money back? Our eyes open up wide enough with curiosity on getting the money back. Filling the ITR can also earn us some money. When I filed my ITR for the first time, I got a check of Rs. 180 from Income Tax office as I had paid that tax extra as per my claims and savings. It was a small amount, but the salary was also small that time!
3. Want a better future for you kids? All of us want the best future for our children. We work day and night to ensure that they get the best of education and life. We cut on our own expenses, give up some luxuries and save for their future needs. During all this, we subconsciously fail to realise that the economy they would be living in should also be insured. We would definitely want them to live in a much better environment then today. We must know that the tax we pay is the money government use for basic amenities like-
1. Safety – We would never ever want ourselves to be bombarded with weapons and bombs. Government uses the money we pay in tax to strengthen various means of defense.
2. Infrastructure – We are still far behind when it comes to roads, buildings, bridges and the most talked about – public transport.
3. Money – India as a nation can take loan itself from international organisations like the World Bank etc. Please be informed that they are not a charity organisations and they bear their own terms of interest and serve a defined tenure failing which further have penalties.
4. Nature – Floods, earthquakes, Landslides, Tsunami, Thunder Storms – Name any major natural calamity and there would be at least one place in India which is prone to it. So, while we enjoy and be proud of our varied land, water and air every few kilo meters, we must accept the benefits as well as the disasters these climatic conditions throw upon us. The better the government is equipped with resources quicker would be the response time and relief during such situations. Pay the tax on time and do your bit!

So, next time whenever you need an inspiration to pay tax, think twice about these small yet big enough reasons.

 I’m taking the #TaxPledge to file IT returns with the easy Income Tax efiling option from H&R Block at BlogAdda.