April GST collection hits record high at Rs 2.1 lakh crore, up 12.4% y-o-y

The remarkable surge in GST collection has been attributed to robust growth in domestic transactions (up 13.4 percent) and imports (up 8.3 percent), according to a statement from the finance ministry on May 1. In the corresponding period last year, the government had collected Rs 1.87 lakh crore in GST.

Taking into consideration refunds, the net GST revenue for April 2024 stands at Rs 1.92 lakh crore, demonstrating an impressive 15.5 percent growth compared to the same period last year, as per the ministry.

Monthly GST collections have shown a consistent upward trend. Starting from averaging below Rs 1 lakh crore per month in its inaugural year of 2017-18, collections escalated notably post the pandemic-impacted period of 2020-21, averaging Rs 1.51 lakh crore in 2022-23.

The gross collections for the first month of FY25 were also significantly higher, marking a 17.81 percent increase compared to March, amounting to Rs 1.78 lakh crore.

In April 2024, the government's total collections included Rs 43,846 crore from central GST, Rs 53,538 crore from state GST, and Rs 99,623 crore from integrated GST, which incorporates Rs 37,826 crore collected on imported goods.

The GST cess collections for the previous month amounted to Rs 13,260 crore, with Rs 1,008 crore collected on imported goods.

"GST collections breach landmark milestone of Rs 2 lakh crore," Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman posted on social media platform X (formerly Twitter).

"In April 2024, the central government settled Rs 50,307 crore to central GST and Rs 41,600 crore to state GST from the integrated GST collected. This translates to a total revenue of Rs 94,153 crore for central GST and Rs 95,138 crore for state GST for April 2024 after regular settlement," the ministry said.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that the integrated GST settlement ensures that there are no outstanding dues owed to the states.