The income tax department wants children to know why paying taxes is a good thing. The department will teach 10-year-olds, or class V Students, the purpose of paying taxes. Catching them young is part of the department?s long-term plan to increase tax compliance.
The module wouldn?t be too large or complicated though. The idea is to inculcate among students the values of being responsible tax-payers. ?It would be quite similar to how children are taught about the importance of conserving the environment or protecting historical monuments,? an official said.
Elaborating on the department?s idea of preparing a teaching module on taxes, a senior tax official said, ?Our main objective would be to teach the children the basic concept about taxes and the need to pay them.? Over the past two years, the compliance level for income tax has gone up by over 25%, way beyond the expectations of the government.
The department hopes that the move would help increase compliance, though a generation later. ?If we start teaching them the importance of paying taxes from a young age, there is a greater possibility of them adhering to voluntary compliance when they grow up,? another official pointed out.
The proposal to introduce such a module is still being finalised. The ultimate authority on rolling it out would rest with the national school boards (ICSE and CBSE) and state school boards.
The tax department would chalk out the basic teaching module and make it available to the boards.
At present, issues relating to taxation are taught mainly in classes of XI and XII through courses such as business studies and economics. The National Council of Educational Research and Training is already working towards introducing an extensive module on financial basics in the syllabi of class IX and class X.
Along with taxation, the new module will help students understand the basics about savings and investments, the power of compounding and the need for personal financial planning.