Union Budget 2026 Highlights: On February 1, 2026, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman introduced the Union Budget 2026-27 in the Lok Sabha, her ninth straight national budget and the first budget to be presented by India on a Sunday. The Budget is expected to strike a balance between growth, fiscal prudence and development priorities in a strenuous global economic environment and maintain the momentum in vital areas like infrastructure, technology as well as social welfare.
Key Points Of Union Budget 2026 Highlights:
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Duty free fish catch: Fish caught by Indian fishing vessels on the high seas will be made completely duty-free to support fishermen and boost exports.
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Seamless cargo clearance: Cargo approvals will be processed through a single digital window by the end of this financial year for faster trade operations.
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Customs duty exemptions: No customs duty on microwave oven parts, aviation raw materials, sodium antimonate, and goods for battery energy storage systems.
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Boost to clean and nuclear energy: Imports for nuclear power projects will be duty-free till 2035, supporting long term clean energy goals.
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Tax reforms on buybacks: Buybacks will be taxed as capital gains for all shareholders to prevent misuse of tax arbitrage.
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Tax holiday for foreign cloud companies: Foreign firms setting up data centres in India will get tax holiday benefits till 2047 with safe harbour margins.
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IT services simplification: All IT services grouped under one category with a uniform safe harbour margin of 15.5% and higher eligibility limits.
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Updated ITR filing dates: ITR-1 and ITR-2 can be filed till July 31, while non-audit business cases can file till August 31.
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Fiscal discipline maintained: Fiscal deficit reduced to 4.4% in FY26 and targeted at 4.3% for FY27, showing strong financial control.
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Higher capital expenditure: Capital expenditure for FY27 set at ₹12.2 lakh crore with focus on infrastructure and growth.
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Support to MSMEs: ₹10,000 crore SME Growth Fund and ₹2,000 crore Self-Reliant India Fund announced for micro enterprises.
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Seven high-speed rail corridors: New corridors like Mumbai–Pune and Delhi–Varanasi will act as growth connectors between major cities.
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Tourism and culture push: Buddhist circuits in the North East, archaeological sites, and turtle trails to be developed for tourism.
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Healthcare and Ayurveda expansion: Three new All India Institutes of Ayurveda and five regional medical hubs will be set up.
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Semiconductor and biopharma boost: ₹40,000 crore for semiconductor mission and ₹10,000 crore for Biopharma Shakti initiative.
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Women entrepreneurship support: Self Help Entrepreneur (SHE) Marts will be created to strengthen women led businesses.
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Foreign investors in Indian stocks: Resident foreign individuals can directly invest in Indian equities with higher limits.
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Education to employment focus: A high powered committee will be formed to link education with jobs and study AI’s impact.
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Poverty reduction achievement: About 25 crore people have moved out of multidimensional poverty in the last 10 years.
- Khelo India Mission: ‘Khelo India Mission’ To Transform India’s Sports Sector Over The Next Decade.
Union Budget 2026 Highlights: On the whole, the Union Budget 2026 was aimed to balance between development and social justice, focusing on tax reduction, macroeconomic stability, and specific assistance to the essential sectors. Having a positive GDP perspective and planned capex choices, the Budget tried to follow a developmental focused but financially prudent course taking into consideration the social demands and structural changes.
