The Finance Ministry on Wednesday said that the government collected Rs 3.86 lakh crore in direct tax between April and September 2017. The ministry said this was 15.8% more than the direct tax collected during the corresponding period in 2016.

The ministry said that the direct tax collection between April and September was 39.4% of the Budget estimate for 2017-’18. It added that the gross direct tax collection (which is the figure before adjusting for tax refunds) was Rs 4.66 lakh crore during the April-September period.

The ministry said advance tax collection for the April to September period was Rs 1.77 lakh crore. Advance tax is the income tax paid in advance instead of in lump sum at the end of the year.

The Finance Ministry said the advance tax the government received from April to September was 11.5% higher than that collected during the same period in 2016. It said that while advance tax paid by corporate entities from April to September 2017 grew by 8.1%, that paid by individuals increased by 30.1% over the corresponding period in 2016.