The Union government on Monday increased the windfall gains tax on domestic crude oil to Rs 4,250 per tonne from Rs 1,600 per tonne, a finance ministry notification said. This new rate will be effective August 1.
The levy, which is in the form of a cess, was reimposed on July 15. It was earlier reduced to nil from May 16 due to a slump in global oil prices.
The Special Additional Excise Duty (SAED) on diesel will increase to Rs 1 per litre from nil. SAED on petrol and aviation turbine fuel will remain unchanged at nil.
Windfall gains tax was levied by the government to tax super-normal profits of oil producers and fuel exporters. The levies are revised once every fortnight based on the movement in margins on fuels in the international market and global crude oil prices.