50,000 Swiggy delivery workers file ITRs, claim Rs 6.5 crore refunds

BENGALURU: More than 50,000 Swiggy delivery workers filed income-tax returns through a facility in the company’s partner app and submitted refund claims totalling Rs 6.5 crore, the company said on Thursday. More than a third of them were filing their returns for the first time.The service was available to delivery workers across Swiggy’s food delivery business and quick-commerce platform Instamart. Swiggy said the workers used it to seek refunds against a percentange tax deducted at source, or TDS, from their payouts during the financial year.The Rs 6.5 crore represents refund claims filed and not necessarily money already disbursed. Swiggy did not disclose how many of these claims had been processed or credited by the income-tax department.Workers can claim a refund by filing a return when the tax deducted from their earnings exceeds their final tax liability. A filed return also creates a formal record of income, which Swiggy said could help delivery workers when applying for loans or entering into rental agreements.The company partnered with tax-filing platforms ClearTax, TaxBuddy and Dvara Money to offer the service through its delivery partner app.“For our delivery partners, long-term stability is about building a recognized financial identity,” said Saurav Goyal, chief operating officer of Swiggy’s food marketplace. Filing returns could help workers establish a financial record and access formal financial services, he added.Swiggy said it has over 6.5 lakh delivery partners across its businesses. Its food delivery platform works with over 2.7 lakh restaurants in more than 720 cities, while Instamart operates in 131 cities.Get the latest Business News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.