New Delhi: Finance Minster Piyush Goyal is all set to present the Interim Budget 2019 on Friday (February 1).
Generally the tradition in an election year is to present an Interim Budget or Vote-on-account.
Here is the difference between Interim Budget and Vote-on-account
The full budget is presented by the new government after the elections. As per practice, a vote-on-account or approval for essential government spending for a limited period is taken in an election year and a full-fledged budget is presented by the new government.
Also, as per the convention, the government does not introduce any new service, nor does it bring Finance Bill or present the Economic Survey in an Interim Budget.
A Vote-on-account is however different from both interim and full Budget as it deals only with expenditure, while interim and complete Budgets deal with both expenditure and receipts –very similar to a full budget.
Normally, a Vote-on-account is taken for two months only. But in an election year or when it is anticipated that the main Demands and Appropriation Bill will take longer than two months, the Vote-on-account may cover a period exceeding two months. Typically this period does not exceed six months, as that is the maximum gap possible between two sittings of Parliament.
The incoming government has the freedom to change the estimates in the Interim Budget when it presents the final budget after taking office. However incumbent governments in the country have generally followed the convention of avoiding major policy announcements or taxation proposals in the Interim Budget.
