Number of Indians with income above Rs 100 Cr crosses 500 mark in FY26

The number of people reporting an annual income of more than Rs 100 crore increased by 40% between FY25 and FY26, according to data presented by the Ministry of Finance in the Lok Sabha on Monday. The figures are based on income tax return filings.

In FY26, the year ended March 31, 2026, as many as 576 individuals reported an annual income of Rs 100 crore or more. This compares with 415 in FY25 and 284 in FY24.

Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary shared the data while responding to a question from Indian National Congress MP Murari Lal Meena.

According to the Hurun Global Rich List, India had 308 billionaires as of March 2026, up from 284 a year earlier. However, the minister noted that there is no statutory definition of the term "billionaire" under either the Income-tax Act, 2025, or the erstwhile Income-tax Act, 1961.

The Forbes Real-Time Billionaires List rans Mukesh Ambani, Chairman of Reliance Industries, as India's richest person, with an estimated net worth of $86.7 billion. He is followed by Gautam Adani at $85.5 billion and Savitri Jindal and family at $37.5 billion.

While the government data points to a rise in the number of high-income individuals, income inequality in India continues to be a subject of debate.

According to the World Inequality Report 2026, India remains among the world's most unequal countries in terms of income distribution. The report says the top 10% of earners account for 58% of the country's national income, while the bottom 50% receive just 15%.

However, the Ministry of Finance disputed this assessment in its statement, saying income inequality in India has been narrowing.

"As per the latest Household Consumption Expenditure Survey 2023-24, the Gini coefficient for rural and urban areas is 0.237 and 0.284, respectively, down from 0.266 and 0.314 in 2022-23," it says.

The Gini coefficient is a statistical measure of economic inequality that evaluates income or wealth distribution within a population, ranging from 0 (perfect equality) to 1 (perfect inequality).