The finance ministry expects at least 80 per cent of taxpayers to shift to the new income tax regime that was announced early this month, revenue secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey said here on Friday.

In her second budget, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman has given individuals the option of choosing between the current tax rates and a new structure where the tax rates are lower in certain slabs.

“We feel at least 80 per cent of the people will come to the new scheme,” Pandey said.

He added that the government did an analysis of 5.78 crore taxpayers prior to the budget and found that 69 per cent of them would save on tax payouts under the new system, while 11 per cent might favour the old regime.

Of the remaining 20 per cent taxpayers, there will be people who want to avoid the hassle of paperwork and may wish to switch over to the new regime, he said.

“A large majority of people will find the new regime advantageous,” he added.