Budget 2018-19

  More than 200 companies are involved in disputes over the definition of intermediary services, says report. The government has said services outsourced to India and those provided domestically for foreign entities will not be treated as intermediary services, enabling them not to pay the 18% Goods and Services Tax (GST), said the Economic Times on Tuesday about a policy decision that strengthens the country’s back office industry. A meeting of the  GST Council  clarified this on Friday and this decision will free up tax refunds to companies in information technology, IT ready services, financial services and R&D, the paper said. More than 200 companies are involved in disputes over the definition of “intermediary” services. The disputes started after tax authorities began treating back office service providers or business process outsourcing (BPO) entities as intermediaries, denying them export status. The GST Council’s 45th meeting in Lucknow took several important...

  The council meet is expected to deliberate the exemption and concession on   Covid-19   related items The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council is likely to consider the taxation of Covid-19 relief essentials in its next meeting scheduled for June 12. The meeting is expected to deliberate the exemption and concession on Covid-related items, following the recommendation submitted by the Group of Ministers (GoM) on Tuesday. The GoM recommendation is yet to be made public, but it is learnt that the issue of taxing the vaccine has been sent back to the Council. However, it suggested temporarily reducing the  GST rate  to 5 per cent on commercial imports and domestic supply of Coronavirus (Covid-19) medicines and material, including medical oxygen, oxygen concentrators, pulse oximeters and testing kits. The GoM headed by Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma has not made any concrete recommendations on vaccine rates, but the demand of some states to lower it may be...

  About two thirds of states opt for RBI-window of Rs 1.10 trillion, rest still want the Centre to borrow instead The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council meeting on compensation for the states remained inconclusive on Monday, with 20-21 states opting for the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) window of Rs 1.10 trillion (earlier it was Rs 97,000 crore) and around 10 states insisting the Centre borrow and disburse the money. The next meeting is now scheduled for October 12. “The question was 20-21 states deciding to opt for the first option (the RBI window) and others wanting the Centre to borrow. Lots of discussion happened on that … Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Modi suggested that 3-4-5 days be given to the states to discuss the issue. I gave eight days and the next meeting will happen on October 12,” Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said after the meeting. She said no state, irrespective of its choice, would be denied compensation. In her answer to a question, she said sh...