The increase of the 5% limit for garments from ₹1,000 each to ₹2,500 is a positive move, said the Cloth Manufacturers Association of India (CMAI).  File
| Photo Credit: The Hindu

The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council, during its 56th meeting, decided to revamp the tax structure into a primarily two-rate system, as proposed by the Central government, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced on Wednesday.

She added that the decisions would come into effect from September 22 for most items. Only tobacco and tobacco-related products will move to the new structure at a date to be specified by the Union Finance Minister.

Apart from the two rates of 5% and 18%, the new GST system would also include a 40% “special rate” on sin goods such as tobacco and luxury items such as large cars, yachts, and helicopters.

The government also calculated that the net fiscal implication of the rate cuts, based on consumption patterns in 2023-24, would be ₹48,000 crore. However, the officials clarified that the real implication would be known on the basis of current consumption, and that the rate rationalisation was expected to result in a buoyancy effect, and improved compliance.

“These reforms have been carried out with a focus on the common man,” Ms. Sitharaman said. “Every tax levied on the common man has gone through a rigorous looking into, and in most cases, the rates have come down. Labour-intensive industries have been given good support. Farmers and agriculture will benefit from the decisions. Health-related sectors will also benefit.”

Rate cuts for common man

She further said that common-use and middle-class items will see a reduction, with products such as hair oil, soap, shampoo, toothbrush, toothpaste, bicycle, table and kitchen ware, and other household articles being moved to 5% from either 18% or 12%.

The other items moving down to the 5% rate include namkeens, sauces, pasta, instant noodles, chocolates, coffee, and butter. Twelve specified bio-pesticides, bio-menthol, and labour-intensive items such as handicrafts, marble, travertine blocks, granite blocks, and intermediate leather goods would move from 12% to 5%.

Notably, cement will move from 28% to 18%.

The Finance Minister further explained that items such as ultra-high temperature milk, paneer, and all Indian bread, including rotis, chapatis, and parathas would see their tax rate fall to 0% from the earlier 5%.

Products such as air-conditioners, all TVs, dishwashers, small cars, and motorcycles of engine capacity less than or equal to 350cc would see their tax reduce from 28% to 18%. Buses, trucks and ambulances, as well as all auto parts, would also attract a GST rate of 18%.

The Finance Minister further said that 33 lifesaving drugs and medicines will move from 12% to 0%, while spectacles to correct vision would move from 28% to 5%.

Also read | Who are the members of the GST Council and what is their voting power?

Inversion rectified

“The long-pending inverted duty structure is being rectified for the manmade textile sector by reducing the GST rate on manmade fibre from 18% to 5% and manmade yarn from 12% to 5%,” Ms. Sitharaman said. “That will take care of every anomaly due to duty inversion in this sector.”

The inverted duty structure regarding the fertiliser will also be rectified, with the duty on sulphuric acid, nitric acid and ammonia being reduced from 18% to 5%.

The special rate of 40% will apply only on particular sin and super-luxury goods such as pan masala, cigarettes, gutka, chewable tobacco, zarda, unmanufactured tobacco and bidi, as well as goods including aerated water, caffeinated beverages, mid-size or large cars, motorcycles of engines exceeding 350 cc, helicopters and airplanes for personal use, and yachts or other vessels for private use.

On insurance services, individual life insurance policies and individual health policies will move to 0% from 18%.

Ms. Sitharaman further explained that the GST rate on pan masala, gutka, cigarettes, chewable and unmanufactured tobacco, and bidi would remain at 28%, in addition to a compensation cess, as currently in place.

Once the Centre discharges the loans it had borrowed to compensate States, these tobacco and tobacco-related items will move to the 40% slab. Ms. Sitharaman said the loan would likely be repaid within this calendar year.

Published – September 03, 2025 10:53 pm IST

Highlighting the devastating impact of the Pahalgam terror attack on the economy of Jammu and Kashmir, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday (September 3, 2025) sought the Centre’s support to deal with the situation.

The Union Territory (UT) was facing a severe fiscal crisis as its public revenues had “collapsed” in the aftermath of the April 22 terror attack in which 26 people were killed, he said.

Mr. Abdullah, who also holds the finance portfolio, told the 56th GST Council meeting in Delhi, that major economic sectors, including tourism, handicrafts, agriculture and horticulture, had come to a standstill after the attack.

Proposed GST reforms could further reduce the UT’s revenue by 10 to 12%, the Chief Minister said.

He was of the view that the GST Council could go ahead with rate rationalisation proposals, but suitable mechanisms should be devised to compensate states as well as UTs.

The Centre’s support to Jammu and Kashmir to deal with the fiscal crisis was critical, Mr. Abdullah emphasised.

“The major sectors of the economy, like tourism, transport, construction, and automobiles, have come to a standstill post April 2025. The proposed reform can further reduce our GST revenues by 10-12%.

“Hence, as the Finance Minister of Jammu and Kashmir, I am of the opinion that establishing suitable mechanisms and safeguards for the fiscal stability of States and UT’s is critical,” he said.

He highlighted the devastating impact of the event on the UT’s economy and called for the Centre’s support to deal with the situation, particularly in view of the proposed GST rate rationalisation.

“We may go ahead with the rate rationalisation proposal, while devising a mechanism for compensating States/UTs for their fiscal stability and creating safeguards for translating the benefits from rationalisation in the reduced prices to the masses of our country,” he said.

Mr. Abdullah stated that the GST reforms must consider the unique challenges faced by individual states and UTs.

He detailed how the local economy had been gaining renewed vigour before being “shocked” by the “Pahalgam incident” of April 2025. This event, and its aftermath, have brought major economic sectors—including tourism, handicraft, horticulture, and agriculture — to a standstill.

The Chief Minister also urged Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman-headed GST Council to address the “geopolitical challenges” facing the country and the severe fiscal pressures on his region following the terror attack.

He talked about substantial loss of jobs and businesses, and a decline in public revenues. “Today, all the sectors of economic activity, including tourism, handicraft, horticulture and agriculture, are badly affected. The flight of non-local workers has slowed down development of infrastructure projects,” the Chief Minister said.

Fully endorsing the two-tier (5 and 18%) GST structure proposal, the Chief Minister said, “My main concern is how do we ensure that this rate rationalisation eases the burden on the common man and makes these specific goods and services more affordable for the masses of our country.

“These often lead to classification disputes, inverted duty structures and compliance complexity. The recommendations of the Group of Ministers and the Union proposal deal with these distortions to a large extent and aim to minimise such aberrations. For the Trade and Industries, these will bring clarity, reduce litigation, and enhance compliance. Hence, I welcome and support the recommendations of the Group,” he said.

“We need to have systemic safeguards to assure us that the proposed rate changes result in major benefits for the consumers and are not cornered in the chain. There should not be any scope for profiteering from this rate rationalisation,” Mr. Abdullah said.

The Chief Minister also touched upon national economic issues, noting that the country’s growth path is “suddenly challenged by geopolitical challenges” and also pointed to “whimsical trade policies of the colonial era” that he said could restrict India’s access to 20% of the global market, affecting thousands of workers in sectors like agriculture, handicraft, and gems and jewellery.

Asserting that the GST, introduced in July 2017, remains the most ambitious federal tax reform in India’s fiscal history, he said that through these eight years, several steps and initiatives have been taken in tax structure, administrative mechanism, and technology frontier to improve efficiency and revenue mobilisation from GST, as also to facilitate honest taxpayers and dealers.

“The past year has been nothing but challenging for Jammu and Kashmir and for the entire nation. At the national level, we see our growth path suddenly challenged by geopolitical challenges.

“Our economy is steadily accelerating at a 6–7% growth rate. We have increased our export competitiveness and raised our share in global markets in goods and in services.

“Our forex reserves had quadrupled to $660 billion in the past two decades. But today we seek our market access being severely constrained by whimsical trade policies of the colonial era,” he said.

The Chief Minister said these policies will deprive us of about 20% of the global market and will seriously affect thousands of workers and entrepreneurs in the agriculture, handicraft, marine products, gems and jewellery sectors.

Published – September 03, 2025 08:41 pm IST

Jaisalmer:

In a significant move to plug leakage, the GST Council on Saturday approved a proposal to implement ‘Track and Trace Mechanism’ for specified evasion-prone commodities, under which a unique mark will be affixed on such goods or packages to trace them throughout the supply chain.

This is to insert an enabling provision in CGST Act, 2017 through Section 148A so as to empower the government to enforce the Track and Trace Mechanism for specified evasion-prone commodities.

“The system shall be based on a Unique Identification Marking which shall be affixed on the said goods or the packages thereof. This will provide a legal framework for developing such a system and will help in implementation of mechanism for tracing specified commodities throughout the supply chain,” the finance ministry said while listing out decisions taken in the 55th Council meeting here.

“To clarify that in respect of supply of ‘Online Services’ such as supply of online money gaming, OIDAR services, etc. to unregistered recipients, the supplier is required to mandatorily record the name of the state of the unregistered recipient on the tax invoice and such name of state of recipient shall be deemed to be the address on record of the recipient for the purpose of section 12(2)(b) of IGST Act, 2017 read with proviso to rule 46(f) of CGST Rules, 2017,” it said.

With regard to the decision taken about GST rate on goods, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said, the Council has decided to cut the rate on fortified rice kernel (FRK) to 5 per cent from 18 per cent and also exempted GST on gene therapy.

Besides, she said, it was decided to reduce the rate of compensation cess to 0.1 per cent on supplies to merchant exporters at par with GST rate on such supplies and to exempt from IGST imports of all equipment and consumable samples by Inspection Team of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) subject to specified conditions.

As regards services, she said, the Council decided to exempt GST on the contributions made by general insurance companies from the third-party motor vehicle premiums collected by them to the Motor Vehicle Accident Fund, constituted under section 164B of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988.

This fund is constituted for providing compensation/cashless treatment to the victims of road accidents including hit and run cases.

In addition, she said, GST Council recommended no GST on transaction of vouchers as they are neither supply of goods nor supply of services.

The provisions related to vouchers is also being simplified, she said, adding, the Council recommended to amend the definition of ‘pre-packaged and labelled’ to cover all commodities that are intended for retail sale and containing not more than 25 kg or 25 litre, which are ‘pre-packed’ as defined under the Legal Metrology Act, or a label affixed thereto is required to bear the declarations under the provisions of the Act and rules.

It was also clarified that no GST is payable on the ‘penal charges’ levied and collected by banks and NBFCs from borrowers for non-compliance with loan terms.

The Council too approved issuance of clarifications through circulars to remove ambiguity and legal disputes in certain issues.

The panel recommended reduction of payment of pre-deposit for filing an appeal before the appellate authority in respect of an order passed, which involves only a penalty amount.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Jaisalmer:

From reducing GST rate on fortified rice kernel (FRK) to fully exempt GST on gene therapy, the 55th GST Council meeting, chaired by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, on Saturday made some key recommendations to provide relief to individuals and businesses.

The Council recommended exemption of GST on contributions by general insurance companies from third-party motor vehicle premiums for Motor Vehicle Accident Fund.

It also recommended no GST on transaction of vouchers as they are neither supply of goods nor supply of services. The provisions related to vouchers is also being simplified.

GST Council clarified that no GST is payable on ‘penal charges’ levied and collected by banks and NBFCs from borrowers for non-compliance with loan terms

The Council recommended reduction of payment of pre-deposit for filing an appeal before the Appellate Authority in respect of an order passed which involves only penalty amount.

It recommended reduction in GST rate on fortified rice kernel (FRK), classifiable under 1904, to 5 per cent, as the commodity is supplied to the weaker sections of society through the public distribution system (PDS).

Under goods category, the meeting decided to extend IGST exemption to systems, sub-systems, equipment, parts, sub-parts, tools, test equipment, software meant assembly/manufacture of LRSAM system.

It also recommended to reduce the rate of Compensation Cess to 0.1 per cent on supplies to merchant exporters at par with GST rate on such supplies and exempt from IGST imports of all equipment and consumable samples by Inspection Team of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) subject to specified conditions.

The GST members also recommended to extend the concessional 5 per cent GST rate on food inputs of food preparations under “HSN 19 or 21” that are supplied for food preparations intended for free distribution to economically weaker sections under a government program subject to the existing conditions.

Under the Services category, the GST Council recommended to bring supply of the sponsorship services provided by the body corporates under Forward Charge Mechanism and exempt GST on the contributions made by general insurance companies from the third-party motor vehicle premiums collected by them to the Motor Vehicle Accident Fund, constituted under section 164B of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988.

This fund is constituted for providing compensation/ cashless treatment to the victims of road accidents including hit and run cases.

It recommended to increase the GST rate from 12 per cent to 18 per cent on sale of all old and used vehicles, including EVs other than those specified at 18 per cent like sale of old and used petrol vehicles of engine capacity of 1200 cc or more and of length of 4000 mm or more; diesel vehicles of engine capacity of 1500 cc or more and of length of 4000 mm and SUVs.

The Council also clarified that Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (ACC) blocks containing more than 50 per cent fly ash content will fall under HS 6815 and attract 12 per cent GST.

It further clarified that pepper, whether fresh green or dried pepper and raisins when supplied by an agriculturist, is not liable to GST.

It also clarified that ready-to-eat popcorn which is mixed with salt and spices are classifiable attracts 5 per cent GST, if supplied as other than pre-packaged and labelled, and 12 per cent GST if supplied as pre-packaged and labelled.

However, when popcorn is mixed with sugar thereby changing its character to sugar confectionary (eg caramel popcorn), it would attract 18 per cent GST.

The Council has approved an amendment to the definition of prepackaged and labelled items intended for retail sale. The step is aimed at clarifying the definition for all goods as currently there is a lot of confusion on the issue.

The GST Council meeting was attended by Union Minister of State for Finance, Pankaj Chaudhary, along with Chief Ministers of Goa, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Meghalaya, and Odisha, as well as Deputy Chief Ministers from Arunachal Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Telangana. Senior officials from the Finance Ministry, including those from the Economic Affairs and Expenditure Departments, were also present.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Several proposals of Fitment Committee, comprising officials from the Centre and States GST Department would come up for review before the Council. File
| Photo Credit: The Hindu

The 55^th GST Council meeting which is expected to decide on reducing tax rate on health and life insurance, besides considering rate rejigs on 148 items began in Rajasthan’s Jaisalmer on Saturday (December 21, 2024.)

The GST Council, chaired by Union Finance Minster Nirmala Sitharaman and comprising her State counterparts, is also expected to deliberate on bringing Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) in Goods and Services Tax fold.

One of the major items on the agenda of the Council is to decide the GST rate on health and life insurance.

A Group of Ministers (GoM) set up by the Council under Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Chaudhary, in its meeting in November, had agreed on exempting insurance premiums paid for term life insurance policies from GST.

Also premium paid by senior citizens towards health insurance cover has been proposed to be exempted from the tax. Besides, GST on premiums paid by individuals, other than senior citizens, for health insurance with coverage of up to ₹5 lakh is proposed to be exempted.

However, 18% GST will continue on premiums paid for policies with health insurance cover of more than ₹5 lakh. A final decision of the insurance taxation under GST is likely on Saturday (December 21, 2024) as most States are in favour of lowering taxes on premium to give relief to the common man.

Several proposals of Fitment Committee, comprising officials from the Centre and States GST Department would come up for review before the Council. One of the proposals include cutting taxes on food delivery platforms such as Swiggy and Zomato, to 5% (without input tax credit), from the current 18% (with ITC).

It is likely to have proposed a rate hike on sale of used EVs as well as small petrol and diesel vehicles to 18% from the current 12%. This hike would bring used and old smaller cars and EVs at par with old larger vehicles, according to sources.

Editorial | Revenue repercussions: on GST revenue trends

Also, the GoM on GST compensation cess is likely to get a six-month extension till June 2025, to submit their report. The compensation cess regime comes to an end in March 2026, and the GST Council has set up a panel of Ministers, under Union Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary, to decide the future course of the cess.

Another major item before the Council is the GST rate rationalisation panel’s report, which has suggested rate tweaks in 148 items. The GoM earlier this month decided to submit before the Council their recommendation to hike tax on sin goods, like aerated beverages, cigarettes, tobacco and related products, to 35% from the present 28%.

The four-tier tax slab of 5, 12, 18 and 28% under GST will continue and a new rate of 35% is proposed by the GoM only for sin goods. The GoM also decided to propose rationalising tax rates on apparel. As per the decision, ready-made garments costing up to ₹1,500 would attract 5% GST, those between ₹1,500 to ₹10,000 would attract 18%.

Garments costing above ₹10,000 would attract 28% tax. Currently, garments costing up to ₹1,000 attract 5% GST, while those above that attract 12%.

The GoM also proposed hiking GST on shoes above ₹15,000/pair from 18% to 28%. It also proposed hiking the GST rate on wrist watches above ₹25,000 from 18% to 28%.

“Some of the low hanging fruits in the 148 items that rate rationalisation panel has suggested may be decided in the meeting. But, no major big ticket rate rationalisation is expected,” an official said.

Asked about his views on rate rationalisation and whether he is in favour, Telangana Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka said: “Taxation system should be more flexible and not be a burden on people. We will present our views.”

The GoM had proposed reducing GST on packaged drinking water of 20 litre and above to 5% from 18% and reducing tax rate on bicycles costing less than ₹10,000 to 5% from 12%. Also, GST on exercise notebooks would be reduced to 5% from 12%.

The GST Council on Monday (September 9, 2024) is expected to deliberate on a host of issues, including taxation of insurance premium, GoM’s suggestions on rate rationalisation, and a status report on online gaming, sources said.

Sources claimed the fitment committee, comprising Centre and State tax officials, will present a report on GST levied on life, health and reinsurance premiums and the revenue implications.

The GST Council, chaired by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and comprising state ministers, will decide on whether to reduce the tax burden on health insurance from the current 18% or exempt certain categories of individuals, like senior citizens.

The deliberations will also happen concerning the goods and services tax (GST) cut on life insurance premium.

In 2023-24, the Centre and States collected ₹8,262.94 crore through GST on health insurance premiums, while ₹1,484.36 crore was collected on account of GST on health reinsurance premium.

The issue of taxation on insurance premiums figured in Parliament discussions with opposition members demanding that health and life insurance premiums be exempt from GST. Even Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari wrote to Ms. Sitharaman on the issue.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her reply to the discussion on the Finance Bill had said 75% of the GST collected goes to states and opposition members should ask their State finance ministers to bring the proposal at the GST Council.

West Bengal Finance Minister Chandrima Bhattacharya had raised the issue in the meeting of the Group of Ministers (GoM) on rate rationalisation last month and the matter was referred to the fitment committee for further data analysis.

The GoM had opined against any tinkering with a four-tier GST slab of 5, 12, 18, and 28% for the time being. The panel, however, had asked the fitment committee to look into any scope for rationalisation of rates of goods and services.

Regarding online gaming, Centre and State tax officers will present a “status report” before the GST Council. The report would include GST revenue collection from the online gaming sector before and after October 1, 2023.

From October 1, 2023, entry-level bets placed on online gaming platforms and casinos were subject to 28% GST. Before that, many online gaming companies were not paying 28% GST, arguing that there were differential tax rates for games of skill and games of chance.

The GST Council in its meeting in August 2023 had clarified that online gaming platforms were required to pay 28% tax and subsequently Central GST law was amended to make the taxation provision clear.

Offshore gaming platforms were also mandated to register with GST authorities and pay taxes, failing which the government would block those sites.

The council had then decided that the taxation on the online gaming sector would be reviewed after six months of its implementation.

Sources said the Council would deliberate on the status of taxation on the sector and any change in tax rates is unlikely.

Besides, the Council is likely to be apprised about the ongoing drive against fake registration, the success of the drive, and action taken against such entities. The total amount of suspected GST evasion would also be presented before the Council.

The drive, from August 16, 2024, to October 15, 2024, is aimed at detecting suspicious/fake GSTINs and to conduct requisite verification and further remedial action to weed out these fake billers.

In the first drive between May 16, 2023, to July 15, 2023, against fake registration, 21,791 entities (11,392 pertaining to state tax jurisdiction and 10,399 pertaining to CBIC jurisdiction) having GST registration were discovered to be non-existent.

An amount of ₹24,010 crore (State – ₹8,805 crore + Centre – ₹15,205 crore) of suspected tax evasion was detected during the special drive.

Also, the Council would approve notifications, including that of the amnesty scheme, announced in the last council meeting. The various amendments to GST law decided by the council in its previous meeting on June 22 were passed by Parliament last month vide Finance Act, 2024.

The council’s June meeting took a host of taxpayer-friendly measures, including waiver of interest and penalty for demand notices issued in the first three years of GST — 2017-18, 2018-19, and 2019-20 — if the full tax demanded is paid by March 31, 2025.

To reduce litigation, a monetary limit for tax officers, to file appeals before the GST Appellate Tribunal, the High Court and the Supreme Court was fixed at ₹20 lakh, ₹1 crore and ₹2 crore, respectively, by the Council.

It also recommended a reduction of the quantum of pre-deposit required to be paid by taxpayers for filing of appeals under goods and services tax (GST).

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman chairs the 53rd GST Council meeting, in New Delhi on June 22, 2024.
| Photo Credit: PTI

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the 53rd GST council has taken a lot of decisions relating to trade facilitation and easing the compliance procedures for small businesses, MSMEs and other taxpayers.

Services by way of hostel accommodation provided to students outside educational institutions will be exempted from GST for services with a value of upto ₹20,000 per person per month, Ms. Sitharaman said.

Also Read | Move ahead: On GST and reform

This will be subject to the condition that such services are provided for a minimum continuous period of 90 days. This will particularly help students coming from rural areas, and will be a big relief for all students across India.

The GST Council has clarified that all solar cookers will attract 12% GST, whether linked to single or dual energy sources. the finance minister said.

The Council has also decided to exempt services provided by the Indian Railways to the common man such as waiting room, cloak room and so on, from GST. All intra-railway services will also be exempted from GST, she added.

The Council has decided to mandate biometric-based Aadhaar authentication for all GST registrations across the country in a phased manner. This is based on the successful rollout of pilot projects in Gujarat and Puducherry and will make the registration process quick while curbing the fraudulent use of input tax credits through fake invoices.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Nirmala Sitharaman arrives to assume charge as the Union Finance Minister, at the Ministry of Finance in New Delhi on June 12, 2024.
| Photo Credit: ANI

The Centre has decided to convene a meeting of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council on June 22, eight-and-a-half months after its last meeting, the Finance Ministry said on June 13, 2024.

“The 53rd meeting of the GST Council will be held on 22nd June, 2024 at New Delhi,” a ministry statement informed.

The Council that is generally expected to meet every quarter, has met just six times since 2022.

The agenda for the upcoming meeting is not known yet but State Finance Ministers can be expected to flag suggestions for the indirect tax regime that can be incorporated in the Union Budget likely to be presented next month.

Industry will also be keen for signals from the Council on the revival of a plan to restructure the complex multiple-rate tax structure, now that GST revenues have risen significantly, along with a promised review of the 28% levy on bets made in online gaming, casinos, and horse racing.

Consumers and industry would also be eyeing some visibility on the future of the GST Compensation Cess that was originally meant to be levied for the first five years of the GST regime that began in July 2017. The levy of the Cess, used to recompense States to come on board, had been extended after the pandemic.

At its last meeting held on October 7, 2023, the Council, headed by the Finance Minister, had initiated discussions on a “perspective plan” to impose a cess or surcharge on top of GST levies after March 2026, when the GST Compensation Cess is due to expire. The Council had then decided to meet in the future to discuss a replacement levy for the Cess and how those funds could be used.

Implementation of Bommai report

To rationalise and rejig multiple GST rates and simplify the tax structure, the Council had set up a group of ministers (GoM) under former Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai in late 2021. Some initial recommendations of the ministerial panel to withdraw exemptions and concessional rates on several items had been accepted by the GST Council in June 2022.

However, the panel did not move forward on its broader rate rationalisation mandate, with officials citing high inflation and revenue considerations as key factors to put the exercise on the backburner. The GoM also remained in suspended animation after Mr. Bommai’s party lost the Karnataka assembly polls last May. The GoM was reconstituted in late 2023 with Uttar Pradesh Finance Minister Suresh Kumar Khanna as its convenor.

Apart from broader reforms to the indirect tax regime, tax experts also hope for resolution of some long-pending operational issues and challenges at the upcoming meeting.

“Multiple clarifications are being looked after to including taxability for the online gaming sector before October, taxability of ESOPs, corporate guarantee taxability, and various rate-related clarifications are also anticipated due to recent litigations,” said Abhishek Jain, indirect tax head and partner at KPMG.