Four key GST bills passed
in Lok Sabha, July 1 rollout set
Food items are currently not taxed,
and these will remain zero rated under GST.
India inched closer on
Wednesday to a unified tax regime with the Lok Sabha passing four supplementary
measures that will enable the government to roll out the landmark Goods and
Services Tax from July 1.
With the passage of
these four enabling bills, the Centre hopes to meet the target implementing GST
in around three months’ time.
Prime Minister
Narendra Modi was one of the first to welcome the passage of the bills.
“Congratulations to all countrymen over passage of the GST bills. New Year, New
Law, New Bharat,” he tweeted.
The four bills which
were passed are the Central Goods and Services Tax Bill 2017, the Integrated
Goods and Services Tax Bill 2017, the Goods and Services Tax (Compensation to
States) Bill 2017 and the Union Territory Goods and Services Tax Bill 2017. A
host of amendments moved by the Opposition parties were rejected.
In his reply to a
marathon seven-hour debate before the bills were passed in the Lower House,
finance minister Arun Jaitley said the GST was likely to make a number of
commodities “slightly cheaper”. He said that by doing away with the concept of
tax on tax, the GST would also help curb inflation.
The GST rates will
depend upon whether the commodity was used by rich people or ordinary citizens,
Mr Jaitley said, adding that once the new regime was implemented, the
harassment of businesses by different authorities would soon end.
The finance minister
said the GST Council, comprising the finance ministers of different states and
Union territories, had agreed to take a decision on bringing real estate within
the ambit of the new tax regime within a year of its rollout.
Explaining why the GST
Council had set multiple tax rates, he said that a “hawai chappal” and a BMW
cannot be taxed at the same rate.
Food items are
currently not taxed, and these will remain zero rated under GST. All other
commodities would be fitted into the nearest tax bracket, he added.
The GST Council has
recommended a four-tier tax rate structure — of five, 12, 18 and 28 per cent.
On top of the highest slab, a cess will be imposed on certain luxury and
demerit goods to compensate states for revenue loss in the first five years of
GST’s implementation.
The Central GST (CGST) law has pegged the peak rate at 20
per cent, and a similar rate has been prescribed in the State GST (SGST) law,
which takes the peak rate to 40 per cent, which will also come into force only
in financial exigencies.
The finance minister
said the GST Council was working on the basis of consensus and slowly all items
will come within the ambit of the new indirect tax regime.
Touted as the biggest
tax reform since Independence, the GST will subsume Central excise, service
tax, VAT and other local levies to create an uniform market. GST is expected to
boost GDP growth by about two per cent and check tax evasion.
“The hard work put in
by the GST Council members and officers bore fruit today in terms of four
classic pieces of legislation passed by the Lok Sabha,” revenue secretary
Hasmukh Adhia tweeted later. Mr Adhia went on to add that the passage of the
four laws was a “historic milestone in the economic history of this country”.
“The July deadline is possible. We have
promised businesses that there will be clarity on the law at least three months
before its implementation. That has come from the passing of the four bills,”
revenue secretary Hasmukh Adhia said.
He
announced that the GST council will pass all nine sets of rules by March 31.
The
CGST will give powers to the Centre to levy tax after excise and service taxes
and additional customs duty are subsumed. The IGST will be a tax on inter-state
movement of goods and services.
The
UTGST is for Union territories such as Chandigarh and Daman and Diu.
WHAT NEXT- State GST will have to be cleared by each state assembly
to turn India into one unified market.
GST Council will meet in April to decide the rates for some
4000-5000 commoditized and services.
NEW REGIME-
GST replaces many tariff with on national tax in four slabs ranging
from 5 to 28 percent.
From
Sources:-
But one CBEC NO DISCIPLINE NO POLICY MOST INDISCIPLINE POLICYMAKERS. IN DELHI MAJORITY GETTING GRADE PAY 6600.00 IN REST OF COUNTRY OFFICERS FACING RECOVERY ALL INDIA ASSOCIATION SG IN DELHI AND THIS IS THE CHARACTER . IN MUMBAI COMMISSIONER ISSUED POSTING ORDER OF PROMOTED ACS EXCEEDING HIS POWERS. CBEC NATIONAL BODY HAVE NO GUTS TO DIRECT THEM TO BE IN LIMITS. IN TAX LAWS ALSO SIMILAR EXAMPLE OF JUDICIAL INDISCIPLINE CAN BE SEEN. WHETHER GST WILL BE ABLE TO TACKLE IT AND DISCRIMINATION EXPLOITATION BE REMOVED OR UNIFORM? A QUESTION TO BE ANSWERED BY CBEC AND OTHERS WHO UNDER THE GARB OF ALL INDIA ACT REGIONAL
ReplyDeleteBut one CBEC NO DISCIPLINE NO POLICY MOST INDISCIPLINE POLICYMAKERS. IN DELHI MAJORITY GETTING GRADE PAY 6600.00 IN REST OF COUNTRY OFFICERS FACING RECOVERY ALL INDIA ASSOCIATION SG IN DELHI AND THIS IS THE CHARACTER . IN MUMBAI COMMISSIONER ISSUED POSTING ORDER OF PROMOTED ACS EXCEEDING HIS POWERS. CBEC NATIONAL BODY HAVE NO GUTS TO DIRECT THEM TO BE IN LIMITS. IN TAX LAWS ALSO SIMILAR EXAMPLE OF JUDICIAL INDISCIPLINE CAN BE SEEN. WHETHER GST WILL BE ABLE TO TACKLE IT AND DISCRIMINATION EXPLOITATION BE REMOVED OR UNIFORM? A QUESTION TO BE ANSWERED BY CBEC AND OTHERS WHO UNDER THE GARB OF ALL INDIA ACT REGIONAL
ReplyDeleteWELCOME GST. BUT EXCISE DUTY TO STAY ON PETROLEUM PRODUCTS AND TOBACCO. THE NEW RESTRUCTURING DOES NOT HAVE A SINGLE EXCLUSIVE CENTRAL EXCISE COMMISSIONERATE.THERE IS NO INDICATION OF HOW ADMINISTRATION OF CENTRAL EXCISE WILL BE CARRIED OUT IN THE NEW STRUCTURE. THE GST COMMISSIONERATES ARE AUTHORISED TO FINALISE PENDING CASES OF DEMAND, RECOVERY AND REFUND AS A LEGACY COMMISSIONERATE. BUT HOW CAN CENTRAL EXCISE ACT BE ENFORCED ON DAY TO DAY BASIS BY GST COMMISSIONERATE.I SINCERELY HOPE THE EXISTING ORGANISATIONS TAKE UP THE ISSUE WITH BOARD. AT LEAST THIS CANNOT BE DECIDED BY GST COUNCIL.
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