GST council has made the much-awaited announcements around tax rates on various categories of goods on day one of a two-day meeting of the said council at Srinagar. There has been a hype around these rates for a while and now these rates are finally in the public domain.
As soon as the GST rates were announced a huge wave of curiosity hit across industry and trade bodies. Everyone is evaluating their position as a result of this change. So in this article, we bring you our analysis of these GST rates.
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Sugar, Tea, Coffee and Edible oil will fall under the 5 per cent slab, while cereals, milk will be part of the exempt list under GST. This is to ensure that basic goods are available at affordable prices. However, instant food has been kept outside this bracket so, no relief for Maggie lovers!
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The Council has set the rate for capital goods and industrial intermediate items at 18 per cent. This will positively impact domestic manufacturers as seamless input credit will be available for all capital goods. Indeed, it is time for “Make In India”.
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Coal to be taxed at 5 percent against current 11.69 per cent. This will prove beneficial for the power sector and heavy industries which rely on coal supply. This will also help curb inflation. Expect a good run for Coal India tomorrow.
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Toothpaste, hair oil, and soaps will all be taxed at 18 percent, where currently they are taxed at 28 percent. Most of the cosmetics and fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) brands should get the benefit of this tax reduction. After all, Fair and Lovely might seem fairer in its pricing from now on!
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The ‘mithai’ from the neighbouring sweet shop might lose some of its flavour as Indian sweets will now be taxable at 5 per cent. If you have a sweet tooth, this could hurt your pocket a wee bit in the coming days.
Plus, it was announced that:
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for restaurants serving alcohol, the tax bracket will be 18 per cent
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education, healthcare are going to be exempted from GST
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services on Non-AC restaurants will be 12 per cent
We already know that the GST slabs are pegged at 5%, 12%, 18% & 28%. According to the latest news from the GST council, the tax structure for common-use goods are as under:
GST Rates Structure
|
Tax Rates |
Products |
|
|
0% |
Milk |
Kajal |
|
Eggs |
Educations Services |
|
|
Curd |
Health Services |
|
|
Lassi |
Children’s Drawing & Colouring Books |
|
|
Unpacked Foodgrains |
Unbranded Atta |
|
|
Unpacked Paneer |
Unbranded Maida |
|
|
Gur |
Besan |
|
|
Unbranded Natural Honey |
Prasad |
|
|
Fresh Vegetables |
Palmyra Jaggery |
|
|
Salt |
Phool Bhari Jhadoo |
|
|
5% |
Sugar |
Packed Paneer |
|
Tea |
Coal |
|
|
Edible Oils |
Raisin |
|
|
Domestic LPG |
Roasted Coffee Beans |
|
|
PDS Kerosene |
Skimmed Milk Powder |
|
|
Cashew Nuts |
Footwear (< Rs.500) |
|
|
Milk Food for Babies |
Apparels (< Rs.1000) |
|
|
Fabric |
Coir Mats, Matting & Floor Covering |
|
|
Spices |
Agarbatti |
|
|
Coal |
Mishti/Mithai (Indian Sweets) |
|
|
Life-saving drugs |
Coffee (except instant) |
|
|
12% |
Butter |
Computers |
|
Ghee |
Processed food |
|
|
Almonds |
Mobiles |
|
|
Fruit Juice |
Preparations of Vegetables, Fruits, Nuts or other parts of Plants including Pickle Murabba, Chutney, Jam, Jelly |
|
|
Packed Coconut Water |
Umbrella |
|
|
18% |
Hair Oil |
Capital goods |
|
Toothpaste |
Industrial Intermediaries |
|
|
Soap |
Ice-cream |
|
|
Pasta |
Toiletries |
|
|
Corn Flakes |
Computers |
|
|
Soups |
Printers |
|
|
28% |
Small cars (+1% or 3% cess) |
High-end motorcycles (+15% cess) |
|
Consumer durables such as AC and fridge |
Beedis are NOT included here |
|
|
Luxury & sin items like BMWs, cigarettes and aerated drinks (+15% cess) |
Fire Phoenix 