New Delhi:
The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council has accepted the recommendations of a panel of state finance ministers and the Fitment Committee to bring unbranded but packaged (local) dairy and agricultural products within the scope of a 5 percent tax rate.
‘Prepackaged, labelled’ and agri-food products – such as lassi, buttermilk, packaged curd, wheat flour, other grains, honey, papad, food grains, meat and fish (except frozen), crisped rice, jaggery – are all set to become more expensive once the Treasury Department announces of the Union issues a notification to implement the decision of the GST Council.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will brief the media on the results of the 47th GST council meeting at 4pm today.
Currently, 5 percent GST is levied on branded and packaged foods, while unpackaged and unlabeled are tax-exempt.
The Council has also accepted the recommendation of the finance ministers of the state to keep hotel rooms (with a rate of less than Rs 1,000 per night) and hospital rooms (with a daily rate of more than Rs 5,000 per day) within the range of a 12 percent GST rate. †
Furthermore, the GST Council is likely to discuss the issue of GST compensation and a proposal to impose a uniform rate of 28 percent on all activities related to online games, casinos and horse racing, including the player-paid entrance fee for the match.
GST was implemented on July 1, 2017, and states were assured of compensation for the loss of revenue due to the rollout until June 2022.