Cabinet clears GST Constitutional Amendment Bill

18 Dec 2014 Evaluate

The cabinet has cleared the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Constitutional Amendment Bill, clearing the way for its introduction in ongoing session of Parliament. The revised bill was brought before the Cabinet after the Centre and states earlier this week reached a consensus on contentious issues like petroleum product taxation.

Earlier this week, the centre government decided to keep petroleum out of GST on the condition that states must agree to entry tax being subsumed in the new tax regime.  On the issue of compensation to states for revenue loss because of subsuming of all indirect taxes in the GST, Finance Ministry sought for legal opinion on how it could be accommodated in the Constitution Amendment Bill.

The government aims to roll out the goods and services tax (GST) from April 1, 2016. The proposed GST is one of the biggest taxation reforms in India and will replace existing state and federal levies such as excise duty, service tax and value-added tax (VAT) and will integrate State economies and boost overall growth. Under GST, the taxation burden will be divided equitably between manufacturing and services, through a lower tax rate by increasing the tax base and minimizing exemptions. The industry is awaiting its introduction, as GST would boost revenues and aid economic growth.

The GST rollout has missed several deadlines because of lack of consensus among states over certain crucial issues on the new tax regime. States have been demanding that petroleum, alcohol and tobacco should be kept out of the purview of GST. States earns over 50 per cent of their revenues from taxes on petrol and other petro products and wanted it to be out of GST so that they could continue with levying different tax rates on these products.

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