All You Need To Know About Goods And Services Tax

The Goods and Services Tax or GST which was implemented in July 2017 subsumed all the central excise duties and local levies. GST is a destination based tax on consumption of goods and services. It is proposed to be levied at all stages right from manufacture up to final consumption with credit of taxes paid at previous stages available as setoff, Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs, the policy making body of Goods and Services Tax said on its website. (Also Read: Deadline For Filing Annual GST Returns Extended; Forms Simplified)

Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime in India: Here are important things to know about GST:

The Goods and Services Tax replaced a whole host excise duties, service tax, surcharges and cesses, sales tax, state value added tax (VAT) and other taxes with one single tax.

The GST is applicable on all goods and services except on alcoholic beverages and petroleum products.

Also Read: GST Collection Falls 5.3% To Rs 95,380 Crore In October

GST Council headed by the Union Finance Minister is the governing body of the GST and comprises of Finance Ministers of states. The GST Council is tasked to oversee the implementation of GST and the council also decides on tax rates for various items.

Currently, there are four different GST rates being charged by the government depending on different product categories. The four GST rate slabs are 5 per cent, 12 per cent, 18 per cent and 28 per cent.

The Goods and Services Tax has been designed in a way that essential commodities like food items are priced at a lower tax rate while non-essential commodities like luxury cars are priced at the highest tax rate of 28 per cent.

Also Read: New GST Return Forms May Require Firms To Amend Software Systems: Tax Experts

Some very essential commodities like wheat flour, rice, fresh vegetables and fruits, milk, chicken, meat, eggs, salt, jaggery etc. have been exempted from the GST regime.

Types of Goods and Services Tax (GST):

Central Goods & Service Tax (CGST)

CGST subsumes central taxations and levies such as Central Sales Tax, Central Excise Duty, Services Tax, Excise Duty under Medical & Toiletries Preparation Act, Additional Excise Duties Countervailing Duty (CVD), Additional Custom Duty and other centralized taxations. The revenues collected under CGST go to the central kitty and input tax is passed on to the state governments for their utilization against the payment of CGST. (Also Read: GST Council Sets Up Panel To Boost Revenue Collection)

State Goods & Services Tax (SGST)

SGST subsumes various state taxes and levies such as State Sales Tax, Luxury Tax, Entertainment Tax, Levies on Lottery, Entry Tax, Octroi and other taxations connected with the movement of commodities and services under state governments. Each state has its own State Authority to collect SGST and the revenue thus collected belongs to the State Government.

Integrated Goods & Services Tax (IGST)

GST focuses on the concept of one tax, one nation. It is levied on the supply of commodities and services from one state to another. For example, IGST will be applicable on services rendered in Gujarat for consumers based in Maharashtra.

Union Territory Goods & Services Tax (UTGST)

The union territories come under the ambit of a specialized taxation regimen called Union Territory Goods and Services Tax. The UTGST subsumes the various taxations, levies and duties in the Union Territories.