GST Council forms GOM for tax slabs of Covid essentials

THE COUNCIL SAID IT WOULD BORROW ₹1.58 LAKH CRORE TO COMPENSATE STATES FOR LOSS OF REVENUE IN FY22

In a series of decisions on Friday, the Goods and Service Tax (GST) Council formed a group of ministers (GOM) to decide on waiving off taxes on Covid-19 essentials such as vaccines, expanded the list of relief items imported without duties to also include drugs for mucormycosis, eased compliance burdens for small businesses, and decided to borrow ₹1.58 lakh crore to compensate states for their revenue shortfall in the 2021-22 financial year.

After a nine-hour long meeting of the federal body, Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that a “protracted discussion” on the issue of tax

NEW DELHI:

exemption on individual items for Covid-19 led to the decision that a GOM should be set up, which will submit its report “within 10 days ... on or before 8th June, so that if there are any further reductions which need to be done, will be done”.

She said the GOM will be constituted on Saturday. Several states have been demanding GST waivers for Covid essentials. While vaccines and cotton masks attract 5% GST, most of the other items, such as testing kits, drugs, medical oxygen, oxygen concentrators and ventilators, attract 12% GST. Alcoholbased sanitiser, hand wash, disinfectants and thermometers are under the 18% tax slab.

Sitharaman said the council on Friday decided to exempt integrated GST (IGST) on import of Amphotericin-b, a medicine to treat mucormycosis, a fungal infection.

She said the scope of the IGST waiver on Covid-19 relief materials such as medical oxygen, oxygen concentrators, diagnostic kits and vaccines have also been extended to imports “on payment basis” for donating to the government or recognised relief agencies. These exemptions will be valid up to August 31.