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GST on common use goods may be cut

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GST on common use goods may be cut
The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council may consider lowering tax rates on a host of goods such as hand made furniture, plastic products and daily use items like shampoo, and simplify return filing rules in its meeting this week.The Council, headed by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, is scheduled to meet on Friday to consider lowering of the 28 per cent GST rate on certain common use items, government officials said.
In further relief to small and medium enterprises, the panel is likely to rationalise tax rate in sectors where the total incidence of taxation has gone up because the goods were earlier either exempt from excise or was attracted lower value added tax rates in the previous indirect tax regime.
The Council has been meeting every month since the GST regime, which amalgamated overadozen central and state taxes, was introduced on July 1. The meetings have resulted in an array of changes to ease compliance burden on businesses as well as provided relief to consumers.
“A rationalisation of items in the 28 per cent tax bracket is expected.Most of the daily use items could be lowered to 18 per cent.Also tax rate on items like furniture, electric switches, plastic pipes could be relooked,” an official said
All types of furniture attracta28 per cent tax under GST. Wooden furniture is handmade by unorganised sector artisans and is mostly used by middle class families and there have been demands for lowering tax incidence on them.Also, some items of plastic attract 18 per cent GST but goods like shower baths, sinks, wash basins, bidets, lavatory pans attract 28 per cent levy.

The Business Standard, New Delhi, 06th November 2017

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