• Notification Date: 21-02-2023
• Notification No: N/A

New GST Rates under the New Income Tax Regime 2023

The GST Council, headed by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, took several decisions at its 49th meeting in New Delhi on Saturday. The Council agreed to reduce the Goods and Service Tax (GST) rate on pencil sharpeners from 18 per cent to 12 per cent and also decided to reduce GST rate on liquid jaggery (raab) from 18 per cent to nil or 5 per cent if sold loose, and if its pre-packaged and labelled, the tax rate on it would be 5 per cent. 

She said raab is a kind of liquid jaggery which is typical to Uttar Pradesh and other jaggery-producing states. 

Exemption on coal rejects supplied by and to the washeries was also approved by the Council. However, no decision could be arrived at by the fitment committee for SUVs and MUVs. 

During the GST Council meeting, Sitharaman spoke about setting up appellate tribunals and curbing tax evasion in pan masala and gutkha businesses. Talking about the appellate tribunals, FM Sitharaman said the GoM report has been agreed to and slight modifications are required in the report. 

“GST on pencil sharpeners has come down from 18% to 12%. Also, there is a reduction in GST on tags tracking devices or data loggers which are affixed on durable containers, from 18% to nil, subject to some conditions,” Sitharaman said during a press conference. 

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Saturday that the entire GST compensation cess for June 2022 totalling Rs 16,982 crore will be cleared. 

She said this while addressing a press conference soon after the 49th meeting of the GST Council ended. 

She also informed that Rs 16,524 crore to six states which have submitted the accountant general's (AG) certificate will also be released. 

Delhi, Tamil Nadu and Telangana are among the six states which have submitted AG certificates. 

Though submission of AG certificate is a requirement for the states to seek GST compensation, Sitharaman said that it wasn't a strict pre-requisite, as 90 per cent of funds are anyway released to the states, while the remaining amount is given after the AG certificate is submitted. 

The GoM's report on online gaming could not be taken up at the meeting as the Chairman of the GoM, Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma, could not attend the meeting due to the upcoming Assembly elections in the state, the finance minister said.