Luxury cars will cost more due to higher GST

Luxury and mid-size cars and SUVs will cost more as the GST on them will go up by 2-7%, while the tax on small cars, hybrid vehicles and 13-seaters will remain the same, as per the decisions taken at the 21st GST Council meeting chaired by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in Hyderabad on Saturday

The deadline for filing the GST returns by traders is extended by a month to 10 October. Jaitley told a media conference after a daylong meeting at the HICC Grounds here that the council had also decided to exempt tax on Khadi fabric supplied through Khadi and Villages Industries Corporation centres. Besides, the council meeting attended by all the states’ finance ministers and officials lowered the tax on 30 items including dry tamarind, plastic raincoats etc.

Jaitley flanked by Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia and several states’ finance ministers expressed happiness over the entry of around 75% of all eligible traders as per the GST laws. This is the second meeting of GST Council after the nationwide tax reform came into force two months ago. The GST Council has deferred a decision to the next meeting on Telangana government’s demand for waiver of GST on all governmental works which stands at 12% now. Jaitely said that CM K. Chandrasekhar Rao had written to him on the issue and the fitment committee of the GST Council will consider expanding the definition of public works so that the tax can be lowered. 

The FM said several other states had demanded that the GST on public schemes should either be 0% or brought down to 5%.