Circular No. 228/22/2024-GST: Clarifications on GST Applicability
<p><span>On July 15, 2024, the Ministry of Finance issued Circular No. 228/22/2024-GST, following the 53rd GST Council meeting. The circular provides essential clarifications on the applicability of GST on various services, including exemptions for Indian Railways, transactions between Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) and the Ministry of Railways, statutory collections by the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA), and digital payment incentives. Noteworthy highlights include:</span></p><ol start="1"><li><span><strong>Indian Railways Exemptions</strong>: GST exemptions are reinstated for the sale of platform tickets, retiring rooms, cloakroom services, and battery-operated car services. Additionally, services between different zones/divisions of Indian Railways are also exempted.</span></li><li><span><strong>SPVs and Ministry of Railways</strong>: Transactions between SPVs and Indian Railways, regarding infrastructure use and maintenance services, are exempt from GST.</span></li><li><span><strong>RERA Statutory Collections</strong>: Clarification that statutory collections by RERA fall under the existing exemption notification and are therefore not subject to GST.</span></li><li><span><strong>Digital Payment Incentives</strong>: The incentive amounts shared by acquiring banks with other stakeholders in the digital payment ecosystem, as part of the RuPay Debit Cards and BHIM-UPI promotion, are considered subsidies and are not taxable.</span></li><li><span><strong>Reinsurance of Insurance Schemes</strong>: Past GST liabilities on the reinsurance of specified general and life insurance schemes, and government-sponsored insurance schemes, are regularized on an 'as is where is' basis for specified periods.</span></li><li><span><strong>Retrocession Services</strong>: It is clarified that the term 'reinsurance' includes retrocession services.</span></li><li><span><strong>Accommodation Services</strong>: GST exemption for hostel accommodation, service apartments, and hotels is provided, with a value limit of twenty thousand rupees per person per month, for continuous stays of at least ninety days.</span></li></ol><p><span>These updates aim to streamline GST applicability, reduce administrative burdens, and clarify the tax treatment of specific services.</span> <a href="https://cms.plasament.com/storage/nisha/circular-no-228-2024-compressed.pdf">circular-no-228-2024_compressed</a><br> </p>