In a big relief, the new GST rates on goods will be applicable from today. These rates were decided after the GST Council met for its revision two weeks ago. With the Navaratri festival starting today, the new rates on household products are set to bring a smile to many faces. Household items—from milk, roti, and parantha to cars, TVs, and bikes—will become cheaper for the common man and the middle class. Many food items have been moved to the 0% GST slab, meaning no tax will be charged on them. Items such as roti, parantha, paneer, and khakra are now included in this category, making them more affordable for consumers.
The new GST rates, announced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman have been simplified to just two main rates: 5% and 18%. Most items now have lower GST, making them cheaper. However, some items will become more expensive. For example, clothes costing more than Rs 2,500 will now have an 18% GST, up from 12% earlier.
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PM Modi on GST Roll out
“With sunrise on September 22nd, the first day of Navratri, the Next Generation GST reforms will come into effect. In a way, a GST savings festival is going to begin in the country from tomorrow. This GST Savings Festival will increase your savings, and you'll be able to purchase the things you want more easily. The poor, middle class people, neo middle class, youth, farmers, women, shopkeepers, businessmen, entrepreneurs of our country, everyone will benefit a lot from this savings festival.”“Due to reduction in GST, it will now be easier for the citizens of the country to fulfill their dreams. Be it building a house, buying a TV, a refrigerator, or buying a scooter, bike, or a car, you'll have to spend less on all of these. Travelling will also become cheaper for you, as GST has been reduced on rooms in most hotels,” he added.
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0% or NIL GST rate
- Ultra-High Temperature (UHT) milk
- Chena or paneer, pre-packaged and labelled
- Pizza bread
- Khakhra, chapathi or roti
- Paratha, parotta and other Indian breads by any name called
- Drugs and medicines
- School items like- Erasers, uncoated paper and paperboard, exercise book, graph book, & laboratory note book and notebooks
5% GST rate
- Condensed milk
- Butter and other fats (i.e. ghee, butter oil, etc.) and oils derived from milk; dairy spreads
- Cheese
- Brazil nuts, dried, whether or not Shelled or Peeled
- Other nuts, dried, whether or not shelled or peeled, such as Almonds, Hazelnuts or filberts
- Dates, figs, pineapples, avocados, guavas, mangoes
- Citrus fruit, such as Oranges, Mandarins
- Fruit, dried, other than that of headings 0801 to 0806
- Malt, whether or not roasted
18% GST rate
- Bidis
- Portland cement, aluminous cement, slag cement, super sulphate cement and similar hydraulic cements, whether or not coloured or in the form of clinkers
- Coal; briquettes, ovoids and similar solid fuels manufactured from coal
- Lignite, whether
- Air-conditioning machines, comprising a motor-driven fan and elements for changing the temperature and humidity, including those machines in which the humidity cannot be separately regulated
- Dish washing machines, household
- Articles of apparel and clothing accessories, knitted or crocheted, of sale value exceeding Rs 2500 per piece
- Articles of apparel and clothing accessories, not knitted or crocheted, of sale value exceeding Rs 2500 per piece
40% GST rate
- Pan masala*
- Unmanufactured tobacco; tobacco refuse
- Cigars, cheroots, cigarillos and cigarettes, of tobacco or of tobacco substitutes
- Carbonated beverages of fruit drink or carbonated beverages with fruit juice
- Motor cars and other motor vehicles principally designed for the transport of persons (other than those of heading 8702), including station wagons and racing cars
- Motorcycles of engine capacity exceeding 350 cc
- Aircrafts for personal use
- Yachts and other vessels for pleasure or sports
- Revolvers and pistols, other than those of heading 9303 or 9304