The GST council will be reducing the four tax slabs that currently exist – 5%, 12%, 18%, and 28% – to three – 8%, 18%, and 28%, as per a news report.

Two officials who familiar to the matter said that the taxes on branded cereals, mobile phones, pizzas, air travel, air-conditioned rail travel, cruises, high-end hospital rooms, paintings, branded garments, and fine fabrics such as linen and silk, may be increased to boost sagging Goods and Services Tax (GST) revenues.

“Most of the above-mentioned items are not consumed by the common man, hence, tax rates of either 5% or 12% on these items are not justified. Some stakeholders [state governments] have proposed raising tax rates on these items to either 8% or 18% to augment GST revenue,” one of the two persons added.
 
While the other person of the two claimed that the government will be reducing the tax slabs to three from current four.

The main purpose of the GST Council meeting, on December 18, is to work out a way to address falling revenues and also help the Centre pay compensation to the states on time.

The urgency came after the revenues kept falling from July.