GST Panel to raise 5% slab to 6% to boost revenues

The Goods and Services Tax (GST) panel is mulling various methods to boost revenue collections, among which one suggestion is to raise the 5 percent tax slab to 6 percent, as per a Business Standard report.

The slab-restructuring is expected to bring in additional revenue of Rs 1,000 crore per month, amid dismal collection numbers, the paper added. The panel may meet in mid-December to consult with states and GST officials.

Moneycontrol / casansaar could not independently verify the report.

Other suggestions include bringing goods and items formerly taxed under either value-added tax (VAT) or purchase tax, increasing compensation cess for cigarettes and aerated drinks, and removing exemption list items that attracted some form of taxation in the pre-GST regime.

According to the official data, the 5 percent slab accounts for close to 5 percent of GST collection, 60 percent from the 18 percent slab, 13 percent from the 12 percent slab and 22 percent from the 28 percent slab.

The auto sector is not currently being considered in this restructure, but rates for cigarettes and aerated drinks can go up, the paper quoted an official as saying.

The current cess on cigarettes ranges from 5 percent plus a flat Rs 2,076 per 1,000 sticks of up to 65 mm to 5 percent plus a flat Rs 3,668 for 1,000 sticks of up to 75 mm.#casansaar (Source - MoneyControl)