A threshold exemption scheme was introduced in Union Budget 2005-06 (effective from 1.4.2005) exempting from service tax aggregate value of taxable services not exceeding four lakh rupees received by the service provider during a financial year. A point has been raised whether payments received after 1.4.2005 towards the services provided prior to 1.4.2005 would be included while computing this threshold value of Rs. 4 lakhs.
Section 83 of Finance Act, 1994 makes certain provisions of Central Excise Act, 1944 applicable to service tax. The issuance of summons is governed by section 14 of the Central Excise Act. While the field officers resort to issue of summons under section 14 even for seeking information or documents
Each service has been assigned a code (ECC code) for depositing the tax. Assessees are required to mention proper service code while tendering the payment to get proper and timely credit. Service tax assessees should quote new heads of accounts along with eight-digit serial code numbers as allotted by Controller General of Accounts, CBEC.
Knowledge is an eye for the blind, ears for the deaf, strength for the weak and all in all it is a boon for the mankind. It is argued that a person who is blind is weak only in one sense but the one who is uneducated is weak by all senses. For every benefit that you receive, a Tax is levied. Perhaps this seemed never so real than today in the Indian context.
Rule 2(e) defines ‘point of taxation’ as the point in time when a service shall be deemed to have been provided. This will be determined as per Point of Taxation Rules 2011. The determination of point of taxation shall be crucial to determine the timing of service tax liability and the applicability of rate of service tax. The taxability will be decided by point of taxation only. The Point of Taxation rules provide for various situations to determine the point of taxation.
Vide Notification Nos. 6/2013-ST, 7/2013-ST and 8/2013-ST, all dated 18.4.2013, Central Government had exempted the taxable services provided or agreed to be provided against a scrip by a person located in the taxable territory subject to certain conditions. Later, few other exemptions have been exempted vide Notification Nos. 10/2015-ST and 11/2015-ST, both dated 08.04.2015.
The Board vide Circular No. 113/07/2009-ST had laid down the procedure for carrying out detailed scrutiny of Service Tax Returns (ST-3) and had circulated a return scrutiny manual for Service Tax.
The Finance Act, 2015 had brought two important changes in Service Tax – (i) Issue of electronic invoices and its authentication by Digital Signature [Rule 4C] (ii) Maintenance of records on Electronic Form [Rule 5(4)] CBEC has now issued Notification No. 18/2015-Central Excise dated 06.07.2015 and a Circular No. 224/44/2014-CX dated 06.07.2015 to make the above rules operational implying that assessees can now use the benefit provided by Rule 4C and Rule 5(4).
Amendments shall have the following effect w.e.f. 14.05.2015– (1) The remedy of appeal to Tribunal u/s 86 is not available in every case as it has now been provided subject to the saving clause ‘save as otherwise provided herein’. The provisos added provide that saving. Thus, scope of section 86 has been curtailed. (2) Any appeal against the order of Commissioner (Appeal) in relation to matters concerning rebate of Service Tax (e.g. exports) shall be governed in terms of section 35EE of Central Excise Act, 1944.
Simply put, goods and services tax is a tax levied on goods and services imposed at each point of sale or rendering of service. Such GST could be on entire goods and services or there could be some exempted class of goods or services or a negative list of goods and services on which GST is not levied. GST is an indirect tax in lieu of tax on goods (excise) and tax on service (service tax).
