From Sin City to ‘recycle’ bin: These items just lost their elitist tax bracket

Entertainment is for the masses, now. Or, at least the Big Brother would want you to believe so. Watching your Netflix series on a top-end flat TV or experiencing the fan in you totally gorging over your favourite superstar in cinema hall will now come with lesser payments in cash or EMIs over the years. The 31st GST council meeting convened by finance minister Arun Jaitley in New Delhi on Saturday stripped several consumer goods and services of their “sin tax”. Put simply they were pulled out of the highest tax slab of 28 per cent and clubbed with goods in the lesser tax.

No longer ‘sinful’

Six items have been dropped from the 28% tax slab. The tax on TVs (upto 32 inches), monitors, video game consoles, digital cameras and video recorders, and power banks that run on lithium-ion batteries has been slashed from 28 per cent to 18 per cent. Retreaded tyres and pulleys, transmission shafts and gear boxes have also been brought down to 18% from the existing 28% slab.

Go, grab that matinee!

Your date with the favourite star has just been made cheaper. Movie tickets costing above Rs100 were bracketed with the goods in sin tax (28%). Now, they will attract a lesser tax of 18%. Representatives of the film industry had recently met prime minister Narendra Modi and requested for a tax cut on tickets, among other things. Most movie halls charge more than Rs100 for tickets and jack up the prices on weekends. Tickets up to Rs 100 which were taxed at 18% will now attract a tax of 12%.

Exempted from tax

Bank services offered to account holders under Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojna (PMJDY), services offered by governments at the centre and in states by way of guarantee on loans taken from financial institutions extended to amount loaned from banks, services provided by such professionals recognized under the Rehabilitation Council of India Act, or entities registered under section 12AA of the income Tax Act, proceeds received from auction of gifts received by dignitaries and public servants and utilized for charitable purposes, stand exempted from GST    

Cut veggies are tax free

Inviting friends over for the weekend after a hectic day at work? But the thought of chopping veggies forcing you to cook up an excuse. Worry not. Grab that pack of cut vegetables or stock your refrigerator with the frozen produce from the organic farms without worry. The Centre has removed the tax on chopped, cut and frozen vegetables in pre-packaged containers and packets. Earlier these goods fell in the 5% tax bracket. Not anymore.  Tax on accessories for carriages of the disabled has been cut from 28% to 5%.

Your AC is luxury living

Finance minister Arun Jaitley has clarified that the Luxury tax or the top-end tax bracket of 28% shall now be applicable to just 28 items. Falling under the highest tax slab is your air-conditioner (AC), and dishwasher. Tax rates on auto accessories and cement haven’t been slashed due to “revenue implication”.