GST Council to meet on June 12, 2021 to discuss tax on Covid relief materials

The GST Council will meet on Saturday, June 12, 2021 to consider the taxation issue of Covid relief materials including vaccines.

The meeting is expected to discuss recommendations of the Group of Ministers (GoM). The council, in its last meeting on May 28, decided to set up a GoM to go into the need for concession/exemptions from GST on Covid-19 related individual items, as there were divergent opinions.

Although, recommendations of the GoM have not been made public, it is believed that the matter of taxing vaccines has been left to the GST Council while rates on other Covid relief materials such as testing kits for detections, medical-grade oxygen, pulse oximeters, hand sanitizers, oxygen therapy equipment such as concentrators, generators, and ventilators, PPE kits, N-95 masks, surgical masks, temperature checking machines have been suggested at 5 percent for a limited period. It also appears that the GoM is in favour of exempting drugs/medicines for the treatment of fungus.

Source- https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/economy/gst-council-to-meet-on-june-12-to-discuss-tax-on-covid-relief-materials/article34775886.ece