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Air hostess caught with 4kg gold dust in baggage.

20.10.2019

Mumbai: An air hostess with a private carrier was arrested by Customs at Mumbai airport on Saturday for trying to smuggle in 4kg of gold dust worth Rs 1 crore from Dubai. Sanna Pathan (30) was on duty when she was caught by the Air Intelligence Unit read more »

HC relief for Adani in import overvaluation case.

18.10.2019

Mumbai: A Bombay high court order has brought to a halt an overseas investigation by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence into the Rs 29,000-crore overvaluation of Indonesian coal imports by the Adani Group.

The high court quashed all Letters Rogatory (LR) sent by read more »

Man flies into Mum with Rs.2.7cr watch, lands in jail.

18.10.2019

Mumbai: The air intelligence unit (AIU) of customs has arrested a Vile Parle resident for smuggling in a watch costing crores.

The AIU on Wednesday intercepted Kavinkumar Mehta (24) after he landed in Mumbai from Bangkok. On suspicion, detectives searched his baggage and found read more »

Horse owner must pay 18% GST on racing prize.

17.10.2019

Mumbai: Vijay Baburao Shirke, owner of several winning racehorses, is often spotted at derby matches and in the sports sections of newspapers. This time, he is in the limelight due to an advance goods and services tax (GST) ruling sought by him.

Advance ruling read more »

India seeks checks on 50% Chinese imports in trade pact - RCEP Deal Held Up, Efforts On To Find Solution In 10 Days.

14.10.2019

New Delhi: India’s insistence on providing a safety valve to cover at least 50% of Chinese imports under Regional Comprehensive Partnership (RCEP), the proposed 16-nation trading bloc, has held up conclusion of talks for the mega trade agreement that has been in the works for over read more »

Exports of gems & jewellery drop 7.5% in Apr-Sept.

13.10.2019

Chennai: Weighed down by a high custom duty of 7.5% on cut and polished diamonds, and a 12.5% import duty for gold introduced in the Union Budget this July, exports of gems and jewellery are seeing a negative trend.

In the first half of read more »

Slowdown in 3 sectors, dip in imports hit GST collection - Auto, Cement, Iron & Steel See Lower Mop-Up Of Rs.6,200Cr.

13.10.2019

New Delhi: The slowdown in three sectors — automobiles, cement and iron & steel — along with falling imports have taken a toll on GST collections, even as the services sector has managed to hold firm.

Collections in September fell 2.7% to a little read more »

TO MISS FISC DEFICIT TARGET - GST a major cause of slowdown, says PMEAC chairman.

12.10.2019

New Delhi: The Centre will miss the fiscal deficit target of 3.3% of gross domestic product set in the Budget for the current financial year, a top policy adviser said on Thursday, adding that he believes the government will cut personal income tax rates.

read more »

RCEP talks trigger import surge worry - As Ministries Fear Spike From China, Goyal May Seek More Items In Safeguard List.

12.10.2019

New Delhi: Commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal heads to Bangkok for the final leg of negotiations for the proposed Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Agreement, amid mounting worries of an import surge, especially from China, once the mega free trade pact, involving 16 countries, kicks in.

Govt orders biggest review of GST since its launch - Rates & Slabs Likely To Be Tweaked.

12.10.2019

New Delhi: Two years after its launch, the Union government has begun the biggest review of GST—including a possible resetting of rates along with a scrutiny of the slabs—to tone up collections and plug leakages.

The task has been assigned to a 12-member committee read more »

Govt announces 5 percent hike in dearness allowance for employees and pensioners.

09.10.2019

The Central government on today (09-10-2019) hiked dearness allowance (DA) given to central government employees by five per cent taking it to a total of 17% in what seems to be a move aimed at reviving consumer demand amid an economic slowdown. Dearness Allowance or DA is read more »

More items may face import curbs - Govt May Hike Duty To Push ‘Make In India’, Protect Domestic Industry.

09.10.2019

New Delhi: The government has identified hundreds of products including electronics, toys, blankets and several daily-use items for possible “import substitution” by discouraging their shipments into the country.

While a detailed list of products has been prepared by the commerce department, which is spearheading read more »

Flyer held for smuggling Rs. 2cr diamond necklace.

09.10.2019

Mumbai: Customs officials early Monday arrested a 41-year-old man from Patna in Bihar for smuggling a diamond necklace worth Rs 1.85 crore from Bahrain.

The Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) of Customs has booked Mohammed Nawab Alam under the Customs Act. Though Alam is from read more »

SoBo bizman held in gold smuggling racket.

05.10.2019

Mumbai: A businessman from south Mumbai, Suresh Sohanraj Raysoni (57), who had purchased around 9kg of gold, was arrested by Directorate Revenue of Intelligence (DRI) on Friday, in one of the biggest gold smuggling rackets. In March, the DRI had seized 110kg of gold, concealed in scrap, read more »

GST Sahaj, Sugam forms not simple for claiming tax credit.

03.10.2019

Mumbai: Small GST payers are discovering that the proposed GST forms — Sahaj and Sugam — may create a new pain point in obtaining input tax credit (credit for taxes paid on inputs used). As of now, GST payers are grappling with the inability to rectify GSTR-1. read more »

23% GST payers can file returns via SMS - No Monthly, Quarterly Submission From April.

02.10.2019

New Delhi: One in five GST payers will get away without having to file monthly or quarterly returns from April. Instead of filling up the form online, all that those with ‘Nil’ returns will have to do is to send an SMS to a specified number and read more »

Floods, auto slowdown: GST mop-up dips 3% - At Rs. 91,916Cr, Sept Monthly Collection Lowest In 19 Mths.

02.10.2019

New Delhi: Goods and services tax (GST) collections in September fell 2.7% to Rs 91,916 crore, the lowest monthly mopup in 19 months, as floods and the auto slowdown took a toll on government revenue.

Latest data released by the finance ministry showed that read more »

Booked hotel rooms? Slashed GST from Oct 1 entitles you to a refund.

28.09.2019

Mumbai: Guests of luxury hotels are likely to gain from the recent government decision to slash goods and services tax (GST) on rooms priced at over Rs 7,500 to 18% from 28% now, and below that tariff to 12% from 18%. The new rates will be effective read more »

MAY HIT STATE COMPENSATIONS - Govt expects Rs. 40k-cr GST shortfall.

23.09.2019

New Delhi: The government is expecting a shortfall of around Rs 40,000 crore in the GST collections over what has been budgeted for 2019-20. This could put pressure on the compensation that states are eligible for in case tax growth falls below 14% during the year.

read more »

SINGLE RATE - Govt looks at 28% GST on lottery.

18.09.2019

New Delhi: The government is looking at a single rate of 28% goods and services tax (GST) on lottery as part of the “one-nation, one-tax” principle, while also exploring the option of putting restrictions on online lottery. The GST Council, which meets in Goa on Friday, is expected to read more »

GST Council not likely to reduce levy on biscuits - Fears Same Demand From Other Biz, Govt Cites Revenue Loss.

18.09.2019

New Delhi: The GST Council may stay clear of reducing goods and services tax (GST) on biscuits, whose case is being aggressively pushed by companies led by Parle, as it may open the doors to same demand from sectors that face a similar levy.

Government’s calculations read more »

STC, once among top PSUs, to be wound up.

17.09.2019

New Delhi: The government has decided to shut down the 63-year-old State Trading Corporation (STC), once among the largest public sector companies, along with PEC (earlier Project and Equipment Corporation of India Ltd), which are remnants of the “import-licence raj”, when they were sole agencies responsible for routing foreign read more »

Cheaper cover likely for small exporters.

17.09.2019

New Delhi: The commerce ministry will soon approach the Cabinet for reduction in insurance premium rates to 0.6% for small exporters having an outstanding limit of less than Rs 80 crore, Union minister Piyush Goyal said on Monday.

The commerce and industry minister said the premium read more »

PLUGGING GAPS - Centre, states staring at massive shortfall in GST revenue mop-up.

16.09.2019

New Delhi: To plug GST leaks, the finance ministry is planning to ask states to put in place a mechanism under which an enhancement in the limit to claim tax credit will require payment of 20% as the margin money. So, if your turnover is Rs 50 lakh and read more »

Centre looks to plug GST leaks, boost collections; meet on Friday.

16.09.2019

New Delhi: Having detected frauds of close to Rs 50,000 crore, the Centre is looking to tighten processes, including those related to claiming input tax credit, and will focus on getting states to okay plans to plug leaks and evasions at this week’s GST Council meeting.

read more »

Imports dip for 3rd month in a row.

14.09.2019

New Delhi: India’s exports in August fell for the second time in three months, while imports declined for the third straight month, indicating weak demand in the economy. Exports dropped over 6% to $26.1 billion in August as 22 of the 30 major sectors — including petroleum, engineering, leather, read more »

Most states demand GST cess extension for 3 years - Fin Panel To Hold Talks On Road Map For Rates In Future.

14.09.2019

New Delhi: In what will come as a blow to consumers, most states have pitched for extending the GST cess on automobiles, soft drinks, coal, tobacco and pan masala by another three years to compensate them for “revenue loss”, N K Singh, chairman of the 15th Finance Commission (FFC), read more »

PART TWO - Tough to claim input tax credit for donated goods.

12.09.2019

Mumbai: With floods causing havoc in many parts of India, several companies — as part of their corporate social responsibility (CSR) obligations — are engaged in providing relief. This can include donating food, drinking water, tarpaulins and other essentials.

In the absence of any clarification, it read more »

GST relief for auto cos may raise burden on other goods - States Must Agree To More Cess Or Forgo Compensation.

12.09.2019

New Delhi: Amid intense lobbying for a reduction in goods and services tax (GST), the government is expected to send a message that a tax cut is only possible if the compensation cess on luxury and sin goods such as tobacco, soft drinks and cars is increased or its read more »

1,500kg red sanders worth Rs.7cr headed for China seized.

11.09.2019

Mumbai: In one of the biggest seizures of red sanders in recent times, the city crime branch on Tuesday arrested three persons and seized 1,556 kg of the prized sandalwood worth Rs 7.5 crore which was to be smuggled to China.

The arrested accused have been read more »

Is Maha a dry state, asks HC; ‘why permit at duty-free shops’.

11.09.2019

Mumbai: Bombay high court recently asked if Maharashtra is a “dry state” after being told that passengers who purchase foreign liquor at duty-free shops in Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport are required to carry a permit for it.

The court expressed surprise on learning that a read more »

GST rate cut on auto, other products to be political call - Officials Worried By Fiscal Constraints, Revival Of Demand.

09.09.2019

New Delhi: A decision to reduce goods and services tax (GST) on automobiles and other products will be a political call even as finance ministry officials remain unconvinced of the utility of bowing to the clamour for a rate cut. They point out both — lack of fiscal space read more »

Exporters still face various problems.

09.09.2019

Last week, Manmohan Singh, the former Prime Minister and Noted Economist, expressed worry on the economic situation. And, asked the Government to engage with thinking minds to take it out of a man-made crisis. He mainly blamed demonetisation and hastily implemented Goods and Services Tax (GST) for read more »

Cash CSR donations face GST implications - Tax Liability Arises As Legal Definition Of Charitable Activities Is Very Specific.

07.09.2019

Mumbai: Corporate social responsibility (CSR) for large companies has now become mandatory. Yet, unfortunately, GST laws do not address the taxability of goods or services provided by companies as part of their CSR activities. In fact, even cash donations can have different GST-related consequences.

read more »

Gadkari backs lower GST on BS6, hybrid vehicles - Hints At Export Sops For Auto Cos, Promises Talks With FM.

06.09.2019

New Delhi: Transport minister Nitin Gadkari on Thursday supported the auto industry’s demand for lower goods and services tax on hybrid cars and those running fitted with BS6 engines and promised to raise it with finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

“It is the industry’s demand that there read more »

GST collections in August drop below key level of Rs. 1 lakh crore.

02.09.2019

New Delhi: Goods and services tax (GST) collections dropped below the psychological Rs 1 lakh crore in August 2019, which was 4.5% higher than a year ago but 3.8% lower than the mop-up in July.

Latest data released by the finance ministry on Sunday read more »

‘Export boost can help use idle mfg capacity, substitute imports’ - Bank Mergers May Be As Early As Jan ’20: Finance Secy.

02.09.2019

Finance secretary Rajiv Kumar is leading the team of bureaucrats assisting finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman in taking steps to boost sagging economic growth. In an interview to TOI, he suggested that exports needed to be boosted to help the manufacturing sector apart from substituting non-essential imports and read more »

PUT UNDER RESTRICTED LIST - Centre imposes curbs on agarbatti imports.

01.09.2019

New Delhi: The government on Saturday imposed restrictions on the import of agarbattis (incense sticks) in a move aimed at stemming the inflow of the product from markets such as China and Vietnam.

In a notification, the director-general of foreign trade put agarbattis and read more »

WB FM calls for tough steps to fix GST frauds - Estimates Scam Size At Over Rs. 45K Crore.

29.08.2019

New Delhi: West Bengal FM Amit Mitra has expressed deep concern over the cases of GST frauds and has shot off a letter to Union FM Nirmala Sitharaman, calling for putting in place a robust reporting system to generate realtime tax alerts on detection of any suspicious and fraudulent read more »

Cos in co-working spaces can get GST.

28.08.2019

Mumbai: The Authority for Advance Rulings (AAR-GST), Kerala, has taken cognisance of the shift towards a shared office space culture in its recent order. In response to an application sought by a company that was providing coworking space in Kochi, it held that a GST registration cannot be denied read more »

Poorer states score big in GST mop-up - Industrialised Peers Lag On New Tax.

13.08.2019

New Delhi: Consuming states such as Bihar, Odisha, UP and Madhya Pradesh — many of whom may be poorer but have large populations — are faring better in goods and services tax (GST) collections than their industrialised peers such as Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.

read more »

39 held for smuggling diesel from ships, selling it cheap to fishermen.

10.08.2019

Navi Mumbai: Thirty-nine people have been arrested for allegedly smuggling diesel after purchasing it at discounted rates from vessels sailing in the Arabian sea and then selling it at higher rates to fishermen in Raigad and around.

Twelve of those arrested are from villages read more »

DEADLINE ON AUG 31 - Only 20% of GST returns for FY18 filed.

09.08.2019

New Delhi: Nearly a year after the due date, only around a fifth of the goods and services tax (GST) payers have filed their annual returns for 2017-18, despite the deadline being extended on several occasions.

The poor response has prompted Central Board of read more »

Tax administration to be both strict and liberal.

05.08.2019

I have chosen this subject because of its contemporaneous importance. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, in a recent speech on the occasion of In­come Tax Day celebration, said that "those gaming the system are the ones tax­men have to keep a watch on ... but if the assessees read more »

GST kitty grows in July despite drop in auto sales.

02.08.2019

New Delhi: Goods and services tax (GST) collections seem to have held firm despite a steep fall in auto sales and signs of lower demand in some of the other sectors.

The gross GST revenue in July was estimated at Rs 1.02 lakh crore read more »

BUDGET 2019 AND LEVY OF EXCISE DUTY (CVD) ON PETROL & DIESEL.

01.08.2019

As proposed in the Budget 2019, Additional Duty of Excise [commonly known as Road and Infrastructure Cess (RIC)] and Special Additional Excise Duty (SAED) on Motor Spirit (commonly known as Petrol) and High Speed Diesel Oil (hereinafter referred to as 'Petrol' and 'Diesel' respectively) have been revised read more »

`PRONE TO ITC FRAUDS’ - CAG points to gaps in GST system.

31.07.2019

New Delhi: In its first review of the performance of the goods and services tax (GST), the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) on Tuesday pointed to several gaps in the new regime and said even after two years, system-validated input tax credit (ITC) through “invoice-matching” was not read more »

COMMERCE DEPT’S PLAN - Cabinet to look at WTO-compliant export scheme.

30.07.2019

New Delhi: The commerce department has sought Cabinet approval for a revamped export promotion scheme that will limit itself to refunding central and state levies.

Officials said that the scheme — Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies (RoSCTL) — will be compliant read more »

Social media is going bananas over Bose bill - Slew Of Witty Posts Targets Five-Star Hotel.

30.07.2019

New Delhi: Marketers are going bananas over the Rahul Bose vs JW Marriott episode, in which the actor was charged Rs 442 for a pair of the yellow fruit at the hotel.

Taking a cue from Bose’s video tweet through which he had expressed read more »

Man arrested for smuggling Siamese crocs, albino monkey - Pydhonie resident was bringing the exotic animals to city from Bengaluru on a private bus.

29.07.2019

Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) sleuths on Saturday night arrested a 36-year-old Pydhonie resident for allegedly smuggling exotic animals. The agency had allegedly rescued 20 Siamese crocodiles and one albino monkey from his possession. Ashfaq Wadia was apparently carrying them on a private bus from Bengaluru to read more »

20 baby crocs and albino monkey stuffed in bags found on bus, 1 held.

29.07.2019

Mumbai: A resident of Bhendi Bazar has been caught with 20 live baby exotic smuggled crocodiles and an albino monkey which had been bundled into five bags and were being transported from Bengaluru to Mumbai by a private bus. Smuggled in from Bangkok, the exotic animals had read more »

Car manufacturers hail GST cut on EVs - New Rates To Be Applicable From August.

28.07.2019

New Delhi: As part of the government’s push towards green modes of transport, the GST Council meeting on Saturday also exempted hiring of electric buses with a capacity of more than 12 passengers by local authorities. The slashed rates will be applicable from August, and vehicle companies read more »

Another push for EVs: GST cut, will be cheaper by up to Rs.1.5L - Widens Tax Rate Gap With Petrol, Diesel Vehicles.

28.07.2019

New Delhi: Electric cars will get cheaper by between Rs 60,000 and Rs 1.5 lakh, while two-wheeler prices will come down by up to Rs 8,000. The government, making a strong push for green modes of transport, on Saturday slashed the GST rate on the cleaner vehicles read more »

INS urges Centre to withdraw 10% import duty on newsprint.

27.07.2019

New Delhi: The Indian Newspaper Society (INS) on Friday appealed to the Centre to withdraw the 10% customs duty imposed in the Budget on newsprint, uncoated paper used for printing of newspapers, and lightweight coated papers used for magazines.

Publishers of newspapers and magazines read more »

1,004 kg of cannabis meant for Mumbai and Goa seized - Consignment was packed inside ambulance with tinted glasses.

24.07.2019

The Mumbai zonal unit of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) led an interstate operation to intercept a consignment of 1,004 kg of cannabis (ganja), whose derivatives such as marijuana, are used as ‘party drugs’. The consignment was on its way to Nagpur from Odisha when it read more »