Zee Media Bureau
Entry tickets to museums, zoo and tiger reserves would become cheaper, while business class air travel, investment in MFs and chit funds, eating out and paying bills would become expensive with some of the service tax proposals announced in the Budget coming into effect from Wednesday.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had came out with a host of proposals last month to rationalise service tax, which is levied at an effective rate of 12.36 percent.
These also include raising the rate to 14 percent, but that will come into effect from a date to be notified later by the government after the passage of the Finance Bill by Parliament.
However, the proposals which will come into effect from April 1, 2015 include tax exemption granted to services like admission to a museum, zoo, national park, wild life sanctuary and a tiger reserve.
Similarly, life insurance scheme Varishtha Pension Bima Yojna, ambulance service, retail packing of fruits and vegetables, too will not attract service tax levy.
Those that would also turn cheaper include leather footwear, locally made mobiles, computer tablets, microwave ovens, peanut butter, packaged fruits, ambulance service and agarbattis.
On the other hand, air travel will become expensive as service tax will now be levied on 60 percent of the value of the ticket as against 40 percent presently.
The following are the items that will be dearer or cheap from April 1, 2015.
Costlier
> Cigarettes and other tobacco products
> Completely built imported commercial vehicles
> Cement
> Aerated, flavoured drinks and packaged water
> Plastic bags and sacks
> Business and executive class air travel
> Visit to amusement and theme park
> Music concerts
> Liquor, chit fund and lottery
CHEAPER
> Leather footwear priced above Rs 1,000 per pair
> Locally made mobile phones, LED/LCD panels, LED lights and LED Lamps
> Solar Water heater
> Pacemakers, ambulance and ambulance services
> Computer tablets
> Agarbattis
> Microwave ovens
> Refrigerator compressors
> Peanut butter, packaged fruits and vegetables
> Visit to museum, zoo and national park.
>Life insurance scheme Varishtha Pension Bima Yojna
