In a major push towards the use of environment-friendly vehicles, the GST Council in its 36th meeting Saturday slashed the tax rates on electric vehicles from 12 per cent to 5 per cent. The GST rate on charger or charging stations for electric vehicles was also reduced from 18 per cent to 5 per cent. Changes in the GST rates will be effective from August 1, 2019.
The hiring of electric buses with carrying capacity of more than 12 passengers by local authorities will be exempted from GST, decided the council.
The GST Council Meeting was held via video conference under the chairmanship of Union Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. The meeting was also attended by Union Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs Anurag Thakur, Revenue Secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey and other senior officials of the Ministry of Finance.
The Council also recommended the extention of last date filing of GST form to August 31.
“The last date for furnishing statement containing the details of the self-assessed tax in FORM GST CMP-08 for the quarter April, 2019 to June, 2019 (by taxpayers under composition scheme), to be extended from 31.07.2019 to 31.08.2019,” said the ministry in a release.
The twin rate cuts are set to further boost electric vehicle sector. The Budget on July 5 had proposed Income Tax deduction of Rs 1.5 lakh on the interest paid on the loans taken to purchase electric vehicles.
India, the world`s third-biggest emitter of greenhouse gases and home to 14 of the world`s most polluted cities, is aiming for electric vehicles to account for 30% of all passenger vehicle sales in the country by 2030. They currently make up less than 1 percent, largely due to a lack of charging infrastructure and the high cost of batteries, reported news agency Reuters.
