GST Council meet: 178 items moved from 28% to 18%, here is the complete list with updated tax rate

In the biggest tax regime, the Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on 10 November announced moving of 178 items from the 28 per cent to the 18 per cent tax bracket. The government has slashed the rates on over 200 items, ranging from chewing gum to chocolates, to beauty products, wigs and wrist watches.

The latest decision were taken taken at the GST Council meeting in Guwahati today. “Having done the exercise, in the last three meetings, we have been systematically looking at the 28 per cent tax bracket and rationalising items from it to the lesser category,” Jaitley said, while addressing the press.

GST council also brought some relief to the tax-payers by reducing the penalty for late tax filing.

Finance and Revenue Secretary, Hasmukh Adhia said, “If there is a NIL report to be filed, then the fine for late filing will be reduced from Rs 200 per day to Rs 20 per day. And for other tax filers, the reduction will be from Rs 200 to Rs 50 per day," and added, "States might not get revenue, which is why some penalty is there.”

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the recommendations made by the GST council would benefit the citizens and add strength to the GST.

Taking to Twitter, Prime Minister Modi said, "The recommendations made by the GST Council today will further benefit our citizens and add strength to the GST. These recommendations are in spirit of the continuous feedback we are getting from various stakeholders on GST."