Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala government has decided to impose a cess of 1 percent on products that carry higher Goods and Services Tax rates to fund the state's reconstruction after the devastating floods in August. Goods and services with GST rates of 12, 18 and 28 per cent will be pricier with the cess for two years.
Movie tickets, beer and wine just got dearer after Finance Minister Thomas Isaac's 10th budget on Thursday. Tax on alcoholic beverages has been raised by 2 per cent.
Gold, cement, granite, cars, performance motorbikes, air-conditioners, refrigerators, cigarettes, soft drinks, hair oil, toothpaste, soap, computers, notebooks, spectacles, televisions, school bags, bamboo products, ceramic tiles, coir, biscuits, plywood, butter, ghee and milk will be pricier.
The reconstruction cess will be applicable to all products above the 5 per cent tax bracket, except gold and other precious metals. Gold, silver and platinum goods will carry a cess of 0.25 per cent. Small-scale merchants who have opted for the composition tax system have been excluded from the cess.
Isaac imposed a 10 per cent entertainment tax on movie tickets. Taxes on luxury houses with an area of more than 3,000 square feet also went up. Those with an annual turnover between Rs 20 lakh and Rs 50 lakh will have to pay a service tax of 6 percent.
Read more: Latest Kerala budget news
