Get ready to pay more Service Tax from Nov 15 as govt imposes Swachh Bharat Cess

Zee Media Bureau

New Delhi: Get prepared to pay more service tax from next week as government on Friday decided to impose Swachh Bharat Cess of 0.5 percent on all services liable for Service Tax.

The revised tax will be implemented from November 15. Resources generated from this cess will be utilised for financing and promoting initiatives towards Swachh Bharat.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had on August 15, 2014 given a call to achieve the objective of clean India by the year 2019, the 150th year of the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, through the Swachh Bharat Mission.

The Budget proposed 100 percent tax deduction for the contributions, other than by way of CSR spending, to the Swachh Bharat Kosh.

While announcing the Union Budget 2015, the finance ministry had said that the contribution to Swachh Bharat Kosh as part of the CSR activities by corporates will not be entitled for tax exemptions.

Swachh Bharat and Clean Ganga are among the major initiatives of the Narendra Modi government, which has embarked on a major drive to ensure cleanliness across the country.