Center likely to issue ruling on liquor tax

According to a report, liquor companies operating in India may soon get a relief from the central government on distilling alcoholic liquor for human consumption and the required amendment will be incorporated in the GST rule and regulation.

The GST Council in its October 2023 meeting decided that extra-neutral alcohol or distilled alcohol used to manufacture liquor would be kept outside the ambit of GST. However, the GST committee has not given its draft for the said amendment to implement the proposal.

As per the report, the concerned authority is likely to issue definitive instructions around the budget on the subject. The issue emerged after the GST Constitutional Amendment Act excluded liquor from the GST ambit. This led to confusion over the taxability of ENA, which is processed to manufacture alcoholic liquor for human consumption.