The GST Council in the 34th meeting held on 19th March 2019 at New Delhi discussed the operational details for implementation of the recommendations made by the council in its 33rd meeting for lower effective GST rate of 1% in case of affordable houses and 5% on the construction of houses other than the affordable house. The council decided the modalities of the transition as follows.
Option in respect of ongoing projects:
New tax rates:
(i) New rate of 1% without input tax credit (ITC) on construction of affordable houses shall be available for,
(a) all houses which meet the definition of affordable houses as decided by GSTC (area 60 sqm in non- metros / 90 sqm in metros and value upto RS. 45 lakhs), and
(b) affordable houses being constructed in ongoing projects under the existing central and state housing schemes presently eligible for concessional rate of 8% GST (after 1/3rd land abatement).
(ii) New rate of 5% without input tax credit shall be applicable on construction of,-
Conditions for the new tax rates:
Transition for ongoing projects opting for the new tax rate:
6.1 Ongoing projects (buildings where construction and booking both had started before 01.04.2019) and have not been completed by 31.03.2019 opting for new tax rates shall transition the ITC as per the prescribed method.
6.2 The transition formula approved by the GST Council, for residential projects (refer to para 4(ii)) extrapolates ITC taken for percentage completion of construction as on 01.04.2019 to arrive at ITC for the entire project. Then based on percentage booking of flats and percentage invoicing, ITC eligibility is determined. Thus, transition would thus be on pro-rata basis based on a simple formula such that credit in proportion to booking of the flat and invoicing done for the booked flat is available subject to a few safeguards.
6.3 For a mixed project transition shall also allow ITC on pro-rata basis in proportion to carpet area of the commercial portion in the ongoing projects (on which tax will be payable @ 12% with ITC even after 1.4.2019) to the total carpet area of the project.
Treatment of TDR/ FSI and Long term lease for projects commencing after 01.04.2019
7.1 Supply of TDR, FSI, long term lease (premium) of land by a landowner to a developer shall be exempted subject to the condition that the constructed flats are sold before issuance of completion certificate and tax is paid on them. Exemption of TDR, FSI, long term lease (premium) shall be withdrawn in case of flats sold after issue of completion certificate, but such withdrawal shall be limited to 1% of value in case of affordable houses and 5% of value in case of other than affordable houses. This will achieve a fair degree of taxation parity between under construction and ready to move property.
7.2 The liability to pay tax on TDR, FSI, long term lease (premium) shall be shifted from land owner to builder underthe reverse charge mechanism (RCM).
7.3 The date on which builder shall be liable to pay tax on TDR, FSI, long term lease (premium) of land under RCM in respect of flats sold after completion certificate is being shifted to date of issue of completion certificate.
7.4 The liability of builder to pay tax on construction of houses given to land owner in a JDA is also being shifted to the date of completion. Decisions from para 7.1 to 7.4 are expected to address the problem of cash flow in the sector.
Amendment to ITC rules: