The 56th GST Council meeting has rationalised India’s GST structure into two main slabs – 5% and 18%, with a Nil rate for essential goods and services,
📌 Effective Date of Nil GST Rates
- 22nd September 2025
🥛 Essential Food Products – Now Nil Rated
| HSN Code | Description | Earlier GST Rate | New GST Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0401 | Ultra-High Temperature (UHT) milk | 5% | Nil |
| 0406 | Chena or paneer, pre-packaged and labelled | 5% | Nil |
| 1905 | Pizza bread | 5% | Nil |
| 1905 / 2106 | Khakhra, chapathi or roti | 5% | Nil |
| 2106 | Paratha, parotta and other Indian breads (by any name called) | 18% | Nil |
💊 Life-Saving Drugs & Medicines – Now Nil Rated
Group 1 – Earlier @5% → Nil
- Agalsidase Beta
- Imiglucerase
- Eptacog alfa (activated recombinant coagulation factor VIIa)
Group 2 – Earlier @12% → Nil
- Onasemnogene abeparvovec
- Asciminib
- Mepolizumab
- Pegylated Liposomal Irinotecan
- Daratumumab (IV & Subcutaneous)
- Teclistamab
- Amivantamab
- Alectinib
- Risdiplam
- Obinutuzumab
- Polatuzumab vedotin
- Entrectinib
- Atezolizumab
- Spesolimab
- Velaglucerase Alpha
- Agalsidase Alfa
- Rurioctocog Alpha Pegol
- Idursulphatase
- Alglucosidase Alfa
- Laronidase
- Olipudase Alfa
- Tepotinib
- Avelumab
- Emicizumab
- Belumosudil
- Miglustat
- Velmanase Alfa
- Alirocumab
- Evolocumab
- Cystamine Bitartrate
- CI-Inhibitor injection
- Inclisiran
📚 Stationery & Education Items – Now Nil Rated
| HSN Code | Description | Earlier GST Rate | New GST Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4016 | Erasers | 5% | Nil |
| 4802 | Uncoated paper & paperboard for notebooks | 12% | Nil |
| 4820 | Exercise book, graph book, laboratory notebook, notebooks | 12% | Nil |
| 4905 | Maps, atlases, wall maps, globes, topographical charts | 12% | Nil |
| 8214 | Pencil sharpeners | 12% | Nil |
| 9608, 9609 | Pencils, crayons, pastels, chalks (drawing/writing/tailor’s) | 12% | Nil |
💎 Other Goods Now Nil Rated
| Category | Earlier GST | New GST |
|---|---|---|
| Technical documentation in respect of goods exempted under notification No. 19/ 2019-Customs dated 06.07.2019. | IGST 18% | Nil |
| Natural cut & polished diamonds ≤ 25 cents (imported under Diamond Imprest Scheme) | IGST 18% | Nil |
| Works of art and antiques | IGST 18% | Nil |
| Flight & Target Motion Simulators (and parts) | IGST 18% | Nil |
| Parts & sub-assemblies of HACFS / IADWS | IGST 18% | Nil |
| Military transport aircraft (C-130, C-295MW) | IGST 18% | Nil |
| Deep Submergence Rescue Vessel | IGST 18% | Nil |
| Unmanned underwater vessels/platforms | IGST 18% | Nil |
| Ejection seats for fighter aircraft | IGST 18% | Nil |
| High performance batteries for drones & special equipment | IGST 18% | Nil |
| Communication devices including SDRs & accessories | IGST 18% | Nil |
| Air diving & rebreather sets, diving systems, accessories | IGST 18% | Nil |
| Sonobuoys for naval air assets | IGST 18% | Nil |
| Ship launched missiles | IGST 18% | Nil |
| Rockets >100mm calibre | IGST 18% | Nil |
| Remote Piloted Aircraft (military use) | IGST 18% | Nil |
| Parts, sub-assemblies, spares, accessories, tools, testing equipment, literature for defence weapons & aircrafts (except certain excluded arms) | IGST 18% | Nil |
🛡️ Insurance Services – Now Nil Rated
| Service | Earlier GST Rate | New GST Rate |
|---|---|---|
| All individual health insurance (including reinsurance) | 18% with ITC | Exempt |
| All individual life insurance (including reinsurance) | 18% with ITC | Exempt |
What is the GST rate on food preparations not elsewhere specified in any of the schedules?
Food preparations not elsewhere specified will attract a GST rate of 5%.
UHT (Ultra High Temperature) milk has been exempted. Does exemption to UHT milk also cover plant-based milk?
All dairy milk, other than UHT milk, were already exempt from GST. Hence UHT milk has been exempted to provide same tax treatment to similar goods. Plant based milk drinks except soya milk drinks attracted 18% GST while soya milk drink attracted 12% GST. The GST rate on plant-based milk drinks and soya milk drinks have now been reduced to 5%.
What is the reason for revising GST rate only on specified varieties of Indian bread?
Bread was already exempt while pizza bread, roti, porotta, paratha etc attracted different rates. All Indian breads, by whatever name called have been exempted even though only few goods have been mentioned by way of illustrative example.
Why is there a different tax treatment between paneer and other cheese?
Prior to rate rationalisation, paneer sold in other than pre-packaged and labelled form already attracted nil rate. Therefore the changes have been made only in respect of paneer supplied in pre-packaged and labelled form. Paneer is an Indian cottage cheese. This is mostly produced in small scale sector. The measure is intended to promote Indian cottage cheese.
What is the reason for differential tax treatment for natural honey and artificial honey?
This is intended to promote natural honey.
Why have all medicines not been exempted from GST in general?
If drugs/ medicines are fully exempted, the manufacturers/dealers would not be able to claim input tax credit on GST paid on raw materials and will have to reverse the ITC paid on the inputs. This would increase their effective tax incidence and cost of production. This may in turn be passed on to consumers/ patients in the form of higher prices which in turn would make the measure counterproductive.
Why has the GST rate been reduced on medical devices? Will this not lead to inverted duty structure?
The measure is intended to lower the cost of healthcare and thereby benefit patients, particularly the poor. This measure does not create any new inverted duty structure as the existing structure already had inverted duty structure although this measure may deepen theinversion. However, under GST, refund of accumulated input tax credit arising on account of
inverted duty structure is available to manufacturers. GST Council has also recommended process reforms to enable expedited refunds.
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