Zero GST! Full List of Tax-Free Items | What’s Now at 0% GST?

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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 CodeDescriptionEarlier GST RateNew GST Rate
0401Ultra-High Temperature (UHT) milk5%Nil
0406Chena or paneer, pre-packaged and labelled5%Nil
1905Pizza bread5%Nil
1905 / 2106Khakhra, chapathi or roti5%Nil
2106Paratha, 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 CodeDescriptionEarlier GST RateNew GST Rate
4016Erasers5%Nil
4802Uncoated paper & paperboard for notebooks12%Nil
4820Exercise book, graph book, laboratory notebook, notebooks12%Nil
4905Maps, atlases, wall maps, globes, topographical charts12%Nil
8214Pencil sharpeners12%Nil
9608, 9609Pencils, crayons, pastels, chalks (drawing/writing/tailor’s)12%Nil

💎 Other Goods Now Nil Rated

CategoryEarlier GSTNew 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 antiquesIGST 18%Nil
Flight & Target Motion Simulators (and parts)IGST 18%Nil
Parts & sub-assemblies of HACFS / IADWSIGST 18%Nil
Military transport aircraft (C-130, C-295MW)IGST 18%Nil
Deep Submergence Rescue VesselIGST 18%Nil
Unmanned underwater vessels/platformsIGST 18%Nil
Ejection seats for fighter aircraftIGST 18%Nil
High performance batteries for drones & special equipmentIGST 18%Nil
Communication devices including SDRs & accessoriesIGST 18%Nil
Air diving & rebreather sets, diving systems, accessoriesIGST 18%Nil
Sonobuoys for naval air assetsIGST 18%Nil
Ship launched missilesIGST 18%Nil
Rockets >100mm calibreIGST 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

ServiceEarlier GST RateNew GST Rate
All individual health insurance (including reinsurance)18% with ITCExempt
All individual life insurance (including reinsurance)18% with ITCExempt

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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Pooja Gupta

CA Pooja Gupta (CA, ISA, M.com) having 15 years of experience. Educator and Digital Creator

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CA Pooja Gupta (CA, ISA, M.com) having 15 years of experience. Educator and Digital Creator

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