Monday, January 1, 2018

What is the meaning of SUPPLY in GST Law ?

Supply is a very critical term for GST taxation system. The Place and Time of supply determines the taxes and rate of taxes to be applied to the particular goods or services. Here, the emphasis is clearly shifted to how and when the Supply takes place. In this context , it is very import to understand what all really constitutes a supply.

As per the GST Act, the expression “supply” includes––
·         All forms of supply of goods or services or both such as sale, transfer, barter, exchange, licence, rental, lease or disposal made or agreed to be made for a consideration by a person in the course or furtherance of business;
·         Import of services for a consideration whether or not in the course or furtherance of business;
·         The activities specified in SCHEDULE I, made or agreed to be made without a consideration; and

·         The activities to be treated as supply of goods or supply of services as referred to in SCHEDULE II.



SCHEDULE I : ACTIVITIES TO BE TREATED AS SUPPLY EVEN IF MADE WITHOUT CONSIDERATION

1. Permanent transfer or disposal of business assets where input tax credit has been availed on such assets.

2. Supply of goods or services or both between related persons or between distinct persons as specified in section 25 when made in the course or furtherance of business. ( Exception :Gifts not exceeding fifty thousand rupees in value in a financial year by an employer to an employee shall not be treated as supply of goods or services or both)

3. Supply of goods—
by a principal to his agent where the agent undertakes to supply such goods on behalf of the principal; or
by an agent to his principal where the agent undertakes to receive such goods on behalf of the principal.

4. Import of services by a taxable person from a related person or from any of his other establishments outside India, in the course or furtherance of business.


SCHEDULE II : ACTIVITIES TO BE TREATED AS SUPPLY OF GOODS OR SUPPLY OF SERVICES
1. Transfer
Any transfer of the title in goods is a supply of goods;
Any transfer of right in goods or of undivided share in goods without the transfer of title is a supply of services;
Any transfer of title in goods under an agreement which stipulates that property in goods shall pass at a future date upon payment of full consideration as agreed, is a supply of goods.

2. Land and Building
Any lease, tenancy, easement, licence to occupy land is a supply of services;
Any lease or letting out of the building including a commercial, industrial or residential complex for business or commerce, either wholly or partly, is a supply of services.

3. Treatment or process
Any treatment or process which is applied to another person's goods is a supply of services.

4. Transfer of business assets
Where goods forming part of the assets of a business are transferred or disposed of (by or under the directions of the person carrying on the business), such transfer or disposal is a supply of goods by the person;
Where goods held or used for the purposes of the business are put to any private use or are made available to any person for use, for any purpose  other than a purpose of the business (by or under the directions of the person carrying on the business), the use of goods is considered as a supply of services;
Where any person ceases to be a taxable person, any goods forming part of the assets of any business carried on by him shall be deemed to be supplied by him in the course or furtherance of his business immediately before he ceases to be a taxable person, unless—
the business is transferred as a going concern to another person
the business is carried on by a personal representative who is deemed to be a taxable person.

5. Supply of services :  
Renting of immovable property;
Construction of a complex, building, civil structure or a part thereof, including a complex or building intended for sale to a buyer, wholly or partly.      ( Exception:  where the entire consideration has been received after issuance of completion certificateby the competent authority or after its first occupation, whichever is earlier)

Some activities or transactions are treated neither as a Supply of Goods or as a Supply of Services . These are laid out in Schedule III

SCHEDULE III : ACTIVITIES OR TRANSACTIONS WHICH SHALL BE TREATED NEITHER AS A  SUPPLY OF GOODS NOR A SUPPLY OF SERVICES
1. Services by an employee to the employer in the course of or in relation to his employment.

2. Services by any court or Tribunal established under any law for the time being in force.

3. The functions performed by the MP, MLA, Members of Panchayats, Members of Municipalities and Members of other local authorities and   the duties performed by any person as a Chairperson or a Member or a Director in a body established by the Central Government or a State Government or local authority and who is not deemed as an employee before the commencement of this clause.

4. Services of funeral, burial, crematorium or mortuary including transportation of the deceased.

5. Sale of land and, subject to Schedule II, sale of building.

6. Actionable claims, other than lottery, betting and gambling.


The Central or a State Government may, upon recommendation of the Council, specify the  transactions that are to be treated as:
·         A supply of goods and not as a supply of services
·         A supply of services and not as a supply of goods
·         Neither a supply of goods nor a supply of services


SCHEDULE IV contains the  Activities or transactions undertaken by the central government,
A state government or any local authority which shall be treated Neither as a supply of goods nor a supply of services. These are:

1. Services provided by a Government or local authority to another Government or local authority excluding the following services:
·         Services by the Department of Posts by way of speed post, express parcel post, life insurance and agency services;
·         Services in relation to an aircraft or a vessel , inside or outside the precincts of a port or an aircraft; or
·         Transport of goods or passengers.

2. Services provided by a Government or local authority to individuals in discharge of its statutory powers or functions such as-
·         Issuance of passport, visa, driving licence, birth certificate or death certificate; and
·         Assignment of right to use natural resources to an individual farmer for the purpose of agriculture.

3. Services provided by a Government or local authority or a governmental authority by :
·         Any activity in relation to any function entrusted to a municipality under article 243 W of the Constitution
·         Any activity in relation to any function entrusted to a Panchayat under article 243 G of the Constitution
·         Health care
·         Education

4. Services provided by Government towards-
·         Diplomatic or consular activities
·         Citizenship, naturalization and aliens
·         Admission into , and emigration and expulsion from india
·         Currency , coinage and legal tender , foreign exchange
·         Trade and commerce with foreign countries , import and export across customs frontiers , interstate trade and commerce
·         Maintenance of public order.

5. Any services provided by a Government or a local authority in the course of discharging any liability on account of any tax levied by such Government or authority.

6. Services provided by a Government or a local authority by way of -
·         Tolerating non-performance of a contract for which consideration in the form of fines or liquidated damages is payable to the Government or the local authority under such contract
·         Assignment of right to use any natural resource where such right to use was assigned by the Government or the local authority before the 1st April, 2016

7. Services provided by Government by way of deputing officers after office hours or on holidays for inspection or container stuffing or such other duties in relation to import or export of cargo on payment of Merchant Overtime Charges (MOT).

8. Services provided by Government or a local authority by way of-
·         Registration required under any law for the time being in force; or
·         Testing, calibration, safety check or certification relating to protection or safety of workers, consumers or public at large, required under any law for the time being in force.


With this, we have given a brief discussion of Supply as defined by the GST Acts. The next blog will elaborate on the importance of Time and Value of Supply, Special cases etc

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