Tourist Federation (FAITH) Asks Union Tourism Minister to Address GST Issues

Tourist Federation (FAITH) Asks Union Tourism Minister to Address GST Issues  The Federation of Associations in Indian Tourism and Hospitality (FAITH) has asked Union Tourism Minister G Kishan Reddy to raise the industry's concerns about the goods and services tax (GST) with the Group of Ministers and assess the tax rate structure. The Federation, which represents numerous tourist and hospitality organizations, stated that the industry is "just getting out of its worst period," and that now is the best moment to incentivize both supply and demand for travel. Hotels should be authorized to impose Integrated Goods and Services Tax (IGST) to ensure credit availability to all travel agencies and tour operators, according to the industry body's submission to the Union Minister. This, in turn, will aid in the development of long-term domestic demand for vacations, meetings, and conferences. It also suggested that restaurants be given the option of charging 12% GST with input tax credits, among other things. This rate must be separated from room rates.

GST Refunds

Allowing for a special presumptive GST rate of 1.8 percent with full GST setoffs. "Without setoffs, the present rate of 5% means that tour operators have an inbuilt margin of about 27.8%, which is an intrinsically faulty assumption in the online economy," it added. Players in the tourism, travel, and hospitality industries should be able to request a refund of any unutilized GST credits held by state governments, allowing them to obtain much-needed liquidity. The Federation has also stated that GST refunds on purchases made by foreign tourists should be implemented, and that the IGST Act's Tax Refund for Visitors (TRT) Scheme's application should be ensured across all products and tourism services used by foreign tourists in India. "This would prevent India from outsourcing its tourism taxes and will boost our global tourism competitiveness," FAITH added. Source: The Hindu Business Line