Budget 2016: Sebi, Irda to get service tax exemption for regulatory services

New Delhi: Providing succour to two sectoral watchdogs, the government will exempt “regulatory services” provided by Sebi and Irda from the service tax ambit. Besides, exemption would be extended to the services provided by the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO).[caption id=“attachment_2649272” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  The Sebi logo. Image courtesy Sebi[/caption] Currently, the service tax for these services is 14 percent. In the Union Budget for 2016-17 unveiled today, the government has provided service tax exemption for various activities, including those related to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) and Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (Irda). The “regulatory services” provided by Sebi and Irda as well as the services offered by EPFO have been exempted from service tax with effect from 1 April 2016. There has been uncertainties on whether Sebi’s regulatory services can be taxed, especially after the government moved to negative list for service tax few years back. Among others, in the latest Budget, the service of life insurance business provided by way of annuity under the National Pension System regulated by Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) has also been exempted from the service tax ambit. At present, the service tax in this regard was 3.5 percent. PTI