There may be some reprieve for hard liquor drinkers for some more days, but none for those who prefer light beer. The proposed excise tax regime will not be implemented from September 1 following requests from the India Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) and beer industry.
There was growing apprehension that prices of several popular IMFL brands may go up after the tax-structure revision, though there was also a buzz about light-beer prices coming down. The state beverage corporation (Bevco), which was supposed to be closed from September 1 to 10 to accommodate the changeover to the new price regime will now remain operational. An executive of a liquor firm told TOI that the excise department has also extended the time frame to submit ex-distillery price (EDP) and ex-brewery price (EBP) of producers.
The state had decided to abolish the 30% additional sales tax on liquor introduced on April 9 and change the entire excise structure by introducing a slab -based tax based on product value. The new structure would have had 16 slabs based on declared EBP of beer and 22 slabs based on declared EDP of IMFL. The declared EDP and EBP would not be more than other states’. If they were higher, then the company would have to justify it.
International Spirits and Wines Association of India (ISWAI) and the Confederation of Indian Alcoholic Beverage Companies (CIABC), who between them account for most of the branded liquor industry in India, had earlier submitted a joint representation to the state about the concern of liquor companies following the proposal for the new tax regime. CIABC and ISWAI had pointed out that under the proposed policy, consumer prices of the fast-moving brands would go up substantially (translating to a rise of Rs 150 to Rs 450 per bottle).
Read More at: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/no-change-in-tax-now-imfl-sector-breathes-easy/articleshow/77840496.cms