SERVICE TAX
CESTAT Kolkata Holds MLM Activities Not Taxable As Business Auxiliary Service, Quashes Service Tax Demand
In a ruling on the taxability of multi-level marketing (MLM) operations under the pre-GST regime, the Kolkata Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) held that activities involving purchase and sale of goods under an MLM model cannot be classified as taxable “Business Auxiliary Service” under the Finance Act, 1994, where the core activity remains trading in products rather than rendering an independent service. On 11 May, a Bench comprising Judicial Member R....
CESTAT Bengaluru Exempts KILA Training Services From Service Tax Under Mega Exemption Notification
The Bengaluru Bench of the Customs, Excise & Service Tax Appellate Tribunal on 8 May 2026 held that training and capacity-building services in local governance provided by the Kerala Institute of Local Administration (KILA) are exempt from service tax. Judicial Member P.A. Augustian and Technical Member R. Bhagya Devi held that the services fall under Serial No. 39 of Mega Exemption Notification No. 25/2012-ST as they relate to functions entrusted to municipalities under Article 243W of the...
CESTAT Bengaluru Quashes Service Tax Demand On Grants-In-Aid, Allows Earth Science Institute Appeal
On 8 May, the Bengaluru Bench of the Customs, Excise & Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) held that grants-in-aid received from government departments do not constitute “consideration” and therefore cannot be subjected to service tax under Scientific or Technical Consultancy Services under the Finance Act, 1994. Judicial Member P.A. Augustian and Technical Member R. Bhagya Devi allowed two tax appeals (21752 and 21754 of 2015) filed by the National Centre for Earth Science Studies. It...
CESTAT Hyderabad Says Pharma Job Work Was Not Renting Service Merely Due To Client's Production Control
The Hyderabad Bench of the Customs, Excise & Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has held that the job work arrangement between Teena Labs Ltd. and Aurobindo Pharma Ltd. could not be treated as “Renting of Immovable Property Service” merely because Aurobindo Pharma exercised production and quality control and reimbursed various expenses. The tribunal observed that, “Thus, what is apparent is that there is an effective control on production process, quality control, etc., however, it...
CESTAT Bengaluru Upholds Service Tax On Employee Secondment From Foreign Parent Company
The Bangalore Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) on 24 April held that employees seconded by a UK-based parent company to its Indian subsidiary under a salary reimbursement arrangement would constitute “Manpower Recruitment or Supply Agency Service” and would attract service tax under the reverse charge mechanism. Judicial Member P.A. Augustian and Technical Member R. Bhagya Devi partly allowed the appeal filed by ARM Embedded Technologies Pvt....
CESTAT Chennai Holds Tobacco Processing Not Manpower Supply, Allows Service Tax Refund
The Chennai Bench of the Customs, Excise & Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), on 28 April, held that processing unmanufactured tobacco for a client constitutes agricultural job work and not manpower supply service. A Bench comprising Technical Member M. Ajit Kumar and Judicial Member Ajayan T.V. allowed the appeal filed by Updater Services Pvt. Ltd. and granted refund of service tax. It held: “The appellant processes unmanufactured tobacco for or on behalf of their client which...
No Service Tax On Non-Commercial Residential Construction: CESTAT Allahabad
The Allahabad Bench of the Customs, Excise & Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) on 30 April held that service tax does not apply to construction services rendered for residential colonies not intended for commercial use. It also set aside the bulk of the demand on the ground of limitation. A Bench comprising Judicial Member P. K. Choudhary and Technical Member P. Anjani Kumar allowed the appeal filed by Ashish Enterprises against the order confirming a service tax demand of Rs. 1.67...
CESTAT Bangalore Sets Aside Service Tax On Mysore Race Club's Club-Member Services, Upholds Other Demands
Service tax demand on services provided by a club to its own members under “Club or Association Services” cannot be sustained, the Customs, Excise, and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), Bangalore, has held, while ruling that Mysore Race Club Ltd. remains liable for service tax on restaurant services, event-related income, and sponsorship activities. The bench of Judicial Member D.M. Misra and Technical Member R. Bhagya Devi relied on the Supreme Court's ruling in State of West Bengal v....
Procedure Cannot Defeat Substantive Justice: CESTAT Mumbai Sets Aside Appeal Rejection Over Delay
The Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal at Mumbai has set aside an order of the Commissioner (Appeals) that had rejected a taxpayer's appeal solely because no application for condonation of delay was filed along with it, even though the delay was only 23 days. The tribunal held that procedural requirements cannot be applied in a manner that defeats substantive justice. Judicial Member Ajay Sharma observed, "It is a settled principle that procedural requirements, including...
IIM Bangalore Campus Recruitment Fees Taxable As Manpower Recruitment Services: CESTAT Bangalore
On 27 April 2026, the Bangalore Bench of the Customs, Excise & Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) held that recruitment fees collected by the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIMB) from corporates during campus placements are liable to service tax under the category of “manpower recruitment or supply agency services”, while participation fees are not taxable. A Bench comprising Judicial Member Dr. D.M. Misra and Technical Member R. Bhagya Devi partly allowed the appeal,...
No Service Tax On Alumni Fee Collected By University In Absence of Service: CESTAT Bengaluru
The Bengaluru Bench of the Customs, Excise & Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) on 24 April held that no service tax can be levied on alumni fee collected by a university in the absence of any corresponding service. A Bench of Judicial Member Dr. D.M. Misra and Technical Member R. Bhagya Devi allowed the appeal filed by Manipal Education & Medical Group India Pvt. Ltd. and set aside a service tax demand exceeding Rs. 97 lakh raised by the Commissioner of Central Excise &...