[TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE GAZETTE OF INDIA, EXTRAORDINARY, PART II,
SECTION 3,
Government of India
Ministry of Finance
(Department of Revenue)
Notification No. 27/2012 - Service Tax
New Delhi, the 20th June, 2012
G.S.R. (E).- In exercise of the powers conferred
by section 93 of the Finance Act, 1994 (32 of 1994), the Central Government,
being satisfied that it is necessary in the public interest so to do, hereby
exempts taxable services provided by any person, for the official use
of a foreign diplomatic mission or consular post in India, or for personal use
or for the use of the family members of diplomatic agents or career consular
officers posted therein from whole of the service tax leviable
under section 66B of the
said Act, subject to the following conditions, namely:-
(i)
that the
foreign diplomatic mission or consular post in India, or diplomatic agents or
career consular officers posted therein, are entitled to exemption from service
tax, as stipulated in the certificate issued by the Protocol Division of the
Ministry of External Affairs, based on the principle of reciprocity;
(ii)
that in
case of diplomatic agents or career consular officers posted in the foreign
diplomatic mission or consular post in India, the Protocol Division of the
Ministry of External Affairs or the Protocol Department of the State concerned
issues to each of such diplomatic agent or career consular officer an
identification card bearing unique identification number and containing a
photograph and name of such diplomatic agent or career consular officer and the
name of the foreign diplomatic mission or consular post in India, where he is
posted;
(iii) that the head of the foreign diplomatic mission or
consular post, or any person of such mission or post authorised
by him, shall furnish to the provider of taxable service, a copy of such
certificate duly authenticated by him or the authorised
person, alongwith an undertaking in original, signed
by him or the authorised person, bearing running
serial number commencing from a financial year and stating that the services
received are for official purpose of the said foreign diplomatic mission or
consular post; or for personal use of the said diplomatic agent or career
consular officer or members of his/her family mentioning the unique
identification number as appearing in the identification card issued to them
and stating that the services received are for personal use of the said
diplomatic agent or career consular officer or members of his/her family;
(iv) that the head of the
foreign diplomatic mission or consular post or the authorized person shall
maintain an account of the undertakings issued during a financial year and the
account shall contain;-
(a)
the serial
number and date of issue of the undertakings;
(b) in case of personal use of diplomatic agents or career
consular officers posted in the foreign
diplomatic mission or consular post in India, the name, designation and unique
identification number of the diplomatic agent or career consular officer in favour of whom the undertaking has been issued;
(c) the name and the registration number of the provider of
taxable service; and
(d) the description of taxable
service and invoice number.
(v) The invoice or bill, or as the case may be, the challan issued under the provisions contained in rule 4A of
the Service Tax Rules, 1994, shall, in addition to the information required to
be furnished under the said rule, contain the serial number and the date of the
undertaking furnished by the said head of foreign diplomatic mission or
consular post or in case of diplomatic agents or career consular officers
posted in such foreign diplomatic mission or consular post in India, the unique
identification number of the diplomatic agent or career consular officer, as
the case may be; and
(vi) that the provider of taxable
service shall retain the documents referred to in the conditions (i), (ii) and
(iii) alongwith a duplicate copy of the invoice
issued, for the purposes of verification.
2. In case the Protocol Division
of the Ministry of External Affairs, after having issued a certificate to any
foreign diplomatic mission or consular post in India or as the case may be, the
identification card issued to a diplomatic agent or career consular officer,
decides to withdraw any one or both of them subsequently, it shall communicate
the withdrawal of such certificate or identification card, as the case may be,
to the foreign diplomatic mission or consular post.
3. The exemption from the
whole of the service tax granted to the foreign diplomatic mission or consular
post in India for official purpose or for the personal use or use of their
family members shall not be available from the date of withdrawal of such
certificate or identification card, as the case may be.
4. This notification
shall come into force on the 1st day of July, 2012.
[F.No.
334 /1/ 2012-TRU]
(Rajkumar Digvijay)
Under Secretary to the Government of India