Service tax hike to 14%

Service tax hike to 14% has become effective from 1st June 2015. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in his Budget had proposed to raise service tax from 12.36 percent (including education cess) to 14 percent. The proposal takes effect from June 1.The tax is levied on all services, expect a small negative list. Some of the key services that will attract higher tax and hence become costlier are: railways, airlines, banking, insurance, advertising, architecture, construction etc.