As the government gears up for the 55th GST Council meeting, likely to take place in November 2024, the council's nominated Group of Ministers (GoM) has begun holding meetings. The GoM on “boosting the real estate sector under GST,” headed by Pramod Sawant, Chief Minister of Goa, is scheduled to meet on September 24.

Sources say the meeting is likely to address several pressing points and priority areas highlighted in past GoM meetings. Based on these discussions, the 54th GST Council, held in New Delhi on September 9, had asked the GoM to return with more detailed deliberations.

Among the key issues on the agenda is the “treatment of GST on property purchased in group housing or commercial setups built by a builder.” The question before the GoM is whether GST should be charged on the comprehensive payment made to the builder or only on the cost of construction, excluding the cost of land,” sources said.

Other issues under consideration include: “Should GST be exempt on long-term leasing of industrial plots? What should be the definition of long-term—should a 30-year term be treated as long-term? Additionally, should GST be exempt on the redevelopment of group housing or buildings if ownership remains the same?” sources added.

The GoM is also expected to review “whether the value of ₹45 lakhs, as the definition of affordable housing for metro cities, especially for Mumbai and Delhi NCR, should be reconsidered, and whether affordable houses should have separate GST treatment or relaxation,” according to sources.

The GoM members include Pramod Sawant, Chief Minister of Goa, who is the Convenor of the GoM, Samrat Choudhary, Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar, Suresh Kumar Khanna, Finance Minister of Uttar Pradesh, K.N. Balagopal, Finance Minister of Kerala, Aditi Tatkare, Women & Child Development Minister and GST Council representative for Maharashtra, and Harpal Singh Cheema, Finance Minister of Punjab.

Since its inception, the GoM has not yet presented any conclusions to the GST Council for final consideration. The GST Council, during its 32nd meeting on January 10, 2019, recommended the formation of a Group of Ministers to boost the real estate sector under the GST regime.

Not just this, there have not been many meetings of the GoM, which could help in forming a report for the council. The seven-member GoM for boosting the real estate sector was initially constituted with Nitin Patel, then Deputy Chief Minister of Gujarat, as the Convenor. After its formation, the GoM held two meetings on February 8, 2019, and November 21, 2019. The third meeting took place only in August 2024, after changes in both its composition and convenor.

It remains to be seen whether the GoM will conclude its discussions soon and when it will present its final report to the council.

Source: CNBC TV 18