Ministry of Finance:
The 44th GST Council met under the Chairmanship of Union Finance & Corporate Affairs Minister Smt Nirmala Sitharaman through video conferencing here today.
The Council in its meeting has decided to reduce the GST rates on the specified items being used in Covid-19 relief and management till 30th September, 2021.
The meeting was also attended by Union Minister of State for Finance & Corporate Affairs Shri Anurag Thakur besides Finance Ministers of States & UTs and senior officers of the Ministry of Finance & States/ UTs.
The details of recommendations are given below :
| S. No. | Description | Present GST Rate | GST Rate recommended by GST Council |
| Medicines | |||
| 1. | Tocilizumab | 5% | Nil |
| 2. | Amphotericin B | 5% | Nil |
| 3. | Anti-Coagulants like Heparin | 12% | 5% |
| 4. | Remdesivir | 12% | 5% |
| 5. | Any other drug recommended by Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) and Dept. of Pharma (DoP) for Covid treatment | Applicable Rate | 5% |
| Oxygen, Oxygen generation equipment and related medical devices | |||
| 1. | Medical Grade Oxygen | 12% | 5% |
| 2. | Oxygen Concentrator/ Generator, including personal imports thereof | 12% | 5% |
| 3. | Ventilators | 12% | 5% |
| 4. | Ventilator masks / canula / helmet | 12% | 5% |
| 5. | BiPAP Machine | 12% | 5% |
| 6. | High flow nasal canula (HFNC) device | 12% | 5% |
| Testing Kits and Machines | |||
| 1. | Covid Testing Kits | 12% | 5% |
| 2. | Specified Inflammatory Diagnostic Kits, namely D-Dimer, IL-6, Ferritin and LDH | 12% | 5% |
| Other Covid-19 related relief material | |||
| 1. | Pulse Oximeters, incl personal imports thereof | 12% | 5% |
| 2. | Hand Sanitizer | 18% | 5% |
| 3. | Temperature check equipment | 18% | 5% |
| 4. | Gas/Electric/other furnaces for crematorium, including their installation, etc. | 18% | 5% |
| 5. | Ambulances | 28% | 12% |
These rate reductions/exemptions shall remain in force upto 30th September 2021.