Service tax amendments expand definitions, increase rate, revise penalties, recovery and transitional provisions, and update rulemaking authority.

The Finance Bill, 2015 amends the service tax code to refine definitions in section 65B, increase the service tax rate, and modify the negative list and an anti-avoidance illustration. It broadens the Explanation to section 67 on consideration, enables recovery of self-assessed but unpaid tax without prior notice, replaces penalty provisions distinguishing ordinary defaults from fraudulent evasion with transitional arrangements, omits a specified section, redirects certain cases to a central excise provision, and updates rulemaking authority.

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