Section 68 - Amendment of Act 32 of 1994

Service tax expansion: broader definitions, cross-border chargeability and strengthened recovery and penalty measures.

The Finance Act broadens the scope of service tax by expanding definitions and adding numerous services and service-providers to section 65, substitutes valuation rules to treat gross amount charged as taxable value, increases the charge rate in section 66, and inserts section 66A to tax certain services received from abroad. It strengthens enforcement by amending penalties, permitting deposit of collected amounts to the Government, prescribing interest on excess collections, authorising provisional attachment and publication of names, and enhancing recovery mechanisms; it also creates a rebate regime for exported services.