Budget 2015-16

Budget 2015-16 expands service tax scope, revises customs/excise duties, and tightens compliance and penalty rules. Budget 2015-16 adjusts central excise and customs duties across categories, reduces duties on specified inputs to support manufacturing, raises certain cess and tariffs, extends concessions for electric vehicle parts, and reforms compliance by extending CENVAT claim periods, enabling direct dispatch and electronic records. Service tax scope and valuation rules are widened by amending negative list exemptions, standardising abatements and expanding reverse charge; Cenvat rules allow credit for partial reverse charge. Penalty provisions and timelines are rationalised to incentivise early compliance, while direct-tax deductions and limits are increased to provide relief to individuals. (AI Summary)