GST Applicability - Lease of Agricultural Land

[Ethirajan Parthasarathy]

A GST registered person wishes to lease out the coffee estate instead of himself exploiting the same. My doubt is whether GST is payable on such lease / rental income from the agricultural property. For purpose of Income Tax, the rental income can also be treated as “agricultural income”. Whether this will help us to take a stand that it is not a business activity.

Experts may also give their opinion whether I can take shelter under AAR in the case of The Cochin Plantations Ltd-2018 (11) TMI 280 dated. 20.10.2018 (AAR-Kerala)

AI Summary

GST on lease of agricultural land: whether rental treated as agricultural income removes it from taxable supply under GST.
Whether GST applies to rental receipts from leasing a coffee estate is queried, focusing on whether the lease constitutes a taxable supply or falls outside the scope of GST when the receipts are treated as agricultural income for income tax purposes, and whether such classification supports a conclusion that the transaction is not a business activity liable to GST.