Applicability of service tax or VAT on E boooks & E Journals

[Sanjeev Sharma]

An Indian Company publishes e journals. It collect monthly or yearly subscrption from the clients. In some cases, passwords are mailed to clients and then they access the journals online from the web site of the publisher company. In other cases, e journals are e mailed to the clients. In both situation, what is the liability or applicablity of service tax or VAT or both on the publisher company??

AI Summary

Service Tax Likely Applies to Indian E-Journal Subscriptions; VAT Applicability Remains Uncertain Pending Expert Advice An Indian company publishes e-journals and collects subscription fees from clients, providing access either through mailed passwords for online access or by directly emailing the journals. The query concerns the applicability of service tax or VAT on these transactions. A response suggests that this service likely falls under the 'Online information and database retrieval service' category for service tax purposes. The applicability of VAT remains uncertain, with the responder indicating that VAT experts might provide more clarity.