Exemption for exhibition organiser services abroad removes service tax liability under applicable service tax provisions.
Notification No. 5/2011 exempts the taxable service provided by an organiser of business exhibition for holding a business exhibition outside India from the whole of the service tax leviable thereon, on the exercise of the Central Government's power under the Finance Act; this exemption was subsequently rescinded by Notification No. 34/2012.

Service tax rate adjustment increases passenger air service levies and limits applicability to economy class, effective from April 1, 2011.
Amendment revises the effective service tax charges for passenger air service by increasing specified monetary thresholds and restricting the scope in clause (a) from any class to economy class; clause (b) also substitutes a higher amount. The changes amend Notification No. 26/2010-Service Tax and take effect on 1 April 2011.

Date for determination of rate: service tax rate applies when service is deemed provided under applicable rules, affecting chargeability.
Amendments reframe chargeability to the provision of services and insert Rule 5B that fixes the applicable tax rate as that prevailing when services are deemed provided. Rule 6 is amended to replace payment-based triggers with deeming provisions, sets a March payment deadline for services deemed in March or the March quarter, allows credit where services are not provided upon refund or credit note issuance, makes unpaid self-assessed tax recoverable with interest, and adjusts specified monetary thresholds and percentage rates.

Valuation of money changing services: taxable value based on deviation from RBI reference rate or a prescribed fallback.
The amendment prescribes that for money changing involving Indian Rupees the taxable value equals the difference between the provider's buying or selling rate and the RBI reference rate for that currency multiplied by the units exchanged; if the RBI reference rate is unavailable, a prescribed fallback percentage of the gross INR amount applies; where neither currency is INR the taxable value is a prescribed fraction of the lesser of the two amounts obtained by converting either currency into INR at the RBI reference rate.

CENVAT credit restriction: limited credit available for specified services when service tax is paid after availing input credit.
The amendment inserts a sub-rule in the Works Contract composition rules restricting CENVAT credit for specified taxable services: credit is available only to a limited extent when service tax is paid on the full value of the service after availing CENVAT credit on inputs. The provision modifies rule 3 of the principal rules and takes effect upon publication in the Official Gazette, changing credit entitlement under the composition scheme where input credit has been utilized.

Service tax exemption for general insurance services under specified agricultural insurance schemes removes tax liability for those scheme-related services.
The Central Government exempts taxable services relating to general insurance business provided under the Weather Based Crop Insurance Scheme and the Modified National Agricultural Insurance Scheme from the whole of service tax leviable thereon, on grounds of public interest, applying to services implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture.

Deferment of effective date: service tax amendment delays implementation of rail goods transport change to April.
The Government, under powers conferred by the Finance Act, substitutes 'January 2011' with 'April 2011' in paragraph 3 of Notification No.09/2010-Service Tax, deferring the implementation date of the amendment relating to transport of goods by rail.

Exemption for rail goods transport extended by amending the service tax notification to defer its expiry date.
This amendment to Notification No.08/2010-Service Tax substitutes 'January 2011' with 'April 2011', thereby extending the temporal coverage of the exemption for specified activities relating to transportation of goods by train; it is issued under sub section (1) of section 93 of the Finance Act, 1994 and published as Notification No.56/2010-Service Tax.

Exemption for transport of goods by rail extended until April 2011 under Finance Act statutory authority.
The Central Government, using its power under section 93(1) of the Finance Act, 1994, amends Notification No.07/2010-Service Tax by substituting the word and figures 'January 2011' in paragraph 2 with 'April 2011', thereby extending the temporary service tax exemption for the transport of goods by rail.

Service tax exemption for management, maintenance or repair expanded to include bridges, tunnels, dams, airports, railways and transport terminals.
The notification substitutes the phrase "management, maintenance or repair of roads" with "management, maintenance or repair of roads, bridges, tunnels, dams, airports, railways and transport terminals", expanding the category of services eligible for exemption. The amendment is made under sub-section (1) of section 93 of the Finance Act, 1994 by modification of Notification No. 24/2009-Service Tax.

Service tax exemption for packaged software where excise or customs duties paid, subject to invoice declaration.
The taxable service of supplying packaged or canned software is exempt from service tax provided the value of the software has been determined under the statutory valuation mechanism and the appropriate duties of excise or appropriate duties of customs have been paid by the manufacturer, copyright holder or importer as applicable, and the service provider declares on the invoice that no amount in excess of the declared retail sale price has been recovered from the customer.

Rescission of exemption for imported packaged software removes prior duty-paid service tax relief while preserving past acts.
The Central Government rescinds Notification No. 17/2010 which had exempted import of packaged software where customs duty had been paid; rescission is effected under powers granted by the Finance Act and applies prospectively, except that things done or omitted before the rescission remain unaffected.

Rescission of exemption for software where excise duty was paid removes prior notification's tax relief.
The Central Government, invoking powers under the Finance Act, rescinds Notification No. 02/2010 that exempted software where excise duty was paid, effective from the present instrument while excepting actions done or omitted before such rescission.

Statutory reference correction for air travel service exemption, updating applicable cross reference to governing sections in notification.
Corrigendum replaces the reference "clause (aa) of sub section (2) of section 94" with sub section (1) of section 93 read with clause (aa) of sub section (2) of section 94 in Notification No. 26/2010 Service Tax, clarifying the statutory cross reference for the air travel services exemption.

Service tax exemption for marketing of lottery tickets applies where distributors opt into composition scheme; non opting distributors excluded.
Exempts persons marketing lottery tickets from service tax on the taxable service of marketing where the distributor or selling agent has availed the optional composition scheme under sub rule (7C) of rule 6 of the Service Tax (2nd Amendment) Rules, 2010; exemption does not apply to the value of services provided to distributors or selling agents who have not opted. "Distributor or selling agent" is defined by reference to clause (c) of rule 2 of the Lottery (Regulation) Rules, 2010 and includes those authorised by the lottery organising State.

Optional fixed rate service tax for lottery distributors: choice to pay prescribed lump sum per draw amount with an annual irrevocable election.
The amendment inserts sub rule (7C) permitting a distributor or selling agent of lottery services to opt to pay a prescribed lump sum amount per specified aggregate face value of tickets for a draw instead of service tax at the rate under section 66; two rate tiers are prescribed based on the lottery's guaranteed prize payout, online lotteries use aggregate tickets sold, and the annual option must be exercised within one month of the financial year's start and is irrevocable for that year.

Adjudication limits under service tax reallocated to officer grades, defining monetary thresholds and exclusions for jurisdiction.
The notification substitutes the Table in Notification No.30/2005 to set monetary thresholds of service tax or CENVAT credit for adjudication under Section 83A: Superintendents adjudicate matters up to the lowest threshold (excluding taxability, valuation and extended limitation cases); Assistant/Deputy Commissioners handle the next band except where Superintendents are empowered; Joint and Additional Commissioners cover higher specified bands; Commissioners have no monetary limit.

Service tax exemption for outdoor catering under Mid Day Meal Scheme when provided by registered NGOs.
The Central Government exempted the taxable service of outdoor catering from service tax where the service is provided by a Non Government Organisation registered under any Central or State Act under the Centrally assisted Mid Day Meal Scheme, removing the service tax liability on such qualifying services.

Appeals jurisdiction realignment changes bench allocation and appellate routes for specified service tax commissioners in administration.
Amendment substitutes Sl. No. 35 in the 2007 Service Tax notification to reallocate commissioner jurisdictions and appellate routes, designating Commissioner of Service Tax-II and Commissioner of Service Tax-I as the entries for the slot, mapping Commissioner of Central Excise, Raigad to both its own commissioner and Commissioner of Service Tax-II, and identifying Commissioner of Central Excise (Appeal), Mumbai Zone - II as the appellate forum.

Retrospective exemption for service tax on transmission and distribution of electricity directs non-payment for previously unlevied taxable services.
The Central Government directed a retrospective exemption from payment of service tax on taxable services relating to transmission and distribution of electricity where such tax had not been levied in accordance with a generally prevalent practice, invoking powers under the Central Excise Act read with the Finance Act; the direction covers services provided by service providers to service receivers for the relevant past periods.