TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2025 (11) TMI 1625
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....BR dated 02.12.2016 to function as the nodal body for convergence of all skilling initiatives in the State. Vide G.O (Rt) No. 927/2021/LBR dated 30/07/2021, Govt. have delegated the applicant as the Single Nodal Agency for implementing National Skill Development schemes like Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) & Skill Acquisition and Knowledge Awareness for Livelihood Promotion (SANKALP), by virtue of its designation as State Skill Development Mission. 4.2. The applicant also facilitates various other skill development initiatives such as Centres of Excellences (CoEs) Accreditation of Skill Training Courses and skill development programme for other departments. Following are the various skill development initiatives; I. Centers of Excellence's (CoEs) in Construction, Oil & Gas, Nursing, Renewable energy, multi -languages etc. II. Accreditation of various skill training courses conducted by various skill training institutes. III. Kerala State Institute of Design (KSID), a design institute, currently conducting BDes (Bachelor of Design) and PG Diploma Programmes. IV. Kaushal Kendras - community skill centers focused on rural populati....
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.... exempted from the applicability of GST as per clause (y) of para 2 Notification No. 12/2017/CT(Rate) dated 28.06.2017. Indian Institute of Infrastructure and Construction (IIIC) is one of the skill training institute under the ownership of KASE, M/s Uralungal Labour Contract Co-operative Society Ltd. is the skilling partner of the institute. A portion of the fee collected from the students of IIIC by M/s Uralungal Labour Contract Co-operative Society Ltd. is the major income of Kerala Academy for Skills Excellence KASE. The 'applicant submit that since their training partners under PMKVY & SANKALP and their Centre of Excellence, IIIC are exempted from the applicability of GST, KASE is also entitled to get exemption from the applicability of GST on the same ground. 4.7. The applicant submits that it is also eligible for exemption for the various vocational courses it conducts and the corresponding fee it receives, under Entry 66 of Notification No. 12/2017-Central Tax (Rate) dated 28.06.2017. The exemption is applicable to services provided by an "educational institution" by way of education as a part of a curriculum for obtaining a qualification recognized by any law for th....
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....should therefore fall within the ambit of these entries. 5. Comments of the Jurisdictional Officer: The application was forwarded to the jurisdictional officer 'as per provisions of Section 98(1) of the CGST Act. The jurisdictional officer has not offered any comments and hence it is presumed that the jurisdictional officer has no specific comments to offer. It is also construed that there are no proceedings pending on the issue against the applicant. 6. Personal Hearing: The applicant was granted opportunity for personal hearing on 12-06-2023 and a rehearing was conducted on 20/06/2025 due to the change of Central and State members. Shri. Udayan. C.C., Finance Officer represented the applicant for personal hearing. He reiterated the contentions made in the application and requested to issue the ruling on the basis of the submissions made in the application. 7. Discussion and Conclusion: 7.1. We have carefully examined the statement of facts and oral submissions made by the applicant at the time of the personal hearing. The questions raised by the applicant pertain to the applicability of specific exemption entries under Notification No. 12/2017-Central Tax (R....
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....nally notified, provided exemption to services supplied by skill development entities affiliated to the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), such as: (a) NSDC itself; (b) Sector Skill Councils (SSCs) approved by NSDC; (c) assessment agencies approved by NSDC/SSCs; and (d) training partners approved by NSDC/SSCs. The exemption applied when such services were provided in relation to (i) the National Skill Development Programme (NSDP) implemented by NSDC, (ii) a vocational skill development course under the National Skill Certification and Monetary Reward Scheme or (iii) any other scheme implemented by NSDC. Thus, the exemption was earlier NSDC-centric, applying mainly to NSDC approved ecosystem players. Subsequently, to align the exemption framework with the updated institutional structure under the National Council for Vocational Education and Training (NCVET), which was constituted as the apex regulator for the skill ecosystem (replacing the erstwhile NCVT and National Skill Development Agency), the Government issued Notification No. 08/2024-CT (Rate), dated 08.10.2024. This Notification substituted t....
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.... No. 12/2017-Central Tax (Rate), as amended, the exemption is applicable only to services provided by specified entities such as the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), Sector Skill Councils, assessment agencies, or training partners approved by NSDC or the Sector Skill Council, and that too only in relation to specified skill development schemes implemented by the NSDC. The expression "services provided by" is crucial in this context. It restricts the scope of exemption strictly to the service provider who is either directly implementing the scheme or has been duly approved under the NSDC framework. 7.6. In the present case, while the applicant (KASE) has claimed status as an NSDC approved training partner, it has also admitted that training delivery is carried out through other institutes or skill partners. However, it has not been established before this Authority whether such outsourced training institutes or partners are themselves independently approved by NSDC or a Sector Skill Council. As held in Nxtwave Disruptive Technologies Put. Ltd. (AAR Telangana) and reiterated in Scaler/InterviewBit (AAR Karnataka), the benefit of exemption under Entry 69 cannot be ext....
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.... it is noted that the exemption therein was granted not under Entry 69, but strictly with reference to Entry 66 of the said Notification, which exempts services provided by educational institutions delivering education as part of a curriculum for qualifications recognized by law. The Authority in that case had specifically found that IIIC qualified as an "educational institution" only in respect of certain courses, and accordingly restricted the exemption to those courses alone. The ruling did not extend any blanket exemption under Entry 69, nor did it address the GST implications on revenue shares received by KASE from its training partners. 7.10. In the present case, the applicant is seeking exemption on the share of fees received from a skill partner operating under the IIIC model. However, the service in question is not provided by KASE directly, but by a third-party institute (M/s Uralungal Labour Co-op Society) to the students. The exemption under Entry 69 is strictly limited to services provided by NSDC approved entities. Where the actual service delivery is outsourced to institutes that are not independently NSDC-approved, the exemption does not extend to such services. ....
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....ulfill the specific criteria laid down under Entry 69 of Notification No. 12/2017-Central Tax (Rate), as amended by Notification No. 08/2024-CT (Rate). The said entry mandates that the training must be in relation to an NSQF-aligned qualification or skill in respect of which the National Council for Vocational Education and Training (NCVET) has approved a qualification package. The applicant has not furnished documentary evidence to establish that the qualifications or skill programs offered by KASE's training institutes are backed by NCVET approved qualification packages. Further, although the applicant contends that it is recognized as an awarding and assessing body by NCVET, it has not submitted any formal approval order or documentary proof in this regard. Upon specific enquiry, the applicant admitted that only an application has been submitted and that the recognition is currently pending. Mere application for recognition, without final approval or demonstrable linkage to an NCVET approved qualification package, is insufficient to avail the benefit of the said exemption. Therefore, in the absence of requisite evidence, this Authority is unable to accept the applicant....
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.... expenditure is incurred in relation to activities that generate taxable income. The applicant seeks to understand whether the use of government grants to fund such input supplies restricts their entitlement to claim ITC under the provisions of the GST law. In this regard, it is important to note that the eligibility to avail ITC is governed by Section 16 of the CGST Act, 2017, which allows a registered person to claim credit of tax paid on input goods or services, provided such goods or services are used or intended to be used in the course or furtherance of business, and subject to fulfilment of prescribed conditions. The law does not impose any restriction on ITC merely on account of the source of funds whether it be from internal revenue, borrowings, or government grants. Therefore, the mere fact that the expenditure is incurred from grant funds does not, by itself, disqualify the applicant from availing ITC, so long as the related inputs are used for making taxable outward supplies. 7.15. However, in the present case, the applicant has not furnished sufficient clarity regarding the specific nature of goods or services procured using the grant funds, nor has it explained the....