Voluntary compliance in service tax: registered taxpayers may declare past liabilities with staged payments and penalty immunity.
The scheme allows registered persons to declare outstanding service tax and specified cesses for the covered retrospective period by filing the prescribed form with the designated authority, accompanied by a service-wise, period-wise computation. Participation is barred where notices, inquiries, audits or similar proceedings were pending before the cutoff date, or where returns already disclosed liabilities that remain unpaid. Declared dues require staged payments with specified deadlines; amounts paid are non refundable, cenvat credit cannot be used, unpaid declared dues are recoverable, and full payment after verification yields a discharge acknowledgement. Immunity from penalties and specified proceedings is provided, subject to action for substantially false declarations within a limited period. (AI Summary)

Taxability of construction services: payments received before completion certificate render builder receipts taxable and change valuation options.
Payments received by a builder from a prospective buyer before issuance of a competent authority's completion certificate are taxable as construction of complex services; the statutory definition covers new construction, finishing, repair and related services for residential complexes exceeding twelve units. Builders may elect abatement (with forfeiture of Cenvat credit) or tax the value of services and claim credit, must add buyer supplied material costs before abatement, and comply with registration, invoicing, payment, return and Cenvat procedural requirements. Certain receipts and categories are excluded by transitional notifications and specified exemptions. (AI Summary)