Business Exhibition" means an exhibition -to market or promote

Indian Service Tax

Business Exihibition Service

Effective Date: 10/09/2004.

Authority: Finance (No.2) Act, 2004

Rate of Service Tax: 10% - Cess 2% of 10% = 0.2. Total ST = 10.2%.

Definition

"Business Exhibition" means an exhibition -

• to market or

• to promote or

• to advertise or

• to showcase

any product or service, intended for the growth in business of the producer or provider of such product or service, as the case may be, [Section 65 (19a)].

Taxable Service

Taxable service means any service provided to an exhibitor, by the organiser of a business exhibition, in relation to business exhibition, [Section 65(1 05)(zzo)]

Value of taxable service: Gross amount

Exemptions: See Notification No. 18/2004-ST, dt. 10-9-2004. For full text see under "Airport Services".

Person liable to pay: Service provider of Business Exhibition Service.

Head of Account: To be issued.

Changes from 10/9/2004

F.No. B2/8/2004-TRU, Date: 10/9/2004

04. Business exhibition services

4.1 Business exhibition service is a service rendered to an exhibitor by an organizer of a business exhibition that intends to market, promote, advertise or show case products or services for growth in business of the producers or providers of such products or services. Thus, organizers of events such as trade fairs, road shows, fashion shows, display show-cases kept in airports, railway stations, hotels etc. would be covered under this new levy. A display of consumer goods in shops or shopping centers for customers to select and purchase would normally not attract any service tax, as normally no separate charges are collected by the shop-keepers for displaying such goods. However, in case an amount is collected for merely displaying an item, the same would be chargeable to service tax.

4.2 While event management service (a currently taxable service) also relates to organizing such events, but in that case, the services are rendered to the organizer by an event manager in relation to planning, promoting, organizing etc. Thus, an organizer of a business exhibition is not covered under Event Management Services, but would be covered under the new levy of 'Business Exhibition Services'. Similarly, while services rendered in relation to a circular, label, documents, hoardings or any other audio visual representation of a product or service falls under 'advertisement services', the services relating to actual exhibition or display of the product or services would fall under the category of 'Business Exhibition Services'.