MEIS is being redesigned to make it GST compliant

The Dollar Business Bureau

The Government of India is re-designing the Merchandise Exports from India Scheme (MEIS) in order to make it compliant with the upcoming new tax regime goods and services tax (GST), said a senior official on Wednesday.

“The MEIS is being re-designed to make exports from India GST-compliant,” said Neeraj Prasad, Additional Commissioner, GST Cell, Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC), while addressing the Executive Committee Meeting of FICCI in New Delhi.

Under the GST, the issue related to working capital requirements is being discussed upon by the Government, he added.

The Ministry of Commerce provides duty benefits on various products under the MEIS. It offers duty benefits at 2%, 3% and 5% based on the product and exporting country.

Prasad further said that the new tax regime would support in building competitive advantage by leveraging the supply chain.

“While manufacturing and trading activities at present times have a strong taxation orientation and the cost of logistics is high vis-a-vis the mature markets, adoption of GST will reduce the cost of production and distribution,” he added.

Prasad further stated that use of technology in logistics sector like use of advanced telematics, route planning and real-time vehicle tracking are expected to help in managing and executing operations in a seamless and efficient way.