VNSGU gets Rs 9 crore GST notice

Surat: After 7 years of implementation the Goods & Services Tax (GST), Veer Narmad South Gujarat University has received a notice for unpaid GST amounting to ₹9 crores.

The university had created a fee structure for various programs, which affiliated private colleges were required to follow. In this fee structure, an affiliation fee was included in the tuition fee. When GST was implemented, policy rules mandated the collection of 18% GST on affiliation fees. However, GST was not collected on affiliation fees by private colleges per student, as the university was a government institution and there was also no clarity on the rule. Later, in 2023, the Finance Ministry removed GST from affiliation fees after realizing that GST had not been collected on services like education.

Nevertheless, since the rule was in effect from 2017 to 2023, the GST department filed a complaint, resulting in VNSGU receiving a notice for ₹9 crores, including interest.

The university has now approached the High Court. The primary contention in the petition is that the university is a government institution and not a for-profit organization, so no GST should be payable. On the other hand, principals of private colleges have stated that if the tax must be paid, they will need to pursue payments from former students. DeshGujarat