How many GST slabs are there now?

Three main slabs: 5%, 18% and 40%. There are also special rates of 0% for exempt items, 0.25% for rough diamonds and 3% for gold, silver and jewellery.

Is there still a 12% or 28% GST rate?

No. Since 22 September 2025, most items earlier at 12% moved to 5% and most items at 28% moved to 18%. A few luxury and harmful goods moved to 40%.

What is the GST rate on gold?

Gold, silver and jewellery attract 3% GST on their value.

Which items are taxed at 40%?

Cars beyond the small-car limits, motorcycles above 350cc, aerated and caffeinated drinks, yachts and personal aircraft, betting and casinos, and pan masala, cigarettes and tobacco (tobacco and pan masala since 1 February 2026).

How do I find GST included in an MRP?

Multiply the MRP by the rate and divide by 100 plus the rate. For an MRP of ₹1,180 at 18%, GST is ₹1,180 × 18 ÷ 118 = ₹180.

GST rates in 2026: slabs and item list

Updated 11 October 2026

Since 22 September 2025, GST has three main rates: 5% for everyday essentials, 18% for most goods and services, and 40% for luxury and harmful goods. Special rates of 0%, 0.25% (rough diamonds) and 3% (gold, silver and jewellery) continue. The old 12% and 28% slabs have been removed.

The GST 2.0 rate structure

The new structure, often called GST 2.0, was approved at the 56th GST Council meeting in September 2025 and took effect on 22 September 2025.

Rate	What it covers	Examples
0%	Exempt or nil-rated essentials	Fresh fruit and vegetables, UHT milk, paneer, roti, chapati and other Indian breads, individual life and health insurance, 33 lifesaving drugs
0.25%	Special rate	Rough diamonds
3%	Special rate	Gold, silver and jewellery
5%	Merit rate: daily-use goods and some services	Hair oil, shampoo, toothpaste, soap; butter, ghee, namkeen, pasta, chocolates, coffee; most medicines; bicycles; tractors and farm machinery; hotel rooms up to ₹7,500 a night; salons and gyms
18%	Standard rate: most goods and services	ACs, all TVs, dishwashers; small cars; motorcycles up to 350cc; buses and trucks; auto parts; cement; most services
40%	De-merit rate: luxury and sin goods	Cars beyond small-car limits; motorcycles above 350cc; aerated and caffeinated drinks; yachts and personal aircraft; betting and casinos; pan masala, cigarettes and tobacco

A "small car" for this purpose is generally one up to 4 metres long, with an engine up to 1,200cc (petrol, LPG or CNG) or 1,500cc (diesel).

What changed from the old system

Before September 2025, GST had four main slabs (5%, 12%, 18% and 28%), plus a compensation cess on top of 28% for cars, tobacco and aerated drinks. GST 2.0 simplified this:

Most items at 12% moved down to 5%.
Most items at 28% moved down to 18%, including ACs, larger TVs, cement and small cars.
A small group of luxury and harmful goods moved to the new 40% rate, which replaced 28% plus cess.
Many essentials became fully exempt, including individual life and health insurance premiums.
A few items went up. For example, readymade garments priced above ₹2,500 a piece now attract 18%, while those up to ₹2,500 attract 5%.

For an item-by-item view of what became cheaper, see GST on everyday items after GST 2.0.

GST rates on common services

Service	GST rate
Standalone restaurants (dine-in, takeaway, delivery)	5%, without input tax credit
Hotel rooms up to ₹7,500 per night	5%, without input tax credit
Hotel rooms above ₹7,500 per night	18%
Salons, barbers, gyms, fitness centres and yoga	5%, without input tax credit
Individual life and health insurance	Exempt (0%)
Mobile, broadband and DTH bills	18%
Bank charges and fees	18%
Professional services (CA, legal, consulting, IT)	18%

"Without input tax credit" means the business pays the lower rate but cannot deduct the GST on its own purchases. Most other services are taxed at 18%.

How to calculate GST at any rate

There are two situations:

Price before tax (exclusive): GST = price × rate ÷ 100. Add it to get the final price.
Price including tax (inclusive, like an MRP): GST = price × rate ÷ (100 + rate).

Worked example. A TV is priced at ₹40,000 before tax. At 18%, GST is ₹40,000 × 18 ÷ 100 = ₹7,200, so you pay ₹47,200. Under the old 28% rate that applied to larger TVs, GST would have been ₹11,200 and the price ₹51,200, so the cut saves ₹4,000.
Now the reverse: a bottle of shampoo has an MRP of ₹315, inclusive of 5% GST. GST inside the price = ₹315 × 5 ÷ 105 = ₹15, and the pre-tax price is ₹300.
Within a state, the tax splits equally: on the TV, ₹3,600 CGST plus ₹3,600 SGST.

Our GST calculator does both calculations and shows the CGST, SGST or IGST split.

The 40% rate and the end of compensation cess

The compensation cess was an extra levy on top of 28% GST, used to make up states' revenue losses in the early years of GST. With GST 2.0, it was replaced by a single 40% rate for most de-merit goods.

Tobacco and pan masala were handled separately. They stayed at 28% plus compensation cess until 1 February 2026, when the cess ended and they moved to 40% GST (biris are at 18%). The Centre also added an extra central excise duty on tobacco and a new Health and National Security Cess on pan masala, so these products did not become cheaper.

How to check the rate for a specific item

The rate depends on how the item is classified under the HSN code (for goods) or SAC (for services). Two products that look similar can fall under different headings, and the description, packaging or price can matter. To confirm a rate:

Use the GST rate finder and the rate notifications on cbic-gst.gov.in.
Check the HSN or SAC code on your supplier's invoice.
For a genuine doubt that affects your business, a tax professional or an advance ruling can settle it.

The 57th GST Council meeting on 8 October 2026 made no change to the slabs, though it recommended some clarifications on specific items. Reports of the meeting say rate changes are to be considered once a year, from 1 April. Always check the latest notification before relying on a rate.