In a move to curb GST leakage by foreign airlines that operate in India, the Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI) has reportedly issued summons to the airlines’ Indian offices.
These foreign airlines with offices in India are permitted by the RBI to remit forest related to passenger sales and cargo sales. Other services however, are offered by the airlines headquarters aboard including rental, maintenance, salaries, etc. These foreign services are liable to GST under the reverse charge mechanism. The airlines have not paid this.
As per reports, the airlines that have received summons include Indian offices of British Airways, Lufthansa (German Airlines), Singapore Airlines, Etihad Airways, Thai Airways, Qatar Airways, Saudi Arabia Airlines, Emirates, Oman Airlines and Air Arabia. The investigation is being carried out by DGGI Meerut and Mumbai. Furthermore, these airlines have been under scanner since October 2023.
CNBC-TV18 had earlier reported that the DGGI last years conducted search operations at Indian offices of foreign airlines, including Etihad, Emirates, Saudi Airlines, Qatar Airways, Air Arabia, Oman Air, and Kuwait Airways.
The searches were done on the account of tax evasion on import of services from head office by Indian branch offices. Thus, not complying with GST rules.
As reported by CNBC-TV18, Indian offices of British Airways, Lufthansa (German Airlines), Singapore Airlines, Etihad Airways, Thai Airways, Qatar Airways, Saudi Arabia Airlines, Emirates, Oman Airlines, and Air Arabia are yet to come back to DGGI with clarifications and they have been seeking more time to respond to the summons.