Hello Legal Experts:
The Indian School of Business (ISB) in Hyderabad collects the Service Tax on Tuition Fee for Post Graduate Programme (MBA), but no other educational institutions like Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Birla Institute of Technology & Science (BITS), Indian Institute of Information Technilogy (IIIT), National Institute of Technology (NIT), AIIMS, and government/private engineering/medical/management colleges in India collects the Service Tax.
I read on Google that 'All services provided by an educational institution to its students, faculty and staff are exempt from service tax. This means the fee/charges collected towards admission, tuition, examination, digital classroom, transportation, staff quarters, library, extracurricular activities (such as dancing, painting, sports), mess, canteen, hotel, etc are exempt from service tax'.
ISB website says the below: https://www.isb.edu/pgp/Fees-Financing/Programme-Expenses
Service Tax: The effect of the amendment brought about by the Finance Act 2010 to Section 65 (105) (zzc) of the Finance Act, 1994 is presently before the Customs Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT). ISB has always maintained that the said section does not apply to the “educational” programmes of ISB. However Service Tax Department is of the view that Service Tax is applicable on the fees charged to the students by ISB. As per the advice of our legal counsels, to mitigate the risks associated with this levy, ISB will be collecting the Service tax as applicable on the fees as and when payable by you and remit the same to the Government Account under protest and without prejudice to ISB’s rights and contentions in Law. In the event of the said matter ultimately getting resolved in favor of ISB, ISB will provide the necessary information to you so as to assist you to obtain a refund from the Government of India.
How could I contest on this Service Tax issue with ISB, Hyderabad legally, please ?
Thanks in advance for four valuable information and time.
