People with orthopaedic disability to pay lower 18% GST on some vehicles

 People with orthopaedic physical disability will pay a lower Goods and Services Tax (GST) of 18% on vehicles up to 4 metre in size, according to a notification issued on Thursday by the department of heavy industry (DHI). The GST rate

otherwise on vehicles is 28%. Patients with disability equal to or higher than 40% will get the benefit after submitting the necessary documents to DHI.

The documents required to be submitted include a medical certificate and a three-year income tax return.

The vehicles that can be purchased under the policy include those running on petrol, liquefied natural gas and compressed natural gas with engine capacity of up to 1,200 cc. The engine capacity in the case of diesel vehicles has been capped at 1,500 cc with the length being 4 metres in all cases.

An officer not below the rank of deputy secretary in DHI only can issue the certificate to the patient looking to buy a vehicle under the policy. The certificate has to be issued within a month of the application. Once the certificate has been secured, the person will have to buy the vehicle within three months of the its issue.

The policy also makes it incumbent upon patient to not sell vehicle in less than five years of owning it. The person also has to certify that they did not avail the policy in last five years.

The vehicle can be driven by the buyer or anybody else