Federal govt temporarily suspends GST on solar consumers

The federal government has temporarily deferred the General Sales Tax (GST) imposed on solar power users.

The government has halted the 16% GST that had been levied on consumers generating electricity through solar systems.

The decision comes after solar consumers’ review petition was accepted.

The President approved the appeal related to the solar GST and referred the case back to the Federal Tax Ombudsman (FTO) for a fresh hearing.

The President has directed that the FTO conduct a detailed reassessment of the matter.

All electricity distribution companies had filed appeals against the FTO’s earlier decision, after which the tax was imposed on users of solar power systems.

As a result of this tax, consumers were facing hefty payments, raising serious concerns.

In February this year, the Federal Tax Ombudsman had ordered the recovery of the tax.

However, the President, after accepting the review petition filed this month, approved a reassessment of the tax and ordered a fresh hearing on its implementation.