|Custom, Excise & Service Tax Tribunal
Notification 25/2012-ST Entry 29(g) | Business Facilitators in Rural Areas Exempt from Service Tax on Banking Support: CESTAT
CESTAT has ruled that business facilitators providing banking services in rural areas-such as sourcing loan applications for HDFC Bank among government school teachers-are exempt from service tax under Entry 29(g) of Notification 25/2012-ST. This clarifies a critical exemption for fintech intermediaries and rural banking agents, shielding them from retrospective tax demands based solely on Form 26AS data without proving taxable service delivery.