The Integrated Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017
Chapter-IV Determination of Nature of Supply
Section 8: Intra-State supply.
8. (1) Subject to the provisions of section 10, supply of goods where the location of the supplier and the place of supply of goods are in the same State or same Union territory shall be treated as intra-State supply:
Provided that the following supply of goods shall not be treated as intra-State supply, namely:–
(i) supply of goods to or by a Special Economic Zone developer or a Special Economic Zone unit;
(ii) goods imported into the territory of India till they cross the customs frontiers of India; or
(iii) supplies made to a tourist referred to in section 15.
(2) Subject to the provisions of section 12, supply of services where the location of the supplier and the place of supply of services are in the same State or same Union territory shall be treated as intra-State supply:
Provided that the intra-State supply of services shall not include supply of services to or by a Special Economic Zone developer or a Special Economic Zone unit.
Explanation 1.–For the purposes of this Act, where a person has,–
(i) an establishment in India and any other establishment outside Indiac1;
(ii) an establishment in a State or Union territory and any other establishment outside that State or Union territory; or
(iii) an establishment in a State or Union territory and any other establishment 1[***] registered within that State or Union territory,
then such establishments shall be treated as establishments of distinct persons.
Explanation 2.–A person carrying on a business through a branch or an agency or a representational office in any territory shall be treated as having an establishment in that territory.
References
Enforcement:
Enforced w.e.f. July 01, 2017 [Notification No. G.S.R. 662(E) dated 28.06.2017].
Amendments:
1. Omitted by Integrated Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Act, 2018, w.e.f. 01.02.2019 [vide Notification No. 01/2019–Integrated Tax dated 29.01.2019], the words “being a business vertical”.
Circulars:
c1. A company incorporated in India and a body corporate incorporated by or under the laws of a country outside India, which is also referred to as foreign company under Companies Act, are separate persons under CGST Act, and thus are separate legal entities. Accordingly, these two separate persons would not be considered as “merely establishments of a distinct person in accordance with Explanation 1 in section 8”. Therefore, supply of services by a subsidiary/ sister concern/ group concern, etc. of a foreign company, which is incorporated in India under the Companies Act, 2013 (and thus qualifies as a ‘company’ in India as per Companies Act), to the establishments of the said foreign company located outside India (incorporated outside India), would not be barred by the condition the section 2(6)(v) of the IGST Act 2017 for being considered as export of services, as it would not be treated as supply between merely establishments of distinct persons under Explanation 1 of section 8 of IGST Act 2017. Similarly, the supply from a company incorporated in India to its related establishments outside India, which are incorporated under the laws outside India, would not be treated as supply to merely establishments of distinct person under Explanation 1 of section 8 of IGST Act 2017. Such supplies, therefore, would qualify as ‘export of services’, subject to fulfilment of other conditions as provided under section 2(6) of IGST Act. [Circular No. 161/17/2021-GST dated 20.09.2021]
c2. Clarification on export of services under GST. [Circular No. 78/52/2018-GST dated 31.12.2018]