BS Insurance Round Table: 18% GST on premium is brutal, says Irdai member

The government must also allow separate tax breaks for pension products of insurance companies, said IRDA member Nilesh Sathe

The levying of an 18 per cent tax on insurance premiums is detrimental to improving the penetration of insurance in the country and should be rolled back, said Nilesh Sathe, a member of the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) and chief guest at the annual insurance round table of Business Standard.

“With low social security provisions happening or possible in India, charging premiums at 18 per cent GST (goods and services tax) is brutal,” Sathe said in his keynote address on Wednesday. “Do you think increasing penetration in India is the responsibility of Irdai or insurance companies only?