Chapter I PRELIMINARY

i) This Act may be called the Meghalaya Value Added Tax Act, 2003; ii) It extends to the whole of Meghalaya. iii) It shall come into force on such date as the State Government may by notification in the Official Gazette appoint and different dates may be appointed for different provisions.

In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires:- (i)Act means the Meghalaya Value Added Tax Act 2003 (ii)Appellate Authority means the Authority authorized by the State Government under Section 27. (iii)Appellate Tribunal means the Tribunal authorized by the State Government under section 29: (iv)Appointed Day means the day on which the Act comes into force.

1. (v) Assistant Commissioner means Assistant Commissioner of Taxes appointed under sub-section (1) of Section 25 or deemed to have been appointed under Section 116: (vi)Assesses means any person by whom tax or any other sum of money is payable under this Act and includes every person in respect of whom any proceedings under this Act have been taken for the assessment of tax payable by him.
2. (vii) Assessing Authority means any person not below the rank of Superintendent of Taxes authorised by the Government, or by any authority empowered by the Government to make any assessment under this Act. (viii)Board means Meghalaya Board of Revenue constituted under the Meghalaya Board of Revenue Act or under any statutory modification or re-enactment thereof: ix)Business includes i) Any trade, commerce or manufacture or execution of work contract or any adventure or concern in the nature of trade, commerce, manufacturer whether or not such trade, commerce, manufacture or execution of works contract or adventure or concern is carried on with the motive to make gain or profit and whether or not any gain or profit accuses from such trade commerce, manufacture, execution of works contractor adventure or concern and: ii)Any transaction in connection with or incidental or ancillary to such trade commerce, manufacture, execution or work contract, adventure or concerns: (x)Business Premises means any place where a dealer or a transport purchases, sells, transport, books or delivers goods and include such place where the stores, processes produces or manufacture goods or keeps books of accounts, any vehicles or vessel or any other carrier where in the goods are stored as used for transporting the goods: xi)Commissioner means Commissioner of Taxes appointed under sub-section (1)of Section 25 or deemed to have been appointed under Section 116: xii)Capital Goods means plant machinery and equipment used in the process of manufacturing excluding civil structures as may be prescribed: xiii)Casual Trader means a person who whether as principal, agent or in any capacity, has occasional transactions involving buying, selling, supplying or distributing goods in the State. Whether for cash or for deferred payment or for commission, remuneration or other valuable consideration: xiv)Declared Goods means the good declared to be of special importance in inter State trade or commerce under section 14 of the Central Sales Tax Act 1956(Central Act 74 of 1956). xv)Deputy Commissioner means Deputy Commissioner of Taxes appointed under sub-section (1) of Section 25 or deemed to have been appointed under Section116: xvi)Dealer means any person who carries on (Whether regularly or otherwise) for cash for commission or for remuneration or for deferred payment or for other valuable consideration within the State of Meghalaya, the business of: (a)Transferring property in goods otherwise than in pursuance of any contract. Or (b)Transferring property in goods (whether as goods or in some other form) involved in the execution of any works contract. Or

1. (c) Delivering goods on hire purchase or any system of payment in installment. Or (d)Transferring the right to use goods for any purpose (whether or not for any specified period): or supplying by way of as part of any service or in any manner of goods being food or any other article for human consumption or any drink (whether or not intoxicating): or
2. (e) Being an association (whether incorporated or not) or body of persons supplying to its members any goods, and Dealer also includes:

1. (1) A local authority, a body corporate, a company, any co-operative society or other society or a club, a firm, a Hindu undivided family or other association of persons which carries on such business:
2. (2) A commission agent, a broker, a factor, a del eredere agent, an auctioneer, a mercantile agent by whatever name called who carries on business within the State. (3)An agent of a non resident dealer or a local branch of a company or an association of person, whether incorporated or not, situated outside the State carry on such business within the State: and (4)A department, or undertaking or enterprise of the Government of any State or Union Territory or of the Government of India. (xvii)Goods means all kinds of movable property other than newspaper, actionable claims, stock shares, or securities and includes livestock, all materials, articles, commodities involved in the execution of any works contract, case or hire purchase or those to be used in fitting out, improvement or repair of movable property. (xviii)Government means the State Government. xix)Input Tax means tax payable by the purchasing dealer to the seller. (xx)Manufacture with all its grammatical variation cognate expression means producing, making extracting, altering, ornamenting, finishing, assembling or otherwise processing, treating or adapting any good but does not include any such process or mode of manufacture as may be prescribe: (xxi)Non-resident Dealer means a dealer who effects purchases or sales of any goods in Meghalaya but who has a no fixed of business or residence in Meghalaya: (xxii)Official Gazette means the Meghalaya Gazette: xxiii)Output Tax in relation to any person means the tax charged in chargeable in respect of sale or supply of goods made by the person: xxiv)Persons includes an individual ,a joint family, a company, a firm, an association of persons of a body of individuals, whether incorporated or not: the Central Government of the State Government or the Government of any other State or Union Territory in India and a local authority:
   • (xxv) Prescribed means prescribed by the rules made under this Act. (xxvi)Purchase means any transfer of property in goods to the person making the purchase for cash or deferred payment or other valuable consideration but does not include a transfer by way of mortgage, hypothecation, charge or pledge. (xxvii)Purchase Price means the amount of valuable consideration paid or payable by a person for the purchase of any goods less any sum allowed as cash discount, commission or commercial rebates granted at the time of delivery of such goods but including cost of freight or cost of delivery or the cost of installation, insurance charges or any sum charged for anything done by the seller in respect of the goods at the time of, or before delivery thereof, other than interest if separately charged. xxviii) Registered Dealer means a dealer registered under this Act.
   • (xxix) Reverse Tax means that portion of input tax of the goods for which credit has been availed but such goods are used subsequently for any purpose other than resale or manufacture of taxable goods or execution of work contract or used as containers or packing materials within the State. (xxx)Resale means a resale of purchased goods:
     • (i) In the same form in which they were purchased: or (ii)Without using them in the manufacture of any goods: or (iii)Without doing anything to them, which amount to, or results in a manufacture: (xxxi)Rules means the rule framed under this Act: (xxxii)Sale with all its grammatical variations and cognate expression means every transfer of the property in goods, other than by way of mortgage, hypothecation, charge or pledge by one person to another in the course of trade or business for cash, deferred payment or other valuable consideration and includes:- (a)Transfer otherwise than in pursuance of a contact of property in goods for cash, deferred payment or other valuable consideration: (b)Transfer of property in goods (whether as goods or in some other form)involved in the execution of works contract: (c)Delivery of goods on hire purchase or any other system of payment by installments: (d)A transfer of the right to use any goods for any purpose, whether or not for specified period, for cash, deferred payment or any other valuable considerations: (e)A transfer of goods by any unincorporated association or body of persons to a member thereof for cash, deferred payment or any other valuable consideration: (f)A supply, by way of or as part of any service or in any other manner whatsoever of goods being food or any other article for human consumption or any drink (whether or not intoxicating) where such supply or service is for cash, deferred payment or other valuable consideration:
   • (g) A transfer of the right to use any goods for any purpose (whether or not for a specified period) for cash, deferred payment other valuable consideration, and transfer, delivery or supply of any good shall be deemed to be sale of those goods by the person making the transfer, delivery or supply and purchase of those goods by the person to whom such transfer, delivery or supply is made, but does not include a mortgage, hypothecation, charge or pledge. Explanation-(a)A sale or purchase of goods shall not be deemed to have taken place inside the State if the goods are sold: (i)In the course of inter-State trade or commerce; or
     • (ii) Outside the State of Meghalaya; or (iii)In the curse of import or export of goods; (b)Where there is a single contract of sale or purchase of goods situated of more places than one the provisions of this Exploration shall apply as if there were separate contract in respect of the goods at each of such places; (xxxiii)Sale Price means the amount of valuable consideration paid or payable to a dealer for the sale or supply of goods, less any sum allowed as cash discount according to ordinary trade practice, but including any amount charged for anything done by the dealer with or in respect of the goods at the time of or before delivery thereof other than; (i)The cost or freight or delivery where such cost is separately charged; or (ii)The amount representing the cost of labour in the execution of any works contract, where such cost of labour shall be determined on the basis of specification detailed to that effect in the deed of contract or in the absence of such specification on the basis of dealers accounts produced to the Commissioners satisfaction or in the case the Commissioner is not satisfied with either of the aforesaid, in the manner as may be prescribed; or (iii)Amount of tax paid or payable by the purchaser provided that where the amount of tax is not separately indicated in the tax invoice, the amount of tax shall be calculated by multiplying the sale price inclusive of Tax fraction which shall be calculated in accordance with formula.2+10Where r is the percentage rate of tax applicable to the sale. (xxxiv)State means the State Meghalaya; (xxxv)Tax means tax payable under this Act; (xxxvi)Tax Invoice means a document listing the goods sold with the price, quantity, value and VAT due issued by a taxable person to another taxable person; (xxxvii)Tax Point means the date on which a taxable is required to account for the tax on the sale made by him; (xxxviii)Taxable Goods means goods taxable under this Act; (xxxix)Taxable Person means a person who is registered or is liable to be registered for VAT and liable to pay tax under this Act; xl)Taxable Sale means sale which is taxable under the provisions of this Act. xli)Transporter means any person who for the purpose of or in connection with or incidental to or in the course or his business transports or causes to transport goods, or holds in custody for delivery to any person after transportation and includes railway, shipping company, and cargo terminal and courier service; xlii)Turnover of Purchases means the aggregate of the amount of purchase price paid and payable by a dealer in respect of any purchase of goods made by him during a given period, after deducting the amount of:-
   • (a) Purchase price, if any, refunded to the dealer by the seller in respect of any goods purchased from the seller and returned to him within the prescribed period; and
   • (b) Deposit, if any, refunded in the prescribed period to the dealer by the seller in respect of any goods purchased by the dealer; xliii)Turnover of Sales means the aggregate of the amount of sale price received and receivable by a dealer in respect of any sales of goods made during a given period after deducting the amount of:-
   • (a) Sale price, if any, refunded by the seller, to a purchaser in respect of any goods purchased and returned by the purchaser within the prescribed period; and
   • (b) Deposit, if any refunded in the prescribed manner by the seller to a purchaser in respect of any goods sold by the dealer; (c)And includes, where the Registration Certificate is cancelled, the amounts in respect of sale made before the date of the cancellation on order received or receivable after such date; xliv)Value Added Tax means a tax on sales or purchases levied under this Act; xlv)Works Contract means and includes any agreement for carrying out for cash or for deferred payment or for any other valuable consideration the building construction, manufacture, processing, fabrication, erection, installation, laying, fitting out, improvement, modification, repair or commissioning of any movable or immovable property; (xlvi)Year means financial year; and (xlvii)Zero rating means zero rate of tax is to be imposed on the commodities against which rebate should be given for input taxes paid.