GST council approves student-friendly reforms for education sector

The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council has announced a series of student-friendly reforms as part of the broader GST 2.0 revamp, aimed at reducing the financial burden on students and parents.

Effective from September 22, 2025, a wide range of essential educational materials, including exercise books, notebooks, graph books, laboratory notebooks, and printed maps, will be completely exempt from GST.

Basic stationery items such as pencils, erasers, crayons, sharpeners, and pastels, which were previously taxed at rates ranging from 5% to 12%, will also be made GST-free, ensuring that families save on everyday learning tools.

Other school supplies that were earlier taxed at 12% will now see reduced rates, with geometry boxes, colour boxes, and school cartons attracting only 5% GST.

The council clarified that while these reforms target materials, the rules on services remain unchanged. Formal education provided by schools, colleges, universities, and NSDC-approved vocational institutions continues to be fully exempt from GST, while private coaching centres, online classes, and similar services remain under the 18% tax bracket.

The student-friendly changes form part of a broader structural reform that reduces the GST system to just two slabs—5% and 18%—to simplify compliance and bring relief to households.

The government has positioned these reforms as a step toward affordability and accessibility, especially for middle-class and low-income families. Officials noted that the reforms will ease the financial stress on parents while promoting access to necessary learning resources for children across the country.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called the overall GST revamp a “double dose of growth,” while Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman underlined that the focus of the reforms is on rationalization, simplification, and prioritizing education and common household needs.

Analysts believe that the removal and reduction of GST on school-related items will have a direct positive impact on millions of students as families gear up for the new academic year.