GST Implications On Transfer Or Assignment Of Leasehold Rights
- IJLLR Journal
- Oct 18, 2025
- 1 min read
Priyanka Rathi, Research Scholar, Hidayatullah National Law University, Raipur
Dr. Anindhya Tiwari, Assistant Professor, Hidayatullah National Law University, Raipur
ABSTRACT
The transaction pertaining to sale of land and buildings have been excluded from the purview of Goods and Service Tax (“GST”) laws in terms of Paragraph 5 of Schedule III of the Central Goods and Service Tax Act, 2017 (“CGST Act”). However, whether interests in immovable property such as transfer of the leasehold rights or development rights in land which are mainly benefits arising out of immovable property will be covered under the aforesaid exclusion as “sale of land” is highly debatable issue. In view of the tax Department, only specific exclusion is sale of land and thus, these benefits arising out of land cannot be automatically excluded. Further, in taxpayers’ view, such benefits are nothing but qualify as “immovable property” as they arise out of land. Thus, these rights would also be covered within the exclusion clause and hence, no GST can be levied on such transfer of leasehold right etc.
This controversy of taxability of leasehold rights has currently been resolved by the Hon’ble Gujarat High Court in Gujarat Chambers of Commerce & Industry & Ors. v. Union of India & Ors., 2025-VIL-21-Guj (“GIDC Case”). In this article, the authors have attempted to examine the position of law with respect to taxability of leasehold rights and development rights in various tax legislations as well as under GST laws and whether, the view accorded in the GIDC case, can be plainly adopted by the taxpayers or a cautionary approach should be preferred in the long run.
