Is GST Now Only 5% and 18%? Are 12% and 28% Completely Gone?
GSTZone Desk · Updated 2026
Short answer
Mostly, yes — the vast majority of goods and services moved to a simplified two-slab structure of 5% and 18% from 22 September 2025. But it isn’t a complete elimination: a special higher rate remains for select luxury and sin goods, and a handful of long-standing special rates (like 3% on gold) sit outside this structure entirely and were never part of the change.
In detail
The September 2025 reform was genuinely one of the biggest structural changes since GST launched — collapsing the old four-slab system (5%, 12%, 18%, 28%) down into essentially two standard slabs, 5% for merit/essential items and 18% as the general standard rate, moving most items that used to sit at 12% or 28% into one of these two.
That said, calling 12% and 28% ‘completely gone’ overstates it slightly. A separate, higher special rate was introduced specifically for select luxury and ‘sin’ category goods (think certain luxury vehicles, tobacco-linked products, and specific aerated/caffeinated beverages) — this wasn’t folded into the 18% standard rate at all.
There’s also a set of items that were never part of the 4-slab structure to begin with, and the reform didn’t touch them either: gold and silver jewellery at 3%, rough diamonds at 0.25%, and a few other precious-item special rates continue exactly as before.
GSTZone tip
If you’re pricing or invoicing a specific product after the reform, don’t assume every item automatically landed in 5% or 18% just because that’s the general story — check the specific item against the current notified rate, especially for anything in the luxury, tobacco, or precious-metal categories.
Related questions
Which category of goods went into the new higher special rate?+
Broadly, items the government has classified as luxury or demerit goods — certain high-end vehicles, tobacco and tobacco-linked products, and specific sugary/caffeinated beverage categories — rather than everyday consumer goods.
Did services also move to just two slabs?+
Services largely followed the same simplification toward 5% and 18%, though specific service categories retain their own long-standing special treatments (like exemptions for certain financial or educational services) separate from this rate restructuring.
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