Tourism Breaking News
Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI) hopes the government will consider its suggestions for good governance and ease of doing business for the travel trade. Sharing her expectations on Budget, Jyoti Mayal, President of TAAI, says, “We believe the Budget 2021 should be focused more on spendings to enable economic growth, what better area to spend in than tourism to generate more cash flow and earnings to enable enhancement of infrastructure.”
She adds, “We have already appealed for have a uniform GST across India whereby input tax credits can be taken for services utilised across the country. The GST for tour operators should be at 1.8% with full setoff, being 18% on an average margin of 10%. Interstate credit of GST are not available to travel agents and tour operators on IGST and the same should be considered at par which shall not only benefit the corporates but the consumers are large. The similar being with airlines on the point of departure.”
We are expecting the FM to ensure LTC benefits not utilised this year due to the pandemic should be permitted to be carried forward in the coming 2 years. Further to boost the economy all expenses made for travel, tourism, MiCE, adventure, domestic and religious travel, by the tax payer should be fully exempt from income tax for the next 2 years, states Mayal.
The FM should also ensure 10% SIES credit to be adjusted completely under income tax. To ensure growth in tourism and all incomes from foreign exchange earnings should be given a tax holiday for a period of 2 years. TCS too to should be rescinded as it serve no purpose of tax collect and is only adding compliances of our members, she adds.
Jay Bhatia, Vice President, TAAI, stated that tourism should be granted an Industry status and be included in the concurrent list on a unified basis across the country. This shall help to produce high quality service levels. All licenses and standardisation of regulations, processes, payment schedules, skills and knowledge development shall get a boost. Further adding to the appeal he stated that we have requested that a single employee benefit/protection/security policy benefit be adopted under one proviso which shall take care of labour welfare, social security, industrial safety and health of self and family, child and women labour, etc. on the basis of education, skill, wages, salaries etc. and maintaining one wage code across the country with Central and State Governments.
“In our recommendation to the Ministry, we have also placed that a Structured Insurance Mechanism is required to secure the future of travel agents against principals, as against securing all payments of the consumer and the traveller. The proposals on escrow or guarantee or underwriting by Government towards all airline operators to and from India must also be secured in some from of Financial Security,” he says.
