The Ministry of Finance, Department of Revenue, has issued Notification No. 01/2026-Central Tax (Rate) dated 30 April 2026 to amend GST rate schedules applicable to specified categories of non-alcoholic beverages under the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) framework.
Issued under Section 9(1) and Section 15(5) of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, on the recommendations of the GST Council, the notification amends Notification No. 09/2025-Central Tax (Rate) dated 17 September 2025.
The amendments seek to align GST tariff references with revised Customs Tariff classifications and provide greater clarity in the taxation framework applicable to fruit juice-based drinks, milk-based beverages, caffeinated beverages and other non-alcoholic drinks classified under tariff heading 2202.
Under the revised notification, amendments have been introduced in Schedule I attracting GST at 5%, covering specified non-alcoholic beverage categories.
Against Serial Number 150, the tariff entries have been revised to include “2202 99 21” and “2202 99 29”, covering fruit pulp or fruit juice-based drinks other than carbonated beverages of fruit drink or carbonated beverages with fruit juice.
Similarly, against Serial Number 151, the tariff entries have been substituted with “2202 99 31” and “2202 99 39”, relating to beverages containing milk.
The notification further amends Schedule III attracting GST at 40% in respect of specified categories of non-alcoholic and caffeinated beverages.
Against Serial Number 2, the revised tariff entries now include “2202 99 90, 2202 99 91 and 2202 99 99”, covering other non-alcoholic beverages not specified under Schedule I.
Further, against Serial Number 3, the tariff entries “2202 99 91 and 2202 99 99” have been specified for caffeinated beverages, which will continue to attract GST at the rate of 40%.
According to the Department of Revenue, the amendments are part of the Government’s broader tariff harmonisation exercise aimed at aligning GST schedules with revised Customs Tariff classifications and eliminating classification-related ambiguities in the beverage sector.
The revised classification framework is expected to facilitate smoother GST administration, improve legal certainty for industry stakeholders, and ensure uniformity in taxation across different categories of beverages.
The notification shall come into effect from 1 May 2026.
Note: Similar notification has been brought under the UTGST Act, 2017 vide No. 01/2026-Union Territory Tax (Rate) dated April 30, 2026 and under the IGST Act, 2017 vide No. 01/2026-Integrated Tax (Rate) dated April 30, 2026.
The Notifications can be accessed at: https://a2ztaxcorp.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/CBIC-No.-01-2026-CT-IGST-UT-Rate.pdf
