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Ruling
Subject: GST and the importation and sale of a product (Product)
Question
Will your supply of the Product be subject to goods and services tax (GST)?
Answer
No. Your supply of the Product will be GST-free as food for human consumption. Your importation of the Product will also be non-taxable as a consequence.
Relevant facts and circumstances
You are registered for goods ands services tax (GST).
You are to import and sell the Product
The Product is suitable for human consumption.
You will not alter the composition of the Product in any way before its sale.
Relevant legislative provisions
All references are to the A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 (GST Act):
Section 13-10
Section 38-2
Section 38-3
Section 38-4
Reasons for decision
A supply of food is GST-free under section 38-2 of the A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 (GST Act), provided that the supply does not come within any of the exclusions listed in section 38-3 of the GST Act.
Subsection 38-4(1) of the GST Act defines food for the purposes of section 38-2 of the GST Act. Under this section of the GST Act, the Product can be considered as a food for human consumption.
However, under subsection 38-3(1) of the GST Act, the Product is only GST-free if it is a product of a kind specified in the table in clause 1 of Schedule 2 to the GST Act (Schedule 2).
The Product is not specifically listed in Schedule 2. However, there is an item in Schedule 2 (Item) that lists a similar product to your Product. As such, it is necessary to determine whether your Product can be treated in the same manner as the product listed under the Item.
An accepted principle of statutory interpretation states that words take their meaning from the words with which they are associated (Fox v. Warde [1978] VR 362: Supreme Court of Victoria).
Given this method of interpretation and the fact you will not alter the composition of the Product in any way before its sale, your Product is covered by the Item.
In addition, the supply of the Product does not fall within any of the exclusions listed in section 38-3 of the GST Act. Therefore, you will be making a GST-free supply under section 38-2 of the GST Act, when you supply the Product.
Non taxable importation
Please note that section 13-10 of the GST Act provides that an importation is a non-taxable importation if:
· it is a non-taxable importation under Part 3-2 of the GST Act, or
· it would have been a supply that was GST-free or input taxed if it had been a supply (for example, it would be a GST-free supply had the supply been made in Australia).
In your case, your supply of the Product in Australia will be GST-free and consequently, your importation will be non-taxable under section 13-10 of the GST Act.