HC | Trading of Gift Vouchers Not Liable to GST

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  • Last Updated on 21 August, 2025

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GST on gift vouchers

Case Details: BI Worldwide India (P.) Ltd. vs. Additional Director, Directorate General of GST Intelligence, New Delhi - [2025] 177 taxmann.com 345 (Karnataka)

Judiciary and Counsel Details

  • Suraj Govindaraj, J.
  • Ravi Raghavan and Nischal K.M. , Advs. for the Petitioner. Jeevan J. Neeralgifor the Respondent.

Facts of the Case

The petitioner purchased gift vouchers from a voucher issuer at a discounted rate and subsequently sold them to corporates, sub-distributors, or end-customers, earning a trading margin. The petitioner contended that it was not rendering any marketing, promotional, or distribution services to the voucher issuer and that trading of vouchers was only a part of its business, not the primary activity. The legal issue arose as to whether such trading activity amounted to a taxable supply under Section 9 of CGST and Karnataka GST. The matter was accordingly placed before the High Court.

HC Held

The High Court held that the petitioner was not providing any service to the voucher issuer in relation to marketing, promotion, or distribution of vouchers. The Court noted that distribution of gift vouchers was not the primary business of the petitioner. It observed that the activity of trading vouchers was merely incidental to the petitioner’s operations. Consequently, the trading of vouchers did not constitute a supply exigible to GST.

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Author: Taxmann

Taxmann Publications has a dedicated in-house Research & Editorial Team. This team consists of a team of Chartered Accountants, Company Secretaries, and Lawyers. This team works under the guidance and supervision of editor-in-chief Mr Rakesh Bhargava.

The Research and Editorial Team is responsible for developing reliable and accurate content for the readers. The team follows the six-sigma approach to achieve the benchmark of zero error in its publications and research platforms. The team ensures that the following publication guidelines are thoroughly followed while developing the content:

  • The statutory material is obtained only from the authorized and reliable sources
  • All the latest developments in the judicial and legislative fields are covered
  • Prepare the analytical write-ups on current, controversial, and important issues to help the readers to understand the concept and its implications
  • Every content published by Taxmann is complete, accurate and lucid
  • All evidence-based statements are supported with proper reference to Section, Circular No., Notification No. or citations
  • The golden rules of grammar, style and consistency are thoroughly followed
  • Font and size that's easy to read and remain consistent across all imprint and digital publications are applied