India, Sept. 4 -- India's food delivery and quick commerce companies are staring at higher costs after the GST Council decided to impose an 18% tax on delivery fees under the new Goods and Services Tax (GST) slabs.

The move, announced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, will apply from September 22. It brings delivery services offered by platforms such as Swiggy, Zomato and Blinkit under Section 9(5) of the CGST Act.

"Local delivery services to be notified under section 9(5) of the CGST Act in cases where the person supplying such services through an electronic commerce operator is not liable for registration under GST. The applicable rate on such services to be 18%," the 56th Meeting of the GST Council's recommendation read.

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