« Top Headlines » Open DEMAT Account in 24 hrs  ITR Filing 2025: These individuals are exempt from paying tax. Do they need to file returns?  Full List Of Trump's Reciprocal Tariffs Announced Wednesday  Top 5 tax-saving investment options for salaried individuals to consider before March 31, 2025  5 lesser lesser-known avenues of tax saving you can use to save income tax before March 31, 2025  March 15 is deadline for last advance tax installment: Know if you must pay «  No service tax on defence construction in Cantt area... Rustagi panel likely to submit services tax report... » CAs get half a breather on service tax July, 14th 2006 The finance ministry today gave chartered accountants, cost accountants, and company secretaries some reason to cheer by exempting some of their services from payment of service tax.    The exemption has been limited to representational services provided by them through appearance before a statutory authority in course of a legal proceeding.    The government had earlier brought all services provided by practising chartered accountants, cost accountants, and company secretaries under the purview of service tax, with effect from March 1, 2006.    The decision to impose service tax on their services became contentious, with a chartered accountants lobby pointing at the exemption from service tax made available to lawyers.    Official sources said the latest decision had been taken following representations from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, the Institute of Cost and Works Accountants of India, and the Association of Company Secretaries of India, seeking an exemption on specified services provided by these professionals, to bring them on a par with similar services provided by other professionals which were out of the purview of the tax.    The decision to impose service tax on the three categories had also attracted writ petitions in court. The Delhi High Court saw two writ petitions being filed by chartered accountants, including one by an individual CA, Sunil Gupta.