GST on Healthcare in India — Exempt or Taxable?

No. Consultation fees charged by an authorised medical practitioner — a registered doctor, specialist or surgeon — are exempt from GST as healthcare services. This applies whether the consultation is in a hospital, a clinic or via teleconsultation, as long as it is by an authorised medical professional.

No. Treatment provided by a clinical establishment for diagnosis, treatment or care of any illness, injury, deformity or abnormality is exempt. This includes surgery, ICU, operation-theatre and diagnostic charges. A hospital charges GST only on specific non-exempt items: room rent above ₹5,000/day (non-ICU) at 5%, cosmetic procedures at 18%, pharmacy medicines as goods, and services like canteen or parking.

No. Pathology, radiology and diagnostic services (blood tests, X-ray, MRI, CT scan and similar) form part of exempt healthcare services when provided as diagnosis or care of a health condition. They are exempt under the healthcare-services entry.

No. Transportation of a patient by ambulance is specifically covered within the exempt healthcare-services entry, so ambulance services do not attract GST.

GST at 5% (without ITC) applies to hospital room rent only where the room charge exceeds ₹5,000 per day and the room is not an ICU/CCU/ICCU/NICU. Rooms charged at ₹5,000 per day or less, and all ICU categories, are exempt. The GST applies to the room charge alone; the treatment on the same bill stays exempt.

No. The 5% room-rent levy applies only to non-ICU rooms above ₹5,000/day. ICU, CCU, ICCU and NICU rooms are outside this charge and remain exempt regardless of the per-day amount.

No. Cosmetic and plastic surgery done to enhance appearance — hair transplant, liposuction, rhinoplasty, breast augmentation, cosmetic botox and similar aesthetic procedures — is taxable at 18%. The exception is reconstructive surgery to restore anatomy or function affected by a congenital defect, developmental abnormality, injury or trauma, which is exempt as treatment.

Yes — medicines are goods and carry GST at their HSN rate even from a hospital pharmacy. Since GST 2.0 most medicines are taxed at 5% and specified life-saving drugs are Nil; and a few items such as human blood and its components are exempt. Patients are end consumers and cannot claim ITC on medicines they buy.

Branded Ayurvedic, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathic (AYUSH) medicines generally attract 5% GST as goods since GST 2.0 (12% before 22 September 2025). Treatment by an authorised AYUSH practitioner or clinical establishment is exempt as a healthcare service — only the branded medicine product is taxable.

Medical devices are goods and follow HSN-based rates. Under GST 2.0 most medical, surgical and diagnostic devices — glucometers, BP monitors, diagnostic kits, implants and orthopaedic items — moved to 5% (many were 12% earlier). Confirm the exact rate for a specific device on the CBIC rate finder, as classification varies by product.

No — not for individual policies. Under the GST 2.0 reforms effective 22 September 2025, GST on individual health insurance premiums is exempt (it was previously 18%). This covers individual, family-floater and senior-citizen health policies. Group and employer-arranged policies follow their own treatment, so confirm the position for your specific policy.

For individual life insurance policies, premiums became GST-exempt from 22 September 2025 under the GST 2.0 reforms, having earlier attracted GST. The exemption applies to individual life cover such as term, endowment and ULIP policies. Verify your renewal notice reflects the exemption.

Yes. The Section 80D income-tax deduction for health-insurance premium is separate from GST and continues — up to ₹25,000 a year for self and family (below 60) and up to ₹50,000 where a senior citizen is insured. With the GST exemption, the premium you pay no longer includes an 18% GST component, but the 80D deduction on the premium paid is unaffected.