‘Coaching not a luxury’: CFI seeks GST cut to 5% or nil, exemption cap at Rs 1 crore ahead of Budget 2026

Ahead of the Union Budget 2026, the Coaching Federation of India (CFI) has urged the Centre to reduce GST on coaching services to 5% or nil and raise the cap on exemption from Rs 20 lakh to Rs 1 crore, arguing that the current tax structure treats essential academic support like a luxury and directly increases education costs for parents.

In a letter to Union finance minister Niramla Sitharaman, the CFI said coaching for board exams and competitive exams such as Joint Entrance Examination (JEE), National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET), Common University Entrance Test (CUET), Union Public Service Commission (UPSC), CA, CLAT, and SSC recruitments — are no longer optional, but a necessity for millions of students.

“Coaching is not a luxury”, Keshav Agarwal, vice-president of CFI, said: “This is not merely a taxation issue. GST on coaching ultimately becomes a tax on aspiration. Any GST relief on coaching services is actually a relief to parents and students.”

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Reduce GST on coaching to 0-5%

The federation has sought a reduction of GST on coaching services to 5% or nil, and an increase in the GST exemption limit for coaching institutes from Rs 20 lakh to Rs 1 crore, citing concerns on affordability and MSME sustainability.

The current GST exemption limit of Rs 20 lakh was designed when costs were far lower. Over the last 15-20 years, due to inflation and rising operating costs for rent, salaries, electricity, technology, marketing, compliance, “the turnover of even small coaching institutes have multiplied, but the exemption threshold has remained static,” the letter read.

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“GST relief is not a concession to coaching centres - it is a relief to parents and students,” CFI president Saurabh Saxena said.

The federation also flagged a policy contradiction, where education and skilling are promoted, but supplementary education services continue to be taxed. The federation said this makes learning costlier for the middle-class and undermines national education and employability goals.