The Hotel-Receipts Tax Act, 1980

(1) This Act may be called the Hotel-Receipts Tax Act, 1980. (2) It extends to the whole of India.

In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,-- (1) "assessee" means a person by whom hotel-receipts tax or any other sum of money is payableunder this Act and includes-- (a) every person in respect of whom any proceeding under this Act has been taken for theassessment of his chargeable receipts or of the amount of refund due to him or of the chargeablereceipts of any other person in respect of which he is assessable or of the amount of refund due tosuch other person; (b) every person who is deemed to be an assessee in default under any provision of this Act; (2) "assessment" includes reassessment; (3) "assessment year" means the period of twelve months commencing on the 1st day of Aprilevery year; (4) "Board" means the Central Board of Direct Taxes constituted under the Central Boards ofRevenue Act, 1963 (54 of 1963); (5) "chargeable receipts" means the total amount of all charges referred to in section 6, computedin the manner laid down in section 7; (6) "hotel" includes a building or part of a building where residential accommodation is, by wayof business, provided for a monetary consideration; (7) "hotel-receipts tax" or "tax" means the tax chargeable under the provisions of this Act; (8) "Income-tax Act" means the Income-tax Act, 1961 (43 of 1961); (9) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act; (10) "room charges" means the charges for a unit of residential accommodation in a hotel andincludes the charges for (a) furniture, air-conditioner, refrigerator, radio, music, telephone, television, and (b) such other services as are normally included by a hotel in room rent, but does not include charges for food, drink and any services other than those referred to insub-clauses (a) and (b); (11) all other words and expressions used herein but not defined and defined in the Income-taxAct shall have the meanings respectively assigned to them in that Act.

(1) Subject to the provisions of sub-section (2) and sub-section (3), thisAct shall apply in relation to every hotel wherein the room charges for residential accommodationprovided to any person at any time during the previous year are seventy-five rupees or more per day perindividual. Explanation.-- Where the room charges are payable otherwise than on daily basis or per individual,then the room charges shall be computed as for a day and per individual based on the period ofoccupation of the residential accommodation for which the charges are payable and the number of individuals ordinarily permitted to occupy such accommodation according to the rules and custom of thehotel. (2) Where a composite charge is payable in respect of residential accommodation and food, the roomcharges included therein shall be determined in the prescribed manner. (3) Where-- (i) a composite charge is payable in respect of residential accommodation, food, drink and otherservices, or any of them, and the case is not covered by the provisions of sub-section (2), or (ii) it appears to the Income-tax Officer that the charges for residential accommodation, food,drink or other services are so arranged that the room charges are understated and the other charges areoverstated, the Income-tax Officer shall, for the purposes of sub-section (1), determine the room charges on suchreasonable basis as he may deem fit.

(1) Every Director of Inspection, Commissioner of Income-Tax, Commissionerof Income-tax (Appeals), Inspecting Assistant Commissioner of Income-tax, Income-tax Officer andInspector of Income-tax shall have the like powers and perform the like functions under this Act as he hasand performs under the Income-tax Act, and for the exercise of his powers and the performance of hisfunctions, his jurisdiction under this Act shall be the same as he has under the Income-tax Act. (2) All officers and persons employed in the execution of this Act shall observe and follow the orders,instructions and directions of the Board: Provided that no such orders, instructions or directions shall be issued-- (a) so as to require any tax authority to make a particular assessment or to dispose of a particularcase in a particular manner; or (b) so as to interfere with the discretion of the Commissioner (Appeals) in the exercise of hisappellate functions. (3) Every Income-tax Officer employed in the execution of this Act shall observe and follow theorders, instructions and directions issued for his guidance by the Director of Inspection or by theCommissioner or by the Inspecting Assistant Commissioner within whose jurisdiction he performs hisfunctions.

(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, there shall be charged on every personcarrying on the business of a hotel in relation to which this Act applies, for every assessment yearcommencing on or after the 1st day of April, 1981, a tax in respect of his chargeable receipts of theprevious year at the rate of fifteen per cent. of such receipts: Provided that where such chargeable receipts include any charges received in foreign exchange, then,the tax payable by the assessee shall be reduced by an amount equal to five per cent. of the charges(exclusive of the amounts payable by way of sales tax, entertainment tax, tax on luxuries or tax under thisAct) so received in foreign exchange. Explanation.--For the purposes of this sub-section,-- (a) charges received in Indian currency obtained by conversion of foreign exchange into Indiancurrency shall, in such cases and in such circumstances as may be prescribed, be deemed to have beenreceived in foreign exchange; and (b) "foreign exchange" and "Indian currency" shall have the meanings respectively assigned tothem in clauses (h) and (k) of section 2 of the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act, 1973 (46 of 1973). (2) Where, under an arrangement made between a person carrying on the business of a hotel to whichthis Act applies and any other person having close connection with him, any food, drink or other servicesis or are provided on the premises of such hotel by the second-mentioned person and the Income-taxOfficer is of opinion that such arrangement has been made with a view to avoiding or reducing theliability under this Act by the first-mentioned person, then,-- (a) the second-mentioned person shall also be deemed to be a person carrying on the business of ahotel to which this Act applies; and (b) hotel-receipts tax shall be charged on the second-mentioned person in respect of charges forfood, drink or other services so provided by him as if such charges were the chargeable receipts of thebusiness of a hotel deemed to be carried on by him under clause (a), and all the provisions of this Actshall apply accordingly. Explanation.-- For the purposes of this sub-section,-- (i) a close connection shall be deemed to exist between a person carrying on the business of ahotel and another person if, in relation to the person carrying on the business of a hotel, suchother person is a person referred to in clause (b) of sub-section (2) of section 40A of theIncome-tax Act; (ii) any food, drink or other service shall be deemed to have been provided on the premises ofa hotel if the same is or are provided in the hotel or any place appurtenant thereto and where thehotel is situate in a part of building, in any other part of the building.