After eight months, the Goods and Services Tax Council has convened to deliberate on key indirect tax priorities, ranging from industry clarifications to likely subjects like tax demand notices for gaming companies. The meeting also gains precedence as the first council meeting after the NDA government secured a third-term win in the Lok Sabha elections in 2024. Among the various expectations, the industry is hoping for technical clarity on the applicability and valuation of the tax levy on corporate guarantees and ESOPs given to employees. The last council meeting set the tax levy on a corporate guarantee from a parent company to a subsidiary company at 18% GST on 1% of the guaranteed amount or the actual consideration, whichever is higher.