Looking for expert help with GST and income tax for bamboo, cane and rattan product makers India? The team at Tax Garden, based in Kondapur, Hyderabad, helps Indian SMEs stay compliant. End-to-end filings, notices, and deadline tracking, all in one place.
Key Takeaways
- Bamboo baskets, mats, wickerwork and other plaited articles (4601, 4602) are 5% GST from 22 September 2025 (Notification 9/2025-CT(R), Schedule I, S. No. 311).
- Furniture wholly made of bamboo, cane or rattan (9403) is 5%. Chairs and other seats (9401) are 18% unless they qualify as handicraft goods, which brings them to 5%.
- Raw bamboo and cane (1401) are 5%, not nil. Bamboo flooring and bamboo joinery are 5%, but resin bonded bamboo mat board and bamboo flooring tiles are 18%.
- Handmade bamboo goods can be sold to other States without GST registration within the Section 22(1) limit, with a PAN and an e-way bill.
- Furniture makers paying 18% on varnish, adhesives and fittings can claim an inverted duty refund on input credit.
What is the GST rate on bamboo and cane products? Bamboo and cane baskets, mats, wickerwork, bamboo flooring, bamboo joinery and furniture wholly made of bamboo, cane or rattan are all 5% under Schedule I of Notification 9/2025-Central Tax (Rate), in force from 22 September 2025. Machine-made bamboo or cane chairs (9401) are 18%. Handcrafted seats that meet the handicraft definition are 5%.
Bamboo work in India runs from a single weaver in a Tripura village to a factory pressing bamboo flooring for export. A Medak basket maker buys green bamboo from a farmer, splits it and weaves baskets for a wholesaler. A cane furniture workshop in Kolkata buys rattan from a trader and sells sofa sets and chairs to showrooms. A handicraft exporter hands bamboo strips to weavers on job work and pays per piece. Each of them faces a slightly different GST rate, and the trap that catches most of them is the chair. This guide covers GST law in force from 22 September 2025 and income tax for FY 2025-26 (AY 2026-27) under the Income-tax Act 1961, with the Income-tax Act 2025 numbers that apply from 1 April 2026.
Bamboo and cane GST rates by HSN code
Almost everything is 5%. Three items sit at 18%: machine-made seats, furniture that isn't wholly bamboo, cane or rattan, and resin bonded bamboo boards.
Comparison
GST on Bamboo, Cane and Rattan Goods from 22 September 2025
| Product (HSN) | GST | Entry |
|---|---|---|
| Raw bamboo, rattan, cane, reeds used for plaiting (1401) | 5% | 9/2025-CT(R) Schedule I, S. No. 75 |
| Baskets, mats, screens, wickerwork, other plaited articles (4601, 4602) | 5% | Schedule I, S. No. 311 |
| Bamboo flooring (4409) | 5% | Schedule I, S. No. 299 |
| Bamboo wood building joinery (4418) | 5% | Schedule I, S. No. 303 |
| Furniture wholly made of bamboo, cane or rattan (9403) | 5% | Schedule I, S. No. 490 |
| Handcrafted furniture of bamboo, rattan and cane, including seats (9401 50, 9403 80) | 5% | 13/2025-CT(R), S. No. 33 (handicraft goods only) |
| Other furniture, including bamboo furniture with metal or wood frames (9403) | 18% | Schedule II, S. No. 612 |
| Seats, including machine-made bamboo and cane chairs (9401) | 18% | Schedule II, S. No. 610 |
| Resin bonded bamboo mat board; bamboo flooring tiles (44 or any Chapter) | 18% | Schedule II, S. No. 164 |
Source: Notifications 9/2025 and 13/2025-Central Tax (Rate), 17 September 2025, in force 22 September 2025. No bamboo, cane or rattan entry was changed by Notifications 19/2025 or 01/2026 to 04/2026-CT(R). IGST on inter-State sales is the same rate.
The chair trap. The 5% furniture entry (S. No. 490) is for heading 9403 only. Chairs, stools, sofas and other seats are heading 9401, and the 18% seats entry (S. No. 610) covers all of 9401 except aircraft seats. So a showroom that buys a cane dining set may get a 5% invoice for the table and an 18% invoice for the chairs. Say the table is Rs 6,000 and each of four chairs is Rs 4,000. GST on the table is Rs 300. GST on the chairs is 18% of Rs 16,000, which is Rs 2,880.
The handicraft route for seats. Notification 13/2025-CT(R) replaced the handicraft table in Notification 21/2018-CT(R). Its S. No. 33 gives 2.5% CGST (5% in all) to "Furniture of bamboo, rattan, and cane" under 9401 50 and 9403 80. This applies only to "handicraft goods", which the 21/2018 Explanation defines as goods "predominantly made by hand", "graced with visual appeal in the nature of ornamentation or in-lay work or some similar work of a substantial nature", with distinctive aesthetic, artistic, ethnic or cultural features "amply different from mechanically produced goods". A hand-woven cane chair with traditional patterning can meet this. A plain chair assembled from machine-cut rattan probably doesn't. Keep photos and a short note on how each design is made, because the test is about the product, not your workshop's size.
"Wholly made" matters. The 5% furniture entry needs furniture wholly made of bamboo, cane or rattan. A bamboo tabletop on steel legs, or a rattan weave on a plywood frame, falls back to "Other furniture" at 18% unless it qualifies through the handicraft entry. Our furniture workshop guide covers wooden furniture rates.
Small articles. Bamboo skewers, toothpicks, agarbatti sticks and turned bamboo items aren't named in the notifications. Their rate depends on the Customs Tariff heading they fall in, so confirm the HSN before you bill. Our agarbatti makers guide discusses the stick question.
Buying bamboo: farmers, traders and the forest depot
From a farmer. An agriculturist doesn't need GST registration "to the extent of supply of produce out of cultivation of land" (Section 23(1)(b) of the CGST Act). An agriculturist is an individual or HUF who cultivates land by own labour, family labour or hired labour under personal supervision (Section 2(7)). Bamboo isn't on the reverse charge list in Notification 4/2017-CT(R), so you pay no GST when you buy from such a farmer. You get no input credit on it either.
From a registered trader. You pay 5% on raw bamboo or cane (1401) and can claim it back as input credit.
From the forest department or a lessee. For income tax, the seller collects TCS on some forest goods. From 1 April 2026, Section 394(1), Table Sl. No. 3 of the Income-tax Act 2025 covers "timber whether obtained under a forest lease or otherwise; or any other forest produce (not being timber or tendu leaves) obtained under a forest lease" at 2%. For FY 2025-26, Section 206C(1) of the 1961 Act had the same coverage at 2%, after the Finance Act 2025 dropped the separate 2.5% entry for other forest produce from 1 April 2025. "Forest produce" takes its meaning from your State's forest law or the Indian Forest Act 1927, so check how the depot bills your lot. A manufacturer can skip TCS by giving the seller a written declaration that the goods are "for the purposes of manufacturing, processing or producing articles or things" and "not for trading purposes" (Section 394(2)). A trader who resells bamboo can't use this.
Job work on bamboo and cane goods
Exporters and large buyers often give bamboo strips or cane to weavers and pay per piece. The rate turns on two things: whether the goods are handicraft goods, and whether the owner is registered.
Step-by-Step Guide
Which GST rate applies to your bamboo job work?
Is the owner of the bamboo registered under GST?
If not, your work is a 'treatment or process on goods belonging to another person' under item (vii) of S. No. 26 at 9% CGST, so 18% in all. 'Job work' in Section 2(68) of the CGST Act only covers goods of 'another registered person'.
Are the finished goods handicraft goods?
Item (ii)(j) of S. No. 26 gives 2.5% CGST, 5% in all, for job work on 'handicraft goods'. The definition used is in Notification 32/2017-Central Tax, which lists 'Bamboo products [decorative and utility items]' of Chapter 46 and 'Bamboo furniture, cane/Rattan furniture' of Chapter 94 made by craftsmen predominantly by hand.
Machine-made goods
Bamboo and cane goods aren't in the textile, food or other listed chapters of item (ii), so job work on machine-made goods falls in item (iv) at 18%.
Worked example
A registered exporter pays you Rs 50 a basket to weave 2,000 handmade baskets, Rs 1,00,000 in all. GST is 5%, Rs 5,000. The same work for machine-pressed bamboo trays would carry 18%, Rs 18,000.
Source: Notification 11/2017-CT(R), S. No. 26, as substituted by Notification 15/2025-CT(R); Notification 32/2017-Central Tax; CGST Act Section 2(68)
A job worker supplies a service, so the Rs 40 lakh goods limit doesn't apply to job work income. Registration kicks in at Rs 20 lakh of aggregate turnover under Section 22(1). Our job work guide covers challans and ITC-04.
Registration, composition and selling to other States
Registration limit. A maker selling only goods needs to register once aggregate turnover crosses Rs 40 lakh in most States, under Notification 10/2019-Central Tax. Telangana is one of the States that kept the Rs 20 lakh limit for goods. Our GST registration limit guide has the State list.
Handmade goods sold to other States. Selling to a buyer in another State normally forces registration from the first rupee (Section 24(i)). Notification 3/2018-Integrated Tax lifts this for "Bamboo products [decorative and utility items]" (Chapter 46, S. No. 6) and "Bamboo furniture, cane/Rattan furniture" (Chapter 94, S. No. 26) "made by the craftsmen predominantly by hand even though some machinery may also be used in the process". Two conditions: all-India aggregate turnover stays within the Section 22(1) limit, and you hold a PAN and generate an e-way bill for every consignment under Rule 138. This helps weavers who sell at craft fairs in other cities or ship to online buyers.
Composition. A manufacturer with turnover up to Rs 1.5 crore in the previous year (Rs 75 lakh in the special category States listed in Notification 14/2019-Central Tax) can pay 0.5% CGST plus 0.5% SGST, 1% in all, under Rule 7 of the CGST Rules. Bamboo goods aren't on that notification's list of barred products. But a composition dealer can't make inter-State supplies (Section 10(2)(c)) and can't claim input credit, so it rarely suits a unit that sells to buyers in other States. Our composition scheme guide explains the trade-offs.
Furniture makers: inverted duty refund
A cane furniture unit sells at 5% but pays 18% on varnish, polish, adhesives, screws and fittings. That leaves input credit piling up. Section 54(3) of the CGST Act allows a refund of unused credit when the tax on inputs is higher than the tax on output, and bamboo, cane and rattan goods aren't on the list of goods barred from this refund in Notification 5/2017-CT(R).
The refund formula in Rule 89(5) of the CGST Rules counts credit on inputs only, not on input services or capital goods:
Step-by-Step Guide
Worked Example: Quarterly Inverted Duty Refund for a Cane Furniture Unit
Sales for the quarter
Furniture wholly made of cane sold for Rs 20,00,000 at 5%. Output tax Rs 1,00,000. All sales are at the inverted rate, so adjusted total turnover is also Rs 20,00,000.
Credit for the quarter
Credit on inputs (varnish, adhesives, fittings, cane at 5%) is Rs 1,44,000. This is Net ITC. Credit on input services such as freight and repairs is Rs 16,000. Total credit availed Rs 1,60,000.
Apply Rule 89(5)
Maximum refund = (Rs 20,00,000 x Rs 1,44,000 ÷ Rs 20,00,000) minus Rs 1,00,000 x (Rs 1,44,000 ÷ Rs 1,60,000) = Rs 1,44,000 minus Rs 90,000 = Rs 54,000.
What's left
Unused credit is Rs 60,000 (Rs 1,60,000 less Rs 1,00,000). Rs 54,000 can be claimed in RFD-01; the Rs 6,000 linked to input services stays in the ledger.
Source: CGST Act Section 54(3); CGST Rules 2017, Rule 89(5) (read from taxinformation.cbic.gov.in)
Machine-made chairs at 18% aren't inverted, so a unit selling both has to work out the turnover of inverted supplies separately. Our inverted duty refund guide walks through the filing.
Income tax: cash purchases, TDS on sales and Section 44AD
Paying weavers and farmers in cash. An expense paid in cash above Rs 10,000 to one person in a day is normally disallowed: Section 40A(3) of the 1961 Act, and Section 36(4) of the 2025 Act from 1 April 2026. Rule 26(1) of the Income-tax Rules 2026 (Rule 6DD of the 1962 Rules before that) has two exceptions that fit bamboo work well:
- Clause (e): payment for "agricultural or forest produce" made "to the cultivator, grower or producer". Cash to a farmer for bamboo grown on their land can fall here. Cash to a bamboo trader doesn't.
- Clause (f): payment for products "manufactured or processed without the aid of power in a cottage industry, to the producer". This covers baskets and mats bought from a household that weaves by hand.
Pay by bank or UPI wherever you can. Our Section 40A(3) guide lists every exception.
TDS on your sales (194Q). A buyer whose turnover was above Rs 10 crore last year deducts 0.1% on purchases from you above Rs 50 lakh in the year. For FY 2025-26 that's Section 194Q of the 1961 Act; from 1 April 2026 it's Section 393(1), Table Sl. No. 8(ii) of the 2025 Act. If a furniture chain buys Rs 80,00,000 of cane furniture from you in FY 2026-27, TDS is 0.1% of Rs 30,00,000, which is Rs 3,000. It shows in your Form 26AS and you claim it in your return. See our 194Q guide.
Section 44AD for small units. A resident individual, HUF or partnership firm (not an LLP) can declare presumptive profit:
Comparison
Section 44AD for a Bamboo Products Unit (FY 2025-26)
| Point | Rule |
|---|---|
| Turnover limit | Rs 2 crore, or Rs 3 crore if cash receipts are within 5% of turnover |
| Deemed profit | 6% of bank, UPI and other digital receipts; 8% of the rest |
| Depreciation on splitting and slicing machines | Not allowed separately; treated as already deducted (Section 44AD(2)) |
| Opting out | No return to 44AD for the next five years (Section 44AD(4)) |
| From 1 April 2026 | Section 58 of the Income-tax Act 2025, same rates and limits |
Source: Income-tax Act 1961, Section 44AD; Income-tax Act 2025, Section 58
Example: a proprietor making bamboo baskets has FY 2025-26 turnover of Rs 1,20,00,000. Rs 1,10,00,000 came by bank and UPI and Rs 10,00,000 in cash. Cash is 8.3% of turnover, so the Rs 2 crore limit applies, and Rs 1.2 crore is within it. Deemed profit is 6% of Rs 1.1 crore (Rs 6,60,000) plus 8% of Rs 10 lakh (Rs 80,000), so Rs 7,40,000. Under the new regime, tax is nil up to Rs 4 lakh and 5% of Rs 3,40,000 (Rs 17,000) on the rest. Total income is within Rs 12 lakh, so the Section 87A rebate of up to Rs 60,000 takes the tax to nil, if there's no other income. Our Section 44AD guide explains the opt-out rule.
Common mistakes bamboo and cane businesses make
- Billing cane chairs at 5% with the table. Seats are 9401 and 18%, unless they truly qualify as handicraft goods.
- Calling factory goods "handicraft". The handicraft entries need goods predominantly made by hand, with ornamentation and distinctive features. Machine-pressed trays and plain assembled chairs don't fit.
- Treating raw bamboo as nil. Bamboo and cane of heading 1401 are 5% when sold by a registered trader.
- Billing 5% job work to an unregistered owner. The 5% job work rate needs a registered principal and handicraft goods.
- Leaving inverted credit in the ledger. A cane furniture unit buying 18% inputs can claim the refund every quarter or month.
- Paying a bamboo trader in cash above Rs 10,000 a day. The produce exception covers only the grower.
How Tax Garden helps bamboo and cane units
We map each product to the right entry (baskets, flooring, wholly bamboo furniture, handcrafted seats or machine-made chairs), set up 5% and 18% lines in your billing software and file the inverted duty refund where it applies. Our GST return filing service handles GSTR-1, GSTR-3B and ITC-04 for job work. New units can start with GST registration. On the income tax side we compare Section 44AD with your books and file your return through our ITR filing service. Other natural-fibre makers can read our coir product makers guide and jute mills guide, and retailers of craft goods can see our gift shop guide. Call or WhatsApp us on 9640290977.
