Looking for expert help with Income tax and GST for utensil shop owners? 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
- From 22 September 2025, utensils and kitchen articles of steel, copper and aluminium are 5% GST, down from 12% (Notification 9/2025-Central Tax (Rate), Schedule I, S. No. 416, 417, 419).
- Ceramic, porcelain and wooden tableware, and brass puja bells and statuettes, are also 5%.
- Spoons, ladles and knives, gas stoves, mixer grinders, induction cooktops, glassware, plastic kitchenware and vacuum flasks are 18% (Schedule II).
- A single-price gift set with one 18% item is taxed at 18% on the whole set.
- Under Section 44AD, deemed profit is 6% of digital receipts and 8% of cash. Moving cash sales to UPI lowers the figure.
What is the GST rate on utensils in India? From 22 September 2025, table, kitchen and household articles and utensils of iron and steel (7323), copper (7418) and aluminium (7615) attract 5% GST under Schedule I of Notification 9/2025-Central Tax (Rate). Spoons and ladles (8215), gas stoves (7321), glassware (7013), plastic kitchenware (3924) and electric kitchen appliances are 18% under Schedule II.
A steel kadai and the steel ladle you sell with it don't carry the same Goods and Services Tax (GST). The kadai is 5%. The ladle is 18%, because it sits in a different tariff heading. The same split runs across a utensil shop: copper pots at 5%, glass tumblers at 18%, a ceramic dinner set at 5%, the gas stove and mixer at the counter at 18%. The September 2025 rate cut widened the gap, because metal utensils dropped from 12% to 5% while cutlery and appliances stayed at 18%. This guide covers which rate applies to what you sell for AY 2026-27, how to price gift sets, and how your income tax is worked out.
What GST rate applies to what you sell?
Comparison
GST Rates for Utensil Shop Items (from 22 September 2025)
| Item | HSN | GST rate |
|---|---|---|
| Table, kitchen and household articles of iron and steel; utensils (kadai, tope, plates, tiffin boxes) | 7323 | 5% |
| Table, kitchen and household articles of copper; utensils (copper and brass vessels) | 7418 | 5% |
| Table, kitchen and household articles of aluminium; utensils | 7615 | 5% |
| Tableware and kitchenware of porcelain, china or other ceramics | 6911, 6912 | 5% |
| Tableware and kitchenware of wood | 4419 | 5% |
| Bells, gongs, statuettes and ornaments of base metal (brass puja items) | 8306 | 5% |
| Kerosene stoves and wood-burning stoves of iron or steel | 7321 | 5% |
| Spoons, forks, ladles, skimmers and similar kitchen tableware | 8215 | 18% |
| Knives with cutting blades | 8211 | 18% |
| Gas stoves, cookers and other non-electric domestic appliances of iron or steel | 7321 | 18% |
| Pot scourers, steel wool, scouring pads of iron or steel | 7323 | 18% |
| Glassware for table or kitchen use | 7013 | 18% |
| Plastic tableware and kitchenware | 3924 | 18% |
| Vacuum flasks | 9617 | 18% |
| Mixer grinders and other electro-mechanical domestic appliances | 8509 | 18% |
| Induction cooktops, electric kettles, rice cookers and other electro-thermic domestic appliances | 8516 | 18% |
Source: Notification 9/2025-Central Tax (Rate), Schedule I S. No. 304, 403, 404, 414, 416, 417, 419, 420; Schedule II S. No. 125, 252, 299, 301, 371, 375, 482, 489, 632
Within your state you charge half as CGST and half as SGST, so 2.5% + 2.5% or 9% + 9%. To another state it's the full rate as IGST. Stock a supplier invoiced before 22 September 2025 keeps the input tax credit (ITC) at whatever rate the supplier charged. Your sale today goes out at the current rate.
Brass is an alloy of copper and falls in Chapter 74 with copper, so brass vessels and plates sit in the 5% entry for heading 7418. Pressure cookers of steel or aluminium are generally billed under 7323 or 7615 as kitchen articles; check the HSN on your supplier's invoice before you set the rate.
Where do utensil shops get the rate wrong?
Most errors come from items that look like utensils but sit in a different heading:
- Steel plate vs steel spoon. Plates, bowls and tiffins are 7323 at 5%. Spoons, forks and ladles are 8215 at 18%, even when they're made of the same steel.
- Steel tumbler vs glass tumbler. Steel is 5%. Glassware of heading 7013 is 18%.
- Kerosene stove vs gas stove. Kerosene and wood-burning stoves are 5%. Gas stoves and other non-electric cookers of heading 7321 are 18%.
- Steel kitchenware vs steel scrubber. Pot scourers and steel wool are excluded from the 5% entry and stay at 18%.
Say a customer buys a steel kadai for Rs 1,050 including GST. At 5%, the tax in it is Rs 50 (1,050 x 5/105). If your software bills it at 18%, it shows Rs 160 (1,050 x 18/118), and you've overstated your tax by Rs 110. The mistake runs the other way on a Rs 590 spoon set: at 18% the GST is Rs 90, but billed at 5% it shows Rs 28 (590 x 5/105), and you've under-reported Rs 62. Set up each product with its own HSN and rate in your billing software, so counter staff never choose a rate.
What about wedding and housewarming gift sets?
Gift sets often mix 5% and 18% items, such as steel plates with a spoon set or glass tumblers. If they're packed together and sold at one price, and the items aren't naturally sold together in the ordinary course of business, it's a mixed supply. Section 8(b) of the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) Act taxes the whole supply at the highest rate in it.
Step-by-Step Guide
Pricing a Mixed Utensil Gift Set
List what goes in the set
Example: steel plates and bowls (5%), a steel spoon set (18%) and a vacuum flask (18%), sold as one gift set for Rs 2,360 including GST.
Find the highest rate
The spoon set and flask are 18%, so the whole set is 18% under Section 8(b), CGST Act.
Work out the tax
Rs 2,360 x 18/118 = Rs 360 GST. Taxable value Rs 2,000.
Or price the items separately
If each item has its own price on the invoice and the customer can buy them on their own, each line carries its own rate. The plates and bowls then go out at 5%.
Source: Section 8(b), CGST Act 2017
When do you need GST registration?
If you only sell goods, registration is required once aggregate turnover crosses Rs 40 lakh in most states. Telangana and several other states kept the Rs 20 lakh limit (Notification 10/2019-Central Tax). A Hyderabad utensil shop selling Rs 25 lakh a year must register. Selling to a buyer in another state needs registration from the first rupee (Section 24(i), CGST Act). Our GST registration service can set this up for you.
Regular scheme or composition?
Under the composition scheme, a trader pays 1% of turnover (Rule 7, CGST Rules), up to Rs 1.5 crore a year. You can't charge GST on your bill, can't claim ITC and can't sell to other states (Section 10(2)(c), CGST Act). You issue a bill of supply, not a tax invoice.
Most utensil shops sell to households who don't claim ITC. The answer depends on how much of your sales are 5% items:
- A 5% steel kadai bought for Rs 800 plus Rs 40 GST and sold at Rs 1,050. Regular scheme: GST in the price is Rs 50, you pay Rs 10 after ITC and keep Rs 200. Composition: you pay Rs 10.50 and keep Rs 199.50. The regular scheme leaves 50 paise more.
- An 18% mixer grinder bought for Rs 2,000 plus Rs 360 GST and sold at Rs 2,950. Regular scheme: GST in the price is Rs 450, you pay Rs 90 after ITC and keep Rs 500. Composition: you pay Rs 29.50 and keep Rs 560.50. Composition leaves Rs 60.50 more.
On a shop that sells mostly steel and copper utensils, the two schemes come out close, and GST on rent and other expenses (ITC under the regular scheme, a cost under composition) can tip it towards the regular scheme. Composition gains ground as stoves, mixers and cutlery grow in your sales. It stops making sense if you supply hotels, caterers or other shops that want a tax invoice to claim ITC, or if you plan to sell to customers in other states. See our composition scheme guide for the full conditions.
How is your income taxed for AY 2026-27?
Section 44AD lets a resident individual, HUF or partnership firm (not an LLP) declare a deemed profit instead of keeping full books. The limit is Rs 2 crore of turnover, or Rs 3 crore where cash receipts are within 5% of total receipts. The deemed profit is 6% of receipts by UPI, card or bank and 8% of cash receipts. You can declare more than this.
Example 1 (Rs 1.2 crore turnover, new regime): Rs 90 lakh comes by UPI and card, Rs 30 lakh in cash.
- Deemed profit: 6% of Rs 90 lakh (Rs 5,40,000) plus 8% of Rs 30 lakh (Rs 2,40,000), so Rs 7,80,000.
- Tax: 5% of Rs 3,80,000, so Rs 19,000.
- The Section 87A rebate covers income up to Rs 12 lakh. Tax payable: nil, assuming no other income.
Example 2 (Rs 2.8 crore turnover, new regime): A large shop with heavy wedding-season sales takes Rs 13 lakh in cash (about 4.6% of receipts), so the Rs 3 crore limit applies. The other Rs 2.67 crore is digital.
- Deemed profit: 6% of Rs 2.67 crore (Rs 16,02,000) plus 8% of Rs 13 lakh (Rs 1,04,000), so Rs 17,06,000.
- Tax: Rs 20,000 + Rs 40,000 + Rs 60,000 on the slabs up to Rs 16 lakh, plus 20% of Rs 1,06,000 (Rs 21,200). Total Rs 1,41,200. No 87A rebate above Rs 12 lakh. Add 4% cess of Rs 5,648. Tax payable: Rs 1,46,848.
If that shop's cash had been Rs 15 lakh (about 5.4%), the Rs 3 crore limit wouldn't apply, and at Rs 2.8 crore it would need books and a tax audit.
Step-by-Step Guide
Before You Declare Less Than the Section 44AD Figure
Check the last five years
If you declared under Section 44AD in any of them, going below it now bars you from Section 44AD for the next five assessment years (Section 44AD(4)).
Check the audit trigger
Under that bar, if your income is above the basic exemption limit you must keep books and get a tax audit (Sections 44AD(5) and 44AB(e)).
Check the turnover audit limit
Filing on books above Rs 1 crore turnover needs an audit under Section 44AB, unless cash receipts and cash payments are each within 5%, which raises the limit to Rs 10 crore.
Make sure the books support the figure
Your GST returns and bank statements show your sales. A declared profit well below what they imply has to be backed by proper accounts.
File the right form
ITR-4 for Section 44AD if total income is within Rs 50 lakh and other conditions are met; ITR-3 if you file on books (a partnership firm files ITR-5 instead).
Source: Sections 44AA, 44AB, 44AD and 87A, Income-tax Act 1961; Finance Act 2025
See our Section 44AD guide and old vs new regime guide.
Common mistakes utensil shops make
- One default rate for the whole shop. Metal utensils are 5%, but cutlery, glassware, plastic and appliances are 18%. Set the rate per product.
- Billing steel spoons and ladles at 5%. They're heading 8215, not 7323, so they're 18%.
- Putting gas stoves in the kerosene stove rate. Only kerosene and wood-burning stoves of iron or steel are 5%. Gas stoves are 18%.
- Charging 5% on a mixed gift set. One 18% item makes the whole single-price set 18%.
- Leaving old 12% rates in the billing software. Metal utensils and ceramic tableware moved to 5% on 22 September 2025. Check your item master was updated.
How Tax Garden helps utensil retailers
We set up your item master with the right HSN and rate for every product, then file GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B with gift sets reported correctly. See our GST return filing service. We also compare composition against the regular scheme on your real sales mix, and prepare your ITR on Section 44AD or books; see our ITR filing service and pricing. For a general store that also stocks kitchenware, see our income tax guide for kirana store owners.
