Looking for expert help with Income tax and GST for veterinary clinics and vets 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
- Treatment of animals or birds by a veterinary clinic is exempt from GST under S. No. 46 of Notification 12/2017-Central Tax (Rate). The service codes are 998351 (pets), 998352 (livestock) and 998359 (other animals).
- Pet grooming, boarding and training are a different service code (998612) and aren't covered by the veterinary exemption.
- Medicines sold for home use are goods: retail-pack veterinary medicines and vaccines are 5%, dog and cat food is 18%.
- A clinic doing only treatment doesn't need GST registration. Sell pet food or run a grooming wing, and your consultation fees count towards the Rs 20 lakh limit.
- Missed the 31 August 2026 ITR date for AY 2026-27? A belated return can still be filed by 31 December 2026.
Is GST applicable on veterinary services in India? No. S. No. 46 of Notification 12/2017-Central Tax (Rate) exempts "services by a veterinary clinic in relation to health care of animals or birds". Consultations, vaccinations, surgery and diagnostics for pets and livestock are covered. Medicines sold for home use, pet food, grooming and boarding are not, and are taxed separately.
Most vets never charge GST, and for pure treatment that's correct. The trouble starts with what grows around the consulting room: a shelf of dog food and shampoos, a grooming table, a few boarding kennels for the Diwali holidays. Each of those is taxable, and once you add one, your exempt consultation fees start counting towards the registration limit. This guide covers where the exemption stops, what you pay on medicines and equipment, how 44ADA works for a vet, and the AY 2026-27 dates still open. If you also sell pets or accessories, our pet shop guide covers that side in detail.
Why is a vet clinic's treatment exempt from GST?
Because the GST law has a separate entry for it. Human health care is exempt under S. No. 74 of Notification 12/2017-Central Tax (Rate), but that entry and its definition of "health care services" are written for patients. Animals are covered by their own line: S. No. 46, "Services by a veterinary clinic in relation to health care of animals or birds", at nil rate.
The CBIC's service classification shows what "veterinary services" covers. Group 99835 has three codes, and each includes hospital and non-hospital medical, surgical and dental services, lab and technical services, and dietary recommendations (Explanatory Notes to the Scheme of Classification of Services):
- 998351: veterinary services for pet animals
- 998352: veterinary services for livestock
- 998359: other veterinary services, for animals other than pets or livestock, such as zoo animals
So a dog's vaccination, a cow's calving complication, a parrot's wing injury and a cat's dental scaling are all exempt when your clinic provides them.
Medicines given during treatment. An injection you give or a wound you dress in the clinic is part of the treatment you bill. CBIC took this approach for human hospitals in Circular 32/06/2018-GST (12 February 2018), which says food supplied to in-patients on a doctor's advice is part of a composite supply of health care. There's no circular written for vet clinics, so keep in-clinic medicines on the treatment bill and take-home packs on a separate line.
One open point. The notification doesn't define "veterinary clinic". Your own practice with a consulting room fits the ordinary meaning. A vet who only does farm visits, or who works as a paid consultant to a dairy or a pharma company, has no clarification to rely on. Get advice for those arrangements before you assume they're exempt.
Where does the veterinary GST exemption stop?
It stops at three points: goods you sell, pet care that isn't treatment, and farm work that sits outside the veterinary codes.
Pet food and take-home medicines. These are goods, taxed at their own rates even if you recommended them in the consultation. Dog and cat food is 18%. The feed exemption in Notification 10/2025-Central Tax (Rate) covers only aquatic, poultry and cattle feed.
Grooming, boarding and training. The Explanatory Notes place "accommodation services for pets (kennels); grooming and tattooing services for pets; training of pet animals" under SAC 998612, animal husbandry services. They're expressly kept out of veterinary services. A bath and nail trim is grooming, not treatment, unless it's a medicated bath you've prescribed for a skin condition and recorded on the case sheet.
Artificial insemination. The same notes put artificial insemination of farm animals under 998612 too, and say the veterinary codes don't include it. If your practice does a lot of AI work for dairy farmers, check that line separately rather than assuming the S. No. 46 exemption covers it.
Comparison
GST on What a Vet Clinic Bills and Buys (from 22 September 2025)
| Item | SAC / HSN | GST rate |
|---|---|---|
| Consultation, vaccination, surgery, dental and diagnostics for pets | 998351 | Exempt |
| Treatment of livestock (cattle, buffalo, goats, sheep, poultry) | 998352 | Exempt |
| Pet grooming, boarding (kennels) and training | 998612 | Taxable, not exempt |
| Veterinary medicines in retail packs or measured doses sold | 3004 | 5% |
| Vaccines | 3002 | 5% |
| Dressings and bandages for veterinary use, retail packs | 3005 | 5% |
| Dog and cat food | 2309 | 18% |
| Veterinary instruments and appliances you buy | 9018 | 5% |
| Veterinary X-ray apparatus you buy | 9022 | 5% |
| Veterinary thermometers | 9025 | 5% |
| Veterinary furniture you buy (operating and examination tables) | 9402 | 18% |
Source: Notification 12/2017-Central Tax (Rate), S. No. 46; Notification 9/2025-Central Tax (Rate), Schedule I S. Nos. 232, 234, 235, 483, 487, 488 and Schedule II S. Nos. 611, 639; Notification 10/2025-Central Tax (Rate), S. No. 105; CBIC Explanatory Notes to the Scheme of Classification of Services (99835, 998612)
The equipment rates matter even if you never register. GST you pay on a Rs 1,20,000 operating table (18%, so Rs 21,600) or a Rs 2,00,000 X-ray unit (5%, so Rs 10,000) is a cost you can't recover while your services are exempt.
Does a veterinary clinic need GST registration?
Not if all you supply is exempt treatment. Section 23(1)(a) of the CGST Act says a person engaged exclusively in supplying exempt goods or services isn't liable to register.
The word that matters is "exclusively". Add one taxable line and the Rs 20 lakh test in Section 22 runs on your aggregate turnover. Section 2(6) counts exempt supplies in aggregate turnover, so your consultation fees count.
Example: your clinic bills Rs 17,50,000 of treatment in a year. It also sells Rs 2,40,000 of dog and cat food and Rs 1,10,000 of take-home medicines, and runs grooming worth Rs 80,000.
- Aggregate turnover: Rs 17,50,000 + Rs 2,40,000 + Rs 1,10,000 + Rs 80,000 = Rs 22,80,000.
- That's above Rs 20 lakh, so you must register.
- Output tax on the goods: 18% of Rs 2,40,000 is Rs 43,200 on food, and 5% of Rs 1,10,000 is Rs 5,500 on medicines. Grooming is taxed too, at its own rate.
- Treatment stays exempt.
Without the food shelf and the grooming table, the same clinic has Rs 18,60,000 of turnover (treatment plus take-home medicines), below the limit, and no registration requirement. If the side lines earn you little, letting a neighbouring pet shop stock the food may be simpler than registering.
Once registered, Section 17(2) limits input tax credit to purchases used for taxable supplies. GST on a table or an X-ray unit used only for treatment can't be claimed. GST on the dog food you buy for resale can.
Our GST registration service can check your billing and register you if needed. For a human-side comparison, see our post on GST on healthcare services, and for medicine rates in more depth, our GST on medicines guide.
How is a vet's income taxed under Section 44ADA?
Section 44ADA applies to a resident individual or a partnership firm (not an LLP) carrying on a profession listed in Section 44AA(1). That list opens with "legal, medical, engineering or architectural profession". The Act doesn't define "medical" and doesn't mention veterinary practice. We found no CBDT circular on it either. A qualified vet diagnosing and treating animals is practising a branch of medicine, so 44ADA is the natural fit, but confirm your own position before you file.
For FY 2025-26 (AY 2026-27), the Income-tax Act 1961 applies. From tax year 2026-27, the same scheme sits in Section 58(2), Table Sl. No. 3 of the Income-tax Act 2025, and "specified profession" (including medical) is in Section 62(4).
Keep shop income apart. 44ADA covers receipts from your profession. Profit from selling pet food and accessories is business income. And if you are in a 44AA(1) profession, Section 44AD(6)(i) shuts you out of the 44AD presumptive scheme, so the shop's profit goes on actual figures. Keep a separate sales register for the counter from day one.
Step-by-Step Guide
Can Your Veterinary Practice Use Section 44ADA?
Check who you are
Resident individual or partnership firm (not an LLP), carrying on the profession yourself.
Separate fees from shop sales
Only professional receipts go into the 44ADA limit. Pet food and accessory sales are business income, computed on actual profit.
Work out your cash share
Add up fees received in cash. A cheque that isn't account payee counts as cash. UPI, card and account payee cheques don't.
Cash 5% or less? Limit is Rs 75 lakh
If gross receipts are within Rs 75 lakh, 50% of receipts is your deemed profit. No tax audit while you declare under 44ADA(1).
Cash above 5%? Limit is Rs 50 lakh
Receipts above Rs 50 lakh rule out 44ADA. You keep full books, and receipts over Rs 50 lakh bring a tax audit under Section 44AB(b).
Source: Sections 44AA(1), 44AD(6), 44ADA and 44AB, Income-tax Act 1961 (FY 2025-26); Sections 58(2) Sl. No. 3, 62 and 63, Income-tax Act 2025 (from tax year 2026-27)
Example 1 (small-town practice, new regime): professional receipts for FY 2025-26 are Rs 24,00,000, with Rs 3,00,000 (12.5%) in cash from farmers. Receipts are under Rs 50 lakh, so 44ADA applies even though cash is above 5%.
- Deemed profit: 50% of Rs 24,00,000 is Rs 12,00,000. Assume no other income.
- Tax: Rs 20,000 (Rs 4-8 lakh at 5%) + Rs 40,000 (Rs 8-12 lakh at 10%) = Rs 60,000.
- Total income is within Rs 12 lakh, so the Section 87A rebate of up to Rs 60,000 wipes it out. Tax payable: nil.
Example 2 (city pet hospital, Rs 62,00,000 of professional receipts, two cash patterns):
- Cash Rs 2,50,000 (about 4%): the limit is Rs 75 lakh. Deemed profit is Rs 31,00,000. Tax is Rs 3,00,000 on the first Rs 24 lakh plus 30% of Rs 7,00,000 (Rs 2,10,000), so Rs 5,10,000, plus 4% cess of Rs 20,400. Total Rs 5,30,400. No tax audit, because of the first proviso to Section 44AB.
- Cash Rs 9,30,000 (15%): the limit drops to Rs 50 lakh, and Rs 62 lakh is above it. 44ADA is gone. You keep full books, pay tax on actual profit, get a tax audit under Section 44AB(b), and file ITR-3.
Same pets, same fees. Only the payment mode differs. A UPI QR code at the counter is the easiest fix a busy clinic has.
If 44ADA applies, you're in a specified profession, and the Income-tax Rules 2026 (Rule 46(6)) add a daily case register in Form No. 25 and a year-start and year-end inventory of drugs and consumables to your books. One more cash rule: you can't receive Rs 2 lakh or more in cash from one person in a day, for a single transaction, or for one event (Section 269ST; Section 186 of the 2025 Act). Our Section 44ADA guide covers the scheme in more depth.
Do you deduct or suffer TDS as a vet?
Both can happen.
As a consultant. A dairy, poultry integrator, pharma company or animal welfare body run as a firm, LLP or company that treats your fee as professional fees deducts 10% TDS once payments cross Rs 50,000 in the year. That's Section 194J for FY 2025-26, and Section 393(1), Table Sl. No. 6(iii) of the Income-tax Act 2025 for payments from 1 April 2026. Check Form 26AS or AIS for the credit and the section used before you file.
As a payer. If your clinic is a proprietorship and your professional receipts exceeded Rs 50 lakh in the previous year, you deduct 10% on fees above Rs 50,000 a year paid to visiting vets or surgeons who aren't your employees (second proviso to Section 194J; the "specified person" definition in Section 402(37) of the 2025 Act). A firm or company clinic deducts regardless of receipts. Our Section 194J guide has the details, and our TDS filing service can run the quarterly returns.
Which dates matter now?
Deadline Timeline
Veterinary Clinic Tax Dates: AY 2026-27 and Tax Year 2026-27
ITR due date, non-audit professionals, AY 2026-27
Extended from 31 July for non-audit business and profession cases by the Finance Act 2026.
Last date for a belated AY 2026-27 return
Section 139(4). Late fee Rs 5,000, or up to Rs 1,000 if total income is within Rs 5 lakh (Section 234F).
Single advance tax instalment under 44ADA, tax year 2026-27
Section 408(2), Income-tax Act 2025. Paying by 31 March still counts as advance tax.
Last date to revise an AY 2026-27 return
Twelve months from the end of the year; a fee under Section 234I applies after nine months (Section 139(5) as amended by the Finance Act 2026).
Source: Sections 139(4), 139(5), 211 and 234F, Income-tax Act 1961; Section 408(2), Income-tax Act 2025; Budget 2026 Memorandum (indiabudget.gov.in)
If you missed 31 August, our guide to filing after the deadline walks through the belated return.
Common mistakes vet clinics make
- Adding a pet food shelf without checking registration. Two or three lakh of food sales can pull your whole consultation turnover into the Rs 20 lakh test.
- Billing grooming as treatment. A routine bath and trim isn't health care. Keep grooming and boarding on separate bills, and record the diagnosis when a medicated bath is genuinely prescribed.
- Mixing shop profit into 44ADA. Food and accessory sales are business income and need their own figures; they don't get the 50% deemed profit.
- Ignoring the cash share. At Rs 50-75 lakh of receipts, cash above 5% removes 44ADA and adds a tax audit. Farm visits paid in cash add up fast.
- Not reconciling TDS from dairies and companies. Credit missing from Form 26AS or AIS usually means a wrong PAN or an unfiled TDS return at the payer's end. Chase it before you file.
How Tax Garden helps veterinary clinics
We keep your clinic books with treatment, medicine and shop sales separated, test each year whether the counter or the grooming wing needs GST registration, and prepare your ITR under 44ADA or with an audit. Start with our ITR filing service or accounting and bookkeeping for the clinic. If your clients are mostly dairy farmers, our dairy farm guide and goat and sheep farm guide explain the rules on their side, and our guide for physiotherapy clinics covers the same issues for a human practice.
