VoxJuris
Home › Acts › Constitution › Part XII › Article 286

Constitution of India · Part XII: Finance, Property, Contracts and Suits · Miscellaneous Financial Provisions

Article 286: Restrictions as to imposition of tax on the sale or purchase of goods

In plain words

No State law can impose, or authorise, a tax on the supply of goods or services, or both, where the supply takes place outside the State, or in the course of import into or export out of India. Parliament can by law set principles for deciding when a supply takes place in these ways.

A simplified explanation, prepared with AI assistance from the official text below and checked automatically against it for numbers and cross-references. The official text is the law and prevails over this summary. Not legal advice.

Official text

(1) No law of a State shall impose, or authorise the imposition of, a tax on [the supply of goods or of services or both, where such supply takes place]—

(a) outside the State; or

(b) in the course of the import of the [goods or services or both] into, or export of the [goods or services or both] out of, the territory of India. [* * * *] [(2) Parliament may by law formulate principles for determining when a [supply of goods or of services or both] in any of the ways mentioned in clause (1). [(3) * * * *]

Source: India Code (Legislative Department), the official text of the Constitution of India. As amended up to the Constitution (One Hundred and Sixth Amendment) Act, 2023. Text as on 10 September 2026. Words in square brackets [ ] were inserted or substituted by later amending Acts, and *** marks words omitted by an amendment. The amendment footnotes are not reproduced here. Official text on India Code.

Supreme Court judgments citing the article 286