GST Exemption Certificate Scheme (MHI GECS)

What is the GST Exemption Certificate Scheme?

The GST Exemption Certificate Scheme (MHI GECS) is administered by the Ministry of Heavy Industries, Government of India. It issues a certificate that allows an eligible person with a disability to purchase a motor car at a concessional rate of Goods and Services Tax (GST), rather than the standard 28% GST plus compensation cess that ordinarily applies to passenger cars.

The concession itself flows from a Ministry of Finance tax notification: serial number 400 of Notification No. 1/2017-Integrated Tax (Rate) / Central Tax (Rate) dated 28 June 2017, which prescribes a lower GST rate on vehicles for persons with orthopedic physical disability. The role of the Ministry of Heavy Industries is to verify eligibility and issue the certificate that a buyer produces to the car dealer to actually claim the concessional rate. According to the MHI GECS portal, more than 11,000 certificates (11,253 recorded at the time of checking) have been issued.

The scheme matters because a car is often not a luxury but a mobility necessity for a person with a locomotor disability, and the tax on a passenger vehicle can run to a substantial share of the on-road price. Removing the compensation cess and applying a concessional GST rate reduces that cost.

Who is eligible for the GST exemption on a car?

You can apply if:

• You are a person with an orthopedic/locomotor physical disability, as specified under the GST rate notification and the eligibility criteria hosted on the MHI GECS portal.
• You hold a valid disability certificate issued by the competent medical authority, and a UDID card where one has been issued.
• You are purchasing a motor car for your own use and have not availed the concession on another vehicle within the restricted period.

You cannot apply / are not eligible if:

• You do not hold a qualifying disability certificate from the competent medical authority.
• You are seeking the concession on a vehicle category or use not covered by the GST notification's eligibility conditions.
• You have already availed the concession within the applicable lock-in window, or intend to resell the vehicle before the lock-in period ends.

Because the precise disability percentage, the vehicle specifications (engine capacity and dimensions) and the resale lock-in period are set out in the GST notification and the portal's current guidelines, applicants should confirm the exact thresholds on dhigecs.heavyindustries.gov.in before applying. This guide does not reproduce a specific percentage or engine-capacity figure where it could not be confirmed on the official source.

What documents are required?

How to apply for the GST exemption certificate

1. Open the MHI GECS portal at dhigecs.heavyindustries.gov.in and register as a new applicant using your Aadhaar and contact details.
2. Fill in the application with your personal details, disability details and the details of the car you intend to buy (make, model, dealer, quotation).
3. Upload the documents — disability certificate/UDID, Aadhaar, medical certificate and the dealer's proforma invoice.
4. Submit the application and note the acknowledgement/reference number.
5. Track the status on the portal; the Ministry verifies the application and issues the GST exemption certificate electronically if you are eligible.
6. Present the certificate to the car dealer, who applies the concessional GST rate on the invoice for your vehicle.

How the concession works at the dealer

The certificate does not put money in your bank account. Instead, the dealer bills your car at the concessional GST rate authorised by the certificate, lowering the tax component of the on-road price. Keep the certificate, the invoice and your disability documents together, because the vehicle is subject to a resale lock-in. It cannot be transferred for a specified period after purchase, and you sign a declaration accepting that condition.

Help and where to get details

• Portal: dhigecs.heavyindustries.gov.in (Ministry of Heavy Industries)
• Ministry website: heavyindustries.gov.in
• Queries and grievances are handled through the MHI GECS portal; a dedicated public helpline number is not published, so use the portal's contact/help facility.

Because the GST concession is governed by a tax notification that can be amended, and because the eligibility thresholds and vehicle norms are defined on the portal, always verify the current concessional rate, the qualifying disability criteria and the resale lock-in period on the official MHI GECS portal before committing to a purchase.

How to check your application status

The MHI GECS portal is the only place to track an application, since the scheme does not run through a call centre or a physical office counter.

1. Go to dhigecs.heavyindustries.gov.in and log in with the same credentials (Aadhaar-linked mobile/registered ID) used at the time of application.
2. Open the "Track Application" or "My Applications" section on the dashboard. This shows the current stage of your file: submitted, under document verification, referred back for correction, approved, or certificate issued.
3. Keep the acknowledgement or reference number generated at submission handy. It is the fastest way to locate the file if the dashboard listing is slow to load or shows multiple entries.
4. If the status has not moved for several weeks and remains stuck at "submitted" or "under review," use the portal's own contact/grievance or help facility to raise a query against your reference number, since no separate public helpline is published for this scheme.
5. Once the certificate is issued, it is generated electronically and made available for download from the same login. There is no separate SMS or postal despatch to wait for; the portal copy is what you present to the dealer.
6. If you registered but never received a login confirmation, check for an email or SMS from the portal first before re-registering, since a duplicate registration can itself cause delays or a rejection on grounds of a duplicate application.

Because the scheme is administered centrally by the Ministry of Heavy Industries rather than through a distributed field office network, portal status is the primary and most reliable channel, and applicants should rely on it over informal enquiries.

Common reasons for rejection

• Disability certificate does not match the scheme's category. The concession is specifically for orthopedic or locomotor physical disability. A certificate issued for a different disability category, or one that does not clearly state the orthopedic/locomotor nature and extent of the disability, is a frequent cause of rejection. Fix: get the certificate reissued or clarified by the competent medical authority with the disability type and percentage explicitly recorded, then reapply or respond to the query with the corrected document.

• Certificate not from a competent/recognised medical authority. A certificate from a private clinic or an authority not recognised for UDID/disability certification purposes will not be accepted. Fix: obtain or re-verify the certificate through the government medical board or UDID process recognised for disability certification before submitting.

• Mismatch between applicant details and Aadhaar or vehicle quotation. Differences in name, address or other identity details across the Aadhaar card, disability certificate and the dealer's proforma invoice commonly trigger a rejection or a hold for clarification. Fix: ensure the name and other core details are identical across every uploaded document, and get any discrepancy corrected at source (Aadhaar, medical certificate, or dealer quotation) before uploading.

• Vehicle or dealer quotation details incomplete or non-specific. A generic or incomplete proforma invoice, one that does not clearly identify the applicant, the exact car model, and the dealer, can be sent back or rejected. Fix: ask the dealer for a proper proforma invoice/quotation addressed to you by name, specifying the exact make and model of the car you intend to buy.

• Concession already availed within the restricted period. The scheme requires a self-declaration that the applicant has not taken the GST concession on a vehicle within the applicable restricted period. An application is rejected where records show the concession has already been used inside that window, or where the declaration is found to be false. Fix: confirm your own concession history and the current restriction period on the portal before applying; there is no workaround for a genuine repeat claim within the restricted window.

• Incomplete or low-quality document uploads. Missing pages, illegible scans, or documents uploaded in the wrong slot on the portal form are a routine, avoidable cause of applications being sent back for resubmission. Fix: review every uploaded document on the portal's preview/summary step before final submission, and reupload anything unclear rather than leaving it for the verifying officer to interpret.

• Attempting to claim the concession for someone other than the certificate holder, or for a vehicle not for the applicant's own use. The certificate is issued to the person with the disability for a car for their own use, not for a family member's or third party's vehicle. Fix: apply only where the person with the qualifying disability is themselves the buyer and user of the car.