GST Rate on Canned Pineapple in Sugar Syrup Clarified
Canned peeled pineapple slices in sugar syrup attract 12% GST as preserved fruit, not 0% as fresh fruit.
- Ruling
- Order No. 05 dated 21.05.2018
- Dated
- 21 May 2018
- Authority
- Authority for Advance Ruling
This page was written by Patron Accounting’s AI from the official release and reviewed before publishing. It explains the document in plain language. It is not the document itself. Where this page and the original differ, the original governs.
The short version
- Bharat Agro asked if preserved pineapples qualify as fresh exempt fruit.
- Authority ruled pineapples in syrup are preserved food under HSN 2008.
- The product attracts 12% Goods and Services Tax (GST).
- Peeling, steaming, and adding sugar syrup removes fresh fruit status.
In short
M/S Bharat Agro asked whether peeling, slicing, steaming, and sealing pineapples in sugar syrup inside airtight containers changed their status under Goods and Services Tax (GST). The company argued that processing did not alter the fruit's essential nature, so it should stay tax-exempt as fresh fruit under HSN code 0804.
What has changed
How it worked before
Before this ruling, many food processors assumed that basic physical processing and sweetening of fresh fruit did not remove their exemption from GST.
What has changed
The Uttar Pradesh Authority for Advance Ruling (AAR) decided under order UP_AAR_05 that pineapples cooked, preserved in sugar syrup, and sealed in airtight cans fall under HSN code 2008. This means the product is taxable at 12% GST (6% CGST and 6% SGST) instead of being tax-exempt.
Who this affects
Food processing businesses that peel, slice, heat, or pack fruits in sugar syrup or airtight containers.
An example
A canned fruit business in Lucknow processes fresh mangoes by peeling, slicing, boiling, and sealing them in sugar syrup inside tin cans. The owner wants to know if they can sell these canned mangoes tax-free like fresh market mangoes. Based on this ruling, tax authorities treat fruit cooked and preserved in syrup as prepared food under Chapter 20, which carries a 12% GST rate.
What you should do
Businesses in this line of work should check if they are paying 12% GST on canned or preserved fruits. Keep in mind that an advance ruling binds only the business that asked for it and their local tax office, so it is not an automatic law for every company.
If you do nothing
If you treat canned preserved fruits as tax-exempt fresh produce, tax officers can issue a demand notice against your business. You will have to pay the unpaid 12% GST out of pocket along with mandatory interest and penalties.
The terms explained
- advance ruling
- An official tax decision given by authorities to a specific business explaining how GST laws apply to its products or services.
- HSN code
- An international system of numbers used to classify products for calculating applicable tax rates.
- air tight unit container
- A sealed box, can, or jar designed to prevent air from entering and protect food from spoiling.
The ruling in detail
Authority for Advance Ruling
M/s Bharat Agro
Order No. 05 dated 21.05.2018 · Uttar Pradesh
Questions before the authority
- HSN Classification for Pealed Sliced Pineapple, Put up in air tight unit container in Sugar Syrup.
Facts
The applicant purchases fresh pineapples, cleans, peels, cuts them into slices, and subjects them to steaming and hot sugar syrup treatment containing citric acid before packing in airtight unit containers. The applicant argued that since the processing does not alter the essential nature of the pineapple, it should be treated as fresh fruit under HSN 0804 and exempt from GST under Notification No. 02/2017-Central Tax (Rate).
Ruling
| Question | What the authority ruled |
|---|---|
| HSN classification and GST rate for peeled sliced pineapple in sugar syrup packed in airtight containers | Tariff Item 2008, taxable at **12% GST** (6% CGST + 6% SGST) Classified as prepared or preserved fruit under Chapter 20 rather than fresh produce under HSN 0804 |
The Authority held that pineapples subjected to peeling, cutting, steaming, and preservation in sugar syrup inside airtight containers cannot be classified as fresh pineapples under HSN 0804. Instead, the product falls under **Tariff Item 2008** as prepared or preserved fruit. Accordingly, it attracts **12% GST** (6% CGST + 6% SGST) under Schedule II of Notification No. 01/2017-Central Tax (Rate).
Reasoning
The Authority observed that exemption entry 51 of Notification No. 02/2017-Central Tax (Rate) for HSN 0804 applies exclusively to 'fresh' pineapples. The applicant's process involves peeling, cutting, steaming, boiling, and packing in sugar syrup within airtight containers, which converts the raw fruit into a preserved fruit preparation. Such goods are specifically covered under Chapter 20 of the Customs Tariff Act, 1975, under Tariff Item 2008 (Sub-heading 2008 20 00). Therefore, the product is taxable at 12% under S.No. 40, Schedule II of Notification No. 01/2017-Central Tax (Rate).
Provisions relied on
- Section 98 of the CGST Act, 2017
- Section 98 of the UP GST Act, 2017
- HSN Code 0804
- Tariff Item 2008 / Sub-heading 2008 20 00
- Notification No. 01/2017-Central Tax (Rate) dated 28.06.2017
- Notification No. 02/2017-Central Tax (Rate) dated 28.06.2017
- Notification No. KANI-2-836/XI-9(47)/17-U.P.ACT-1-2017-Order-(06)-2017 dated 30.06.2017
- Notification No. KANI-2/837/XI-9(47)/17-U.P. XR-1-2017-Order-(07)-2017 dated 30.06.2017
- Chapter 20 of the Customs Tariff Act, 1975
For the practitioner
This order establishes that fruits subjected to thermal processing, sweetening, and airtight preservation lose their status as 'fresh' produce under Chapter 8. Practitioners should advise clients in food processing that canned or preserved fruits in syrup fall under **Chapter 20 (Tariff Item 2008)** and attract 12% GST.
Source
This is a summary prepared from the published order, which is a scanned document. It is a reading aid and not the authority: where the two differ, the order governs. Verify every provision against the original before relying on it.
Original order: https://www.gstcouncil.gov.in/sites/default/files/AAR/up_aar_05_21.05.2018_ba.pdf
Legibility of the scan, as read: high.
Prepared 18-10-2026.
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