4 months ago
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The Andhra Pradesh authorities has withdrawn the Additional Retail Excise Tax (ARET) levied exclusively connected liquor supplied to bars, bringing parity with retail shops and correcting a long-standing pricing anomaly.
Principal Secretary, Excise Department, Mukesh Kumar Meena issued the orders connected Tuesday, pursuing support of recommendations made by a Group of Ministers (GoM).
The determination comes aft a broad reappraisal of excise policies implemented betwixt 2019 and 2024 and the formulation of a “Way Forward” for aboriginal excise years.
A GoM was constituted successful August 2024 to urge a new, broad excise argumentation covering retail trade, liquor pricing and taxation. The GoM, which met periodically, discussed the contented of ARET successful its gathering held connected December 22, 2025.
The authorities noted that anterior to November 2019, the invoice terms of Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) and Foreign Liquor (FL) supplied by APSBCL depots was azygous for bars and retail outlets. However, the instauration of ARET exclusively for bars from November 2019 resulted successful higher prices for bars, starring to marketplace distortions and deficiency of uniformity successful taxation.
Accepting the GoM’s recommendations, the authorities decided to amend the AP Excise (Grant of Licence of Selling by Bar and Conditions of Licence) Rules, 2025, removing the levy of ARET connected IMFL and FL purchased by barroom licensees from APSBCL depots.
