GST on Tiles in India

Working out the GST on tiles

Ceramic and vitrified tiles are taxed at 18%, and the calculator below uses that rate. Building bricks and earthen roofing tiles are 12% instead, so match the product to the right heading. Multiply the taxable value by 18 percent to get the GST, then add it to the base price for the total.

• For an intra-state sale, the 18% splits into 9% CGST and 9% SGST.
• For an inter-state sale, a single 18% IGST applies instead.
• The calculator on this page is pre-set to the 18% rate and handles both cases.

A worked example

Suppose a tile order has a taxable value of ₹50,000 before tax. Applying 18% GST works out as follows.

Tile rates, and the neighbours that sit higher

Ceramic and vitrified tiles are 18%, and have been since 15 November 2017, when the 23rd GST Council moved them down from 28% along with 177 other headings. This is worth stating plainly, because the September 2025 GST 2.0 reforms did not change the tile rate — a lot of recent coverage implies they did. What GST 2.0 did change nearby is bricks: under Notification 14/2025-Central Tax (Rate), building bricks, fly ash blocks and earthen roofing tiles were fixed at 12% from 22 September 2025, making them one of the few places the 12% rate survives at all.

Design, size, colour, finish and brand make no difference. An economy ceramic tile and a premium double-charged vitrified tile both attract 18%. The tile family only splits on glazed versus unglazed for the HSN code, not for the rate.

The marble and granite trap

Natural stone is where money gets lost. Rough marble and granite blocks under HSN 2515 and 2516 attract 5%. But once that stone is sawn, polished and cut to size, it becomes worked building stone under HSN 6802 and attracts 18%. The slabs and tiles you actually lay on a floor are an 18% item. Be wary of any dealer quoting 5% on polished or cut-to-size stone, because the invoice description has to match the actual stage of processing, and a wrong description is your problem as much as theirs when the credit is examined.

Tiles plus laying is one supply

When a dealer supplies tiles and lays them under a single contract, that is a composite supply with the tiles as the principal component, so 18% applies to the whole value including labour. If a contractor bills the laying separately, the service part is a works contract, also at 18%. Either way the number is the same, but the invoice should still name each item with its HSN or SAC and show the tax against it. A scrawled lump-sum flooring bill with no breakup gives you no ITC, no warranty claim and no recourse.

Who can claim the credit

A tile trader or manufacturer claims full ITC on purchases in the normal way, and a manufacturer claims it on raw clay, feldspar, silica and pigments. But a builder or homeowner using tiles in immovable property for their own use cannot claim it, under the same Section 17(5) block that applies to cement and steel. If you are buying for a shop, office or rented property held for taxable business use, the credit can flow, but only against a proper tax invoice carrying your GSTIN.

Buying tiles: what your invoice must show

A proper tax invoice is not paperwork for its own sake. It carries the dealer name, the brand and model, the HSN code, the rate against each line, and the GST split as CGST plus SGST within your state or IGST across states. That single document is what secures four separate things: the manufacturer warranty, which for vitrified surfaces is almost always conditional on a valid invoice; proof you received first-quality stock rather than relabelled seconds; your ITC claim if you are a registered business; and your recourse if the lot turns out defective. A lump-sum memo gives you none of them.

Wastage, freight and the real cost

The 18% applies to the total taxable value, which includes freight, loading and packing when the seller bills them on the same invoice. Where a transporter invoices you directly, that bill follows the goods transport rules on its own. Worth remembering when you budget: tiles are ordered with 5 to 10 percent wastage for cuts and breakage, and the GST applies to what you buy, not what ends up on the floor. Adhesive, grout and skirting each carry their own classification, so a flooring quote should itemise them rather than folding everything into a rate per square foot.

Selling tiles: registration and compliance

A tile dealer needs registration once turnover crosses ₹40 lakh for goods, or from the first sale when selling through an e-commerce operator. Map each product to the right HSN family and keep it consistent: avoid creating artificial code differences for design or size variations when the material and description are the same, since that only complicates your HSN-wise reporting in GSTR-1 without any benefit. A manufacturer claims ITC on clay, feldspar, silica and pigments against output tax on finished tiles.

Frequently asked questions