CAT 2017: No GST on CAT Registration fee; other exams with 18% tax - know the cheapest payment mode

CAT 2017 registration and application fee of Rs. 1800/- will not attract any additional GST or other taxes, this has been confirmed by Prof Neeraj Dwivedi, Convener CAT 2017 exam and faculty at IIM Lucknow. However, there are still bank transactions charges that you need to pay in addition to the CAT 2017 Registration and application fee which may go beyond Rs. 51 unless you explore the cheapest mode of CAT 2017 registration online fee payment which can be as low as Rs.13 or so. 

Responding to the query, raised by MBAUniverse.com on behalf of the CAT 2017 aspirants who were worried whether their CAT 2017 registration fee payment of Rs.1800/- would be accepted by CAT Centre 2017 or any additional GST or taxes would also need to be paid, Prof Dwivedi, Convener CAT 2017 has confirmed, “Only additional charge applicable on the fee is the transaction processing fee. It varies depending on the payment method the candidate chooses.”

Important links

• How to choose amongst CAT 2017, XAT 2018, NMAT 2017, SNAP 2017, IIFT 2017
• CAT 2017: 12.5% Application fee hike in 2 years; Registration starts August 9 – note the key points
• CAT 2017: 5 Registration form mistakes, you should avoid in Personal details & Academics
• CAT 2017 Registration: 5 Steps guide to fill CAT application form error free; don’t waste Rs.1800/-

Although, there is no GST or other taxes on CAT 2017 registration fee and it would provide relief to some extent to the CAT 2017 applicants who have been raising query whether any additional GST or other taxes are also applicable on the amount while making online payment of the CAT registration fee as they need to pay for other MBA entrance exams, the bank charges in itself have gone up substantially post implementation of Goods and Services Tax (GST) in India. 

Additional payment: Bank transaction charges
According to the details of applicable bank transaction charges shared by CAT Centre 2017 at IIM Lucknow, both type of CAT 2017 aspirants – General or reserved category need to pay these processing charges. Following are the bank processing charges although  no other taxes or GST is payable along with the CAT 2017 registration charges:

Don’t pay CAT fee by Credit Card, Cash Card & Wallet: Cost is more
You need to shell out 1.20% to 2.85% of the value of transaction, if you are paying CAT 2017 registration fee through Credit card. A General / NC-OBC candidate needs to pay Rs.1800 while an SC/ST/PWD candidate should pay Rs.900 towards CAT 2017 registration fee. The final amount will also include applicable additional charges of the banks.

Accordingly, if you are using the Visa/Master credit card, you have to pay 2.85% of the transaction value of Rs.1800/- (Rs.51.30) in addition to the CAT 2017 registration fee.

Use ATM-Cum Debit card
If you pay the CAT 2017 registration fee through ATM-Cum Debit card, you need to shell out only Rs.13.50 in addition to the CAT 2017 registration fee as it is the cheapest mode with 0.75% of value of transaction.

Net banking is also not very expensive. At Rs.15 or Rs.18, depending upon which net banking facility you are using, you may pay through it your CAT 2017 registration charges.    

18% GST & Taxes applicable on other exams
If you are an applicant for SNAP 2017, NMAT 2017, you are supposed to pay the applicable taxes along with the exam registration fee. For example, if you are making the payment of SNAP 2017 registration and application fee of Rs. 1750/-, you additionally need to pay Rs. 315/-  as GST @18%. This is apart from paying the bank charges if making payment online or by demand draft. Accordingly, Rs.2065/- are to be paid for SNAP 2017 registration fee and bank charges are extra. Similarly, if you are applying for NMAT 2017, you need to pay the registration fee of Rs. 1800 + applicable taxes.

Registration to close on September 20
CAT 2017 registration process started on August 9, 2017 at 10AM. Experts suggest to go through the CAT 2017 registration instructions and CAT Registration guide before proceeding to fill up the CAT 2017 registration and application form.

The CAT registration process is proposed to be closed on September 20 at 5 PM by IIM Lucknow.  All the key details and procedure have already been announced and made available at iimcat.ac.in by the CAT 2017 exam convening IIM Lucknow.

CAT Registration Online only
IIM Lucknow has kept the entire registration process for CAT 2017 purely on-line and candidates have to pay the CAT 2017 registration fee of Rs.1800/- through various online instruments like Credit/Debit cards; net banking among others. The off-line voucher purchase process for CAT exam was scrapped totally in CAT 2014 and now only the online system continues.  

Select 4 preferred test cities
During the registration process candidates will have the liberty to choose the 4 most preferred test cities out of 144 CAT 2017 exam centres available across the country. CAT Centre 2017 at IIM Lucknow will make its best efforts to allot the preferred test centre as applied for subject to availability.

The admit cards for CAT 2017 will be available from October 18, 2017 onwards and will have to be downloaded from CAT 2017 website.

CAT 2017will be a single day 2 session exam and will be held on Sunday November 26, 2017 across the country at more than 400 testing venue. The shortlisted candidates on the basis of CAT 2017 scores will have the opportunity to get admission in one of the 20 Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) in 2018 and other top B-schools like FMS Delhi, SPJIMR Mumbai, MDI Gurgaon, IMI New Delhi, IMT Ghaziabad, JBIMS Mumbai, TAPMI Manipal among hundreds of others. 

Stay tuned to MBAUniverse.com for more updates on CAT 2017

Related links:

• IIM Lucknow admission 2018: CAT 2017 cut offs announced; needs 90 overall & 85 sectional in CAT
• IIM Ahmedabad Admission 2018: CAT 2017 cut offs announced; needs 70 sectional percentile
• IIM Calcutta Admission: Lowers CAT 2017 cut offs with 56% weight; 40% goes to academics