Service to educational institution

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saurabh (Querist)
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30 May 2017 Dear Experts,

We are into laundry business (providing washing and ironing of linen). One of our client is educational institution upto high school who has given us a notification 10/2017 service tax which says as below
''scheme of exemption in relation to services provided to educational institutions was modified with effect from 11-07-2014 and scope of exemption for services provided to the Educational Institutions was curtailed to some specified services namely; transportation of students, faculty and staff catering, including any mid-day meals scheme sponsored by the Government; security services performed in such educational institution cleaning services performed in such educational institution house-keeping services performed in such educational institution services relating to admission to, or conduct of examination by, such institution - This scheme was curtailed in 2017 to pre school & upto high school.

My question is whether we fall in above cleaning services, Since our services are not carried in the institution whether service tax is still leviable to such institution

Thanks

saurabh

saurabh (Querist)
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01 June 2017 please help..............................

Aashok Kumar Sharma

Aashok Kumar Sharma (Expert)
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25 July 2025 Thank you for your detailed question. You're right to seek clarification, as the **service tax exemption for services provided to educational institutions** underwent significant changes over the years, especially with **Notification No. 10/2017-ST dated 08.03.2017**.

Let’s break this down step-by-step:

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### 🔍 **Background: Exemption under Notification 25/2012-ST (as amended by 10/2017-ST)**

Originally, **services provided to educational institutions** were broadly exempt. However, **with effect from 11.07.2014**, and further narrowed down by **Notification No. 10/2017-ST (w\.e.f. 01.04.2017)**, only the following services provided **to educational institutions** were exempt:

**For pre-school and up to higher secondary school:**

* Transportation of students, faculty and staff
* Catering services, including mid-day meals
* Security services
* Cleaning services
* Housekeeping services
* Services related to admission or examination

**But this exemption only applies when:**

* The recipient is an *educational institution* (up to higher secondary)
* The service is rendered **in relation to** or **within** the institution (e.g., on premises)

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### ✅ **Your Case: Laundry Services to a School**

* Your service is **laundry (washing and ironing linen)** for a **school (up to high school)**.
* The **actual cleaning activity is not performed in the school premises** – you pick up the laundry, clean it off-site, and return it.
* You are **not cleaning the premises**, but cleaning their linen externally.

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### ❌ **Conclusion: Your Laundry Services Are *Not* Exempt**

* **Laundry/washing/ironing services of linen do not fall under “cleaning services”** as defined in the exemption.
* The term "cleaning services" in the context of the exemption **refers to cleaning of buildings, surfaces, premises** of the institution (housekeeping type).
* Since your service:

* Is **not performed on premises**
* Is **not cleaning the institution itself**
* Is **not covered in the specified exempted categories** (transport, security, catering, etc.)

👉 **Therefore, your services are *taxable* under service tax**, even if provided to an educational institution.

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### 📌 Additional Note:

Although **Service Tax has been subsumed under GST from July 2017**, your query relates to a time **just before GST implementation**, so service tax law applies.

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If you’d like, I can help you draft a short formal response to the institution clarifying why service tax is still applicable.

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