Bariatric surgery is not a cosmetic procedure, the tax tribunal rules


Dr. Mohit Bhandari, a bariatric surgeon from Indore, had appealed against this Service tax Imposed by saying Bariatric surgery Was Life saving process.

A large bench of the Customs Excise and Service Tax Appeal Tribunal (CESATAT), Delhi, on Wednesday ruled that the service tax cannot be applied to bariatric surgery as it is a life-saving procedure, not a cosmetic one. The tribunal said bariatric surgery is for people who have health issues such as type-2 diabetes, hypertension, sleep apnea and coronary artery disease, which are due to their overweight, and are different from weight loss procedures such as liposuction.

The order was then passed Dr. Mohit BhandariThe bariatric surgeon, who runs the charming Hitech Specialty Hospital in Indore, moved the tribunal in 2015 against the service tax levied on him under the Finance Act. Dr. Bhandari was one of the 15 bariatric surgeons, including some from Mumbai, who appealed to the Delhi and Mumbai tribunals for relief from the service tax imposed on them.

As part of his appeal, Dr. Bhandari presented various studies conducted in India and abroad, which showed that cosmetic surgery and weight loss surgery are two different procedures. A study in Cleveland found that weight loss surgery resulted in a solution to type 2 diabetes in 95% of patients, obstructive sleep apnea in 98%, joint pain in 0% of joints and lipid disorder in ip per cent.

“Obesity is a disease,” he told the Mirror. We have a lot of patients whose lives change after undergoing bariatric surgery. In addition to losing weight, many of their absurdities associated with obesity disappear. This shows that bariatric surgery is used to treat obesity and associated medical ailments, and it is not cosmetic surgery. Those who go through the process suffer from life-threatening diseases. Many are not even able to walk. Most of these patients also have other problems related to obesity, such as type-2 diabetes, hypertension, arthritis, lipid disorders and obstructive sleep apnea. ”

(L) Dr. Mohit Bhandari;  Iman Ahmed, an Egyptian citizen and the world's heaviest woman, underwent bariatric surgery in Mumbai in April 2017.  He died in Abu Dhabi in September of that year.

(L) Dr. Mohit Bhandari; Iman Ahmed, an Egyptian citizen and the world’s heaviest woman, underwent bariatric surgery in Mumbai in April 2017. He died in Abu Dhabi in September of that year.

He added, “The person selected for this surgery should also have a body mass index above 32.5 with co-disability. The surgery is performed as per the guidelines issued by the Asia Pacific Chapter of the International Federation for Obesity and Metabolic Disorder Surgery, which is supported by the Obesity Surgery Society of India. I did not pay service tax because I save the lives of my patients. ”

The tribunal observed that bariatric surgery is a procedure by which a patient’s ability to eat is restricted, resulting in weight loss for the control of obesity-related diseases. It has also been observed that other weight loss procedures such as liposuction involve the removal of excess fat from specific target areas to improve body shape.

“Therefore, the appellant argues that bariatric surgery is clearly different from plastic or cosmetic surgery in that it is intended to reduce the weight of a very obese person and thus, the treatment and prevention of various diseases … while plastic or cosmetic surgery. The aim is to improve the external shape and body appearance, ”the bench said.

It added, “The purpose of surgery is not to improve a person’s appearance but to treat the underlying cause of the disease. Bariatric surgeries are performed by appeals as life-saving surgeries and as a treatment and cure for life-threatening diseases. This is in the nature of ‘healthcare services’, which are not taxable under the Finance Act both before and after July 1, 2012. ”

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