2. Definitions

In these rules, unless the context otherwise requires,-

(a)     “Act” means the Finance Act, 1994 (32 of 1994);

(b)     “account” means an account bearing interest to the depositor, and includes a non-resident external account and a non-resident ordinary account;

(c)      “banking company” has the meaning assigned to it in clause (a) of section 45A of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934 (2 of 1934);

(d)     “continuous journey” means a journey for which a single or more than one ticket or invoice is issued at the same time, either by one service provider or through one agent acting on behalf of more than one service provider, and which involves no stopover between any of the legs of the journey for which one or more separate tickets or invoices are issued;

(e)     “financial institution” has the meaning assigned to it in clause (c) of section 45-I of the Reserve Bank of India Act,1934 (2 of 1934);

(f)       “intermediary” means a broker, an agent  or any other person, by whatever name called, who arranges or facilitates a provision of a service (hereinafter called the ‘main’ service) or a supply of goods, between two or more persons, but does not include a person who provides the main service or supplies the goods on his account.;

(g)     “leg of journey” means a part of the journey that begins where passengers embark or disembark the conveyance, or where it is stopped to allow for its servicing or refueling, and ends where it is next stopped for any of those purposes;

(h)  “location of the service provider” means-

(a).    where the service provider has obtained a single registration, whether centralized or otherwise, the premises for which such registration has been obtained;

(b).   where the service provider is not covered under sub-clause (a):

    (i)  the location of his business establishment; or

    (ii)  where the services are provided from a place other than the business establishment, that is to say, a fixed establishment elsewhere, the location of such establishment; or

   (iii) where services are provided from more than one establishment, whether business or fixed, the establishment most directly concerned with the provision of the service; and

   (iv) in the absence of such places, the usual place of residence of the service provider.

(i)    “location of the service receiver” means:-

(a).   where the recipient of service has obtained a single registration, whether centralized or otherwise, the premises for which such registration has been obtained;

(b).    where the recipient of service is not covered under sub-clause (a):

(i)       the location of his business establishment; or

(ii)      where services are used at a place other than the business establishment, that is to say, a fixed establishment elsewhere, the location of such establishment; or

(iii)      where services are used at more than one establishment, whether business or fixed, the establishment most directly concerned with the use of the service; and

(iv)      in the absence of such places, the usual place of residence of the recipient of service.

Explanation:-. For the purposes of clauses (h) and (i), “usual place of residence” in case of a body corporate means the place where it is incorporated or otherwise legally constituted.

Explanation 2:-. For the purpose of clause (i), in the case of telecommunication service, the usual place of residence shall be the billing address.

(j)    “means of transport” means any conveyance designed to transport goods or persons from one place to another;

(k)   “non-banking financial company” means-

(i)     a financial institution which is a company; or

(ii)    a non-banking institution which is a company and which has as its principal business the receiving of deposits, under any scheme or arrangement or in any other manner, or lending in any manner; or

(iii)   such other non-banking institution or class of such institutions, as the Reserve Bank of India may, with the previous approval of the Central Government and by notification in the Official Gazette specify;

(l)    “online information and database access or retrieval services” has the same meaning as assigned to it in clause (ccd) of sub-rule 1 of rule 2 of the Service Tax Rules, 1994;

(m)  “person liable to pay tax”  shall mean the person liable to pay service tax under section 68 of the Act or under sub-clause (d) of sub-rule (1) of rule 2 of the Service Tax Rules, 1994;

(n)   “provided” includes the expression “to be provided”;

(o)  “received” includes the expression “to be received”;

(p)  “registration” means the registration under rule 4 of the Service Tax Rules, 1994;

(q)  “telecommunication service” means service of any description (including electronic mail, voice mail, data services, audio text services, video text services, radio paging and cellular mobile telephone services) which is made available to users by means of any transmission or reception of signs, signals, writing, images and sounds or intelligence of any nature, by wire, radio, visual or other electro-magnetic means but shall not include broadcasting and online information and database access or retrieval services.

(r) words and expressions used in these rules and not defined, but defined in the Act, shall have the meanings respectively assigned to them in the Act.