Delhi court for refund of GST collected from DNB candidates

New Delhi, May 22

Holding that GST collected from Diplomate National Board (DNB) candidates against the course fee paid by them has to be refunded, the Delhi High Court has directed the National Board of Examinations (NBE) to file an affidavit disclosing the names of all candidates from whom the course fee and GST was collected.

A Division Bench of Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice Amit Mahajan also asked the NBE, which awards DNB degrees to doctors, to furnish details such as the quantum of course fee and GST separately; the name of the hospital to which course fee and GST was remitted in respect of each candidate; and the mode and the date of remitting the funds to the hospital.

The DNB is a postgraduate degree similar to MD/MS degree awarded to specialist doctors in India after the completion of residency.

The Bench posted the matter for further hearing on September 5 after the NBE submitted that “the funds collected from various candidates, including the GST collected, are no longer available with NBE. The entire funds have been disbursed to various hospitals”.

The order came on a petition filed by Association of DNB Doctors challenging the notifications dated January 15, 2021, February 15, 2021 and August 19, 2021 issued by the NBE to the extent that the candidates had been directed to deposit the fees along with Goods and Services Tax (GST).

As per the notification, the annual course fee was Rs 1.25 lakh plus GST of Rs 22,500, which comes to be Rs 1,47,500.

However, during the hearing, the NBE did not dispute that GST was not payable on the course fee. The NBE also acknowledged that its demand from the candidates to pay GST on the course fee was “erroneous”.

What is DNB

The DNB (Diplomate National Board) is a postgraduate degree similar to MD/MS degree awarded to specialist doctors in India after the completion of residency.