Health Security se National Security (HSNS) Cess on pan masala commenced 1 February 2026

The HSNS Cess Act and the HSNS Cess Rules commenced on 1 February 2026. The cess is levied on the machines installed or the processes used to manufacture specified goods, initially pan masala, and the Government may extend it to other goods by notification. Every taxable person must register in FORM HSNS REG-01 through the ACES portal, with separate registration for each factory; for manufacturers already in business on 1 February 2026 the liability and the registration certificate both run from that date. Registration is deemed approved if the officer does not act within seven working days, and a machine declaration in FORM HSNS DEC-01 must be filed within seven days of registration and refreshed within fifteen days of any change in machine parameters. Cess is payable at the beginning of each month and no later than the 7th of that month.

Open and running. The government FAQ refers to the enabling statute both as the 'Health Security se National Security Cess Act, 2025' and, in its title, as the 2026 Act, so the exact short title is not settled on the page I read. Private tax commentary reports that GST on pan masala, cigarettes and tobacco moved to 40% and compensation cess on those goods was set to nil from the same date (Notification No. 03/2025-Compensation Cess (Rate) dated 31 December 2025); I could not confirm that notification on a government page, so it is not recorded as fact here.

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