# Contract, GST, TDS, travel and cancellation

> Nine clauses, four numbers and the two tax rules that decide what actually lands in the artist's account.

**Short answer.** A comedian booking in India carries **18% GST** on the fee, and **10% TDS under section 194J** on professional fees where annual payments cross **₹50,000**, a threshold raised from ₹30,000 on 1 April 2025. TDS applies to the fee, not to the GST, when GST is shown separately on the invoice, per CBDT Circular 23/2017. On a ₹1,00,000 booking your PO is ₹1,18,000, you pay ₹1,08,000, and the artist nets ₹90,000 with ₹10,000 as tax credit. Put all nine contract clauses in one document before the PO is raised.

Source: https://c4etalent.com/blog/comedian-contract-gst-tds-travel-india
Published: 2026-08-19 · Updated: 2026-08-19
Publisher: C4E Talent (C4E), https://c4e.in

## Key takeaways
- **18% GST** applies to stand-up comedy and event services. The folk and classical art exemption does not cover it.
- **10% TDS under 194J**, threshold ₹50,000 a year since 1 April 2025. **20% if the artist has no PAN.**
- TDS is deducted on the **fee only**, not on the GST, provided GST is shown separately on the invoice.
- The single most common dispute is not money. It is **who booked the flight**.
- Write cancellation terms **for both sides**. Yours matter more, because you are more likely to use them.
- Recording rights are a separate permission. Their material is their inventory, and "we will just put it on the internal portal" is a publication.

This is the least glamorous guide on this site and the one that saves the most arguments. Almost every unpleasant conversation in a comedy booking is a commercial term that nobody wrote down: who was paying for the flight, whether the quote included tax, what happens now that the event has moved to March, and whether the clip on LinkedIn was allowed.

None of it is complicated. It is nine clauses and four numbers, agreed once, before the purchase order is raised.

> **Not tax advice.** The tax rules below are the ones that come up in every booking, stated as accurately as we can. They are not a substitute for your finance team, who will have views about your specific case and are the people who actually have to file the return.

## The four numbers

Take a ₹1,00,000 fee, which is roughly the middle of the corporate band in the [cost guide](https://c4etalent.com/blog/corporate-comedian-cost-india).

| Step | Amount | Notes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Quoted fee | ₹1,00,000 | What the rate card or the quote says, exclusive of tax. |
| Plus GST at 18% | ₹1,18,000 | This is what the purchase order must be raised for. Raising it for ₹1,00,000 is the most common cause of a delayed payment. |
| Less TDS at 10% under 194J | ₹1,08,000 payable | Deducted on the ₹1,00,000, not on the ₹1,18,000, because GST is shown separately on the invoice. |
| What the artist ends up with | ₹90,000 net, ₹10,000 as credit | They receive ₹1,08,000, remit ₹18,000 of GST, and claim the ₹10,000 TDS against their own tax. |

## GST, in three paragraphs

Stand-up comedy performed for a company is a taxable service at **18%**. There is a well-known exemption for performances in folk or classical art forms where the consideration is under ₹1,50,000 and the artist is not acting as a brand ambassador. Stand-up is not a folk or classical art form, so the exemption does not apply. Anyone quoting it at you is either mistaken or hoping you are.

A performer whose annual turnover is below the GST registration threshold, ₹20 lakh for services in most states and ₹10 lakh in the special category states, may not be registered at all, and will then invoice you without GST. That is legitimate. Ask for the GSTIN in the first email: either they have one and the number is 18% higher than the fee, or they do not and it is not. Both are fine. Finding out after the invoice arrives is not.

Always ask whether a quote is inclusive or exclusive of GST before you compare two of them. Two quotes of ₹1,50,000, one inclusive and one exclusive, are ₹27,000 apart.

## TDS, in three paragraphs

Payments to a performer are professional fees under **section 194J**, deducted at **10%** for residents. The Finance Act 2025 raised the annual threshold from ₹30,000 to **₹50,000** with effect from 1 April 2025, so most single corporate bookings cross it comfortably. If the artist has not furnished a PAN, the rate is **20%**.

TDS is deducted on the fee and not on the GST component, provided the GST is shown separately on the invoice. That is CBDT Circular 23/2017, and it is settled. If your accounts payable system deducts on the gross, someone has configured it wrongly and the artist is short by ₹1,800 on every lakh.

Two courtesies that cost nothing. Tell the artist at quote stage that TDS will be deducted, so the number in their head is the right number. And issue the TDS certificate on time, because they need it to claim the credit and chasing it six months later is a genuinely miserable job.

## The nine clauses

1. **Scope.** Date, venue, exact stage time, set length, format, and whether hosting is included. "Evening of the 12th" is not a stage time. If the artist is also hosting, say which parts of the evening.
2. **Fee and taxes.** The fee, whether it is inclusive or exclusive of GST, the GSTIN or a statement that the artist is unregistered, and the TDS rate you will deduct.
3. **Payment terms.** The advance percentage, when it is due, what triggers the balance, and the number of days after that. Fifty per cent on confirmation and the balance within seven days of the show is the common shape.
4. **Travel and stay.** Who books, who pays, what class, how many people, and whether it is reimbursed at actuals or included as a fixed sum. Name the airport and the hotel.
5. **Technical requirements.** The AV rider: PA, wireless handheld plus a spare, a live operator, stage lighting, and a sound check window before the room fills. Sent to the venue, not only to your team.
6. **Content terms.** Corporate-safe by name, plus your specific no-go list. This is a contractual term, not a preference, and it belongs here as well as in the brief.
7. **Recording and usage.** Whether you may photograph, record audio, record video, and what you may do with each. Internal circulation, social media and advertising are three different permissions.
8. **Cancellation and postponement.** What each side owes at 30 days, 14 days, 7 days and on the day. Include force majeure and, in India, include the ones that actually happen: a flight cancelled by weather, a venue withdrawn, a national day of mourning, a local shutdown.
9. **Contacts.** One named person on each side with a mobile number and the authority to decide something at 6pm on the day.

## Travel is where the arguments are

Not the amount. The ownership. The pattern is always the same: the company assumes the artist will book and claim, the artist assumes the company's travel desk will issue tickets, and at T-minus-nine-days there is no flight on a route that is now twice the price.

**Settle these five, in writing, at contract stage**
- [ ] Who raises the booking: your travel desk or the artist claiming at actuals.
- [ ] Which flights. Arriving the night before is not the same as arriving at 4pm for an 8pm show.
- [ ] How many people. A comedian usually travels alone; a musical act does not.
- [ ] The hotel, by name, with checkout timing that covers a late show.
- [ ] Airport transfers at both ends, and who is meeting them.

The rule worth adopting: for anything outside the artist's home city, have your travel desk book and pay directly. It is cheaper, it removes a reimbursement cycle, and it means the ticket exists rather than being somebody's intention.

## Cancellation, written for the side that will use it

Companies write cancellation clauses as though the risk is the artist not turning up. In practice the event moves far more often than the artist does. Budgets freeze, dates shift, a merger lands in the same week.

**A common and fair shape for a corporate booking. Negotiate it before you need it.**
| When you cancel | Typically payable | Reasoning |
| --- | --- | --- |
| More than 30 days out | Advance refunded or held against a new date | The diary can still be resold. |
| 14 to 30 days | The advance is retained | The date is now hard to fill, and the writing has started. |
| 7 to 14 days | 50% of the fee | The evening is gone and the material exists. |
| Under 7 days, or on the day | 100% of the fee | Nothing else can be booked into it. |

Ask for the mirror image too. If the artist cancels for anything other than genuine force majeure, what do you get: a refund, a replacement of equivalent standing, or both? A talent manager should be offering the replacement without being asked. That is a large part of what a roster is for.

## Recording rights

A comedian's material is their inventory. An hour of tested, working material takes years to build and a single upload to devalue, because a joke that has been seen cannot be sold to the next room in the same way.

Most performers are relaxed about photographs and a few short clips for internal use. Full-set video, public posting and any use in marketing are separate permissions and sometimes carry a separate fee. Ask at quote stage, write the answer down, and brief your in-house videographer, because "we will just put it on the internal portal" is a publication and the portal always leaks.

## Two traps worth naming

- **The purchase order raised for the wrong number.** Raised for the fee, not the fee plus GST, then the invoice cannot be processed, then payment slips a month while a PO amendment goes through three approvals. Check this on the day the PO is raised, not the day the invoice arrives.
- **Ninety-day payment terms applied to an individual.** Standard vendor terms applied to a person who did one evening's work. It is legal and it is remembered, and the second quote you get from that artist will be higher.

Every C4E Talent booking goes out with all nine clauses filled in, and travel, stay and taxes quoted separately so the number you approve is the number you pay. [Ask for a quote →](https://c4etalent.com/book)

## Frequently asked questions
**Is GST applicable on a stand-up comedian's fee in India?**

Yes, at 18%, provided the artist is registered for GST. The exemption for performances in folk or classical art forms below ₹1,50,000 does not cover stand-up comedy. An artist whose turnover is under the registration threshold, ₹20 lakh for services in most states, may be unregistered and will invoice without GST.

**What TDS rate applies to a comedian's performance fee?**

10% under section 194J, which covers professional services. The annual threshold rose from ₹30,000 to ₹50,000 with effect from 1 April 2025. If the artist has not furnished a PAN, the rate is 20%. Individuals and HUFs below the specified turnover limits are not required to deduct.

**Is TDS deducted on the GST portion of an artist's invoice?**

No, provided the GST is shown separately on the invoice. CBDT Circular 23/2017 clarifies that tax is deducted on the amount excluding GST. On a ₹1,00,000 fee plus ₹18,000 GST, TDS is ₹10,000, not ₹11,800.

**Who should book the comedian's flights and hotel?**

For anything outside the artist's home city, your travel desk should book and pay directly. It is usually cheaper, it removes a reimbursement cycle, and it means the ticket exists rather than being someone's intention. Whatever you decide, put it in the contract with the airport, the hotel and the arrival timing named.

**What is a fair cancellation policy for a comedy booking?**

A common shape is: more than 30 days out, the advance is refunded or held against a new date; 14 to 30 days, the advance is retained; 7 to 14 days, 50% of the fee; under 7 days or on the day, the full fee. Ask for the mirror clause too, covering what you receive if the artist cancels.

**Can we record and share the comedy set?**

Ask first and write the answer down. Photographs and short internal clips are usually fine. Full-set video, public posting and any marketing use are separate permissions and may carry a separate fee, because tested material is the performer's inventory and a joke that has been seen cannot be sold to the next room the same way.

**What advance is standard when booking a comedian in India?**

Fifty per cent on confirmation, with the balance within seven days of the show, is the common shape. What matters more than the percentage is that the balance trigger and the payment window are written down, because standard 90-day vendor terms applied to one individual's evening of work get remembered and priced in next time.

**What should be in a comedian's booking contract?**

Nine clauses: scope with the exact stage time, fee and tax treatment, payment terms, travel and stay ownership, the AV rider, content terms including your no-go list, recording and usage rights, cancellation on both sides, and one named contact per side with the authority to decide something at 6pm on the day.

## How to cite this page
C4E Talent, "The commercials: contract, GST, TDS, travel and cancellation", 2026-08-19. https://c4etalent.com/blog/comedian-contract-gst-tds-travel-india