The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council on Friday decided to extend compensation cess till March 2026 for repaying loans. "Detailed financial statements have been worked out, based on which we learn that cess will have to be collected till March 2026, purely to pay back loans taken between 2020-21 and 2021-22," Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman stated while briefing media on the outcome of 45th GST Council meeting.