26th GST council meeting: A mingle of advances and adjournments
The government has yet again paced up the reforms under GST with no significant alteration in certain aspects.
In the 26th GST council meeting that was held over Video Conferencing on 10th March 2018, the government has given green signal to some laws that were hitherto on hold. The council has lastly promulgated the final date for roll-out of E-Waybill, i.e. April 1.
There are certain GST tax norms where modifications are deferred till the monsoon session of parliament, due to inadequate provisions and lack of consensus on the same.
Adjournments in GST tax norms till July 1, 2017:
Deferment #1: GST return filling
The present system of GST Return filing that mandates the filing of 2 major types of GST returns, viz. GSTR 1 and 3B, is to be extended until June 30, 2018. As per the proposed system, GSTR 3B was to be replaced by the triplicate returns, this would sharply repress tax evasion. The decision wasn’t implemented as the council couldn’t reach a consensus on this matter. However, the GoM will soon deliberate upon the corrective measure to simplify the GST return filling procedure without hampering the capability to track evasions and revenue leakages.
Deferment #2: Reverse Charge Mechanism
The Reverse Charge Mechanism has been deferred till June 30. Thus, the tax liabilities on the commodities that fall under RCM won’t arise on the purchasers for the next 3 months. The RCM scheme was introduced to cover the tax assessees that had not undergone the GST registration procedure. However, a group of ministers will scrutinize the modus operandi of the RCM scheme as to track and rule out all hassles posed to trade and commerce.
Deferment #3: TDS &TCS deductions
The government has given separate provisions for TDS &TCS in CGST Act 2017 under sections 51 and 52 respectively. These provisions are shelved as of now. The tax deduction hereunder the CGST Act stands at 1% of the total payment to the supplier of goods with the total value, exceeding INR 2.5 lakhs under a contract. TDS had to be deducted if the contract value would exceed INR 2.5 lakhs, regardless of the invoice value of goods.
Deferment #4: Due dates of GSTR 1 and 3B
The deadlines for filing of GSTR 1 and 3B have remained unchanged. The due date for filing GSTR 3B for the month of March is April 20. According to the scheme that was proposed earlier, separate due dates for GST Return filing online for large companies were likely to be declared, that was 7th or 8th of every month. Refer to this link for details on the same. No implementation has been made as such.
Under the current system, if the turnover exceeds INR 1.5 crore, quarterly GSTR-1 returns are meant to be filed. The deadline for filing monthly returns stands unchanged at 10th of the concluding month of the quarter.
The E-Waybill Mandate
The decision of implementation of E-Waybill for the interstate transit of goods of value exceeding INR 50,000/- that was topsy-turvy due to the existing glitches in the system, will be now brought into effect on the initiation of the Financial Year 2018-19, i.e. on 1st April. However, it will still not be required in 8 states viz. Maharashtra, Pondicherry, Bihar, Assam, Tripura, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat.
The intrastate E-Waybill will be brought out on April 15 in laps. It will eventually be put into practice in all states by June 1. The traders who have undergone GST registration will now be able to reap the benefits of this electronic mechanism.
Tax Exemptions for the Export Promotion
The council has several measures for export promotion as it did in the 25th GST council meeting. Some of them are as follows:
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A major decision has come as regards current tax exemptions to the exporters on imports of inputs under various schemes such as Export Promotion Capital Goods (EPCG) scheme that allows import of capital for pre and post production at 0% customs duty. All such schemes are to be extended until 1st October 2017.
- In view of the expediencies that the MSME exporters were facing on account of the cash crunch and advance payment of IGST liabilities on the inputs for export purpose, pre-GST tax exemptions on imports of inputs have been introduced as an interim solution.
- Furthermore, for merchant exporters, a subsidized scheme of 0.1% GST on their procured goods has been revamped.
- Besides, as under Advance Authorization schemes, EPCG and EOU schemes, the interstate supplies were recognized as 'deemed exports' and exporters were enabled to claim GST refund. These schemes were effective till March 31, 2018.
- A significant step has been taken by the implementation of e-Wallet scheme w.e.f. April 1. These electronic e-Wallets will be financially backed by DGFT though actual or crypto-currency. This scheme will be fully implemented by 1st of October.
These measures will truly accelerate exports and will urge the small exporters to get GST registration and Import-Export Code Registration.
If you have any queries regarding GST registration procedure or need any assistance with GST Return Filling, feel free to contact us at 8881-069-069.