RECENT DEVELOPMENTS IN GST

[Dr. Sanjiv Agarwal]

Ministry of Finance has recently the monthly economic review, according to which economic outlook appears to be bright. RBI has already estimated 7% growth for FY 2025. The household consumption is also expected to improve. However, it has flagged headwinds from geopolitical tensions including supply chain disruptions and higher logistics costs, volatility in international financial markets and geo-economic fragmentation.

The Finance Bill, 2024 has since been enacted as Act No. 8 of 2024 on its receiving assent of the President on 15.02.2024. The same has also been notified. Apart from direct tax changes, it amends section 2(61) & 20 and new section 122A for penalty for non-registration of specified machinery. The amendments shall come into force from a notified date. GST Collection has averaged Rs. 1.67 trillion January, 2024. It is expected that Rs. 1.7 trillion may be the average in FY 2025.

There has been an increase in the amount devolved to states. Centre will share about 32 percent of central taxes with the states during FY 2024-25 and 2023-24, through 15th Finance Commission had recommended @ 42%. Further, tax GDP ratio is projected to be highest in FY 2025 in last ten years @ 11.69%.

Ministry of Finance, Government of India has issued a vacancy Circular for appointment of members for proposed GSTAT tribunal, the last date of which is 31st March, 2024. Once the members are in place, GSTAT shall be made functional soon thereafter.

CBIC has issued guidelines against practice of issuance of fake summons to the taxpayers and verification thereof.

Finance Bill, 2024 enacted

• Finance Bill, 2024 (Bill No. 14 of 2024) introduced in Parliament on 1^st February, 2024 has since been legislated.
• Finance Act, 2024 (Act No. 8 of 2024) received the assent of the President on 15^th February, 2024.
• Finance Act, 2024 amends Income Tax Act, 1961 and CGST Act, 2017.
• The amendments in CGST Act, 2017 are in section 2(61), 20 and 122A.
• GST changes shall come into force from a notified date.
• Related Notification has been issued in Gazette of India on 15.02.2024.

(Source: Gazette Notification No. CG-DL-E-16022024-252143 dated 15.02.2024)

Appointment of Members at GSTAT

• Ministry of Finance has issued a Circular dated 15.02.2024 for Selection for the posts of Member(s) in Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal (Principal / State Benches).
• Applications have been invited for following vacancies w.e.f. 01.04.2024

Post	Bench	# of Posts
Judicial Member	Principal and State Benches	Principal Bench - 1 States Benches – 62 Total – 63
Technical Member (Centre)	Principal and State Benches	Principal Bench - 1 States Benches – 31                Total – 32
Technical Member (State)	Principal Bench	Principal Bench - 1                   Total - 1
Total Posts		96

 

• Online application shall be made from 19.02.2024 and last date is 31.03.2024.
• Appointment shall be made on the recommendation of a Search-Cum-Selection Committee and personal interaction of shortlisted candidates.

(Source: Circular F. No. A-50050/99/2018-CESTAT DOR-DOR dated February, 2024

issued by Ministry of Finance Department of Revenue)

CBIC Advisory on Fake GST Summons

• CBIC has cautioned against fraudsters issuing fake GST summons and asked taxpayers to check the authenticity of any communication received from GST authorities.
• The fake summons that are being sent out might look real because they have a Document Identification Number (DIN), but these DIN numbers are not issued by DGGI in the case of these entities. To deal with this issue, DGGI has been taking serious steps by informing and filing complaints with the Police against those involved in creating and sending fake and fraudulent summons.
• Taxpayers can verify the genuineness of any communication (including summons) from the department by using the ‘VERIFY CBIC-DIN’ window on the CBIC’s website or the DIN Utility Search on the online portal of Directorate of Data Management (DDM), CBIC.
• Taxpayers have advised to report suspicious or possibly fake summons to jurisdictional DGGI / CBIC office.

(Source CBIC Statement dated 10.02.2024)

Option for Composition Scheme for FY 2024-25

• Taxpayers  have to opt for Composition scheme for FY 2024-25 latest by 31^st March, 2024
• The GSTN has issued an update stating that taxpayers may opt for the Composition Scheme for the FY 2024-25 by accessing the GSTN Portal.
• The facility shall remain open until March 31, 2024.
• To opt for the Composition Scheme, taxpayers are required to navigate to ‘Services -> Registration -> Application to Opt for Composition Levy’ and file Form CMP-02.

(Source: GSTN Portal dated 12.02.2024)

Advisory on GST E-Invoicing: Launch of Enhanced einvoice.gst.gov. portal

GSTN has launched the revamped e-invoice master information portal [https:einvoice.gst.gov.in], the salient features of which are as follows:

(i) PAN-Based Search: To check e-invoice enablement status using PAN with GSTIN

(ii) Automatic E-invoice exemption List: download updated list of all GSTIN who have filed for e-invoice exemption.

(iii) Global Search Bar: A comprehensive search tab for quick access to the information across the portal.

(iv) Local Search Capabilities: Enhanced search functionality within advisory, FAQ, manual, and other sections.

(v) Revamped Advisory and FAQ Section: Now organized year-wise and month-wise for easier reference, offering comprehensive guidance.

(vi) Daily IRN Count Statistics: Statistics on the daily Invoice Reference Number (IRN) generation count.

(vii) Dedicated Section on Mobile App: Information and support for the e-invoice QR Code Verifier app.

(viii) Improved Accessibility Compliance and UI/UX: Portal now offers improved features such as contrast adjustment, text resizing buttons, and screen reader support for enhanced accessibility.

(ix) Updated Website Policy: The website policy has been thoroughly updated including the website archival policy, content management & moderation policy, and web information manager details.

 

GST: Enhanced e-invocing initiatives

GSTN has introduced an internal e-invoice comprehensive health dashboard to further enhance monitoring of the e-invoice ecosystem. GSTN E-Invoicing System has the following:

1. Expansion of IRP Portals: Today, GSTN operates a total of six IRP portals through its partners, running robustly alongside the centralized de-duplication system.
2. E-Invoicing Reporting Accessibility: All taxpayers who are eligible for e-invoicing can report e-invoices through any of these six IRP portals. The reporting can be done online, via APIs, or through a mobile app, all free of cost, making the process accessible and convenient for taxpayers nationwide.
3. Hourly Auto population of e-invoices in GSTR-1 from new IRPs. Additionally, we are working with NIC-IRP to enable hourly auto-population of e-invoices in GSTR-1 reported on the NIC-IRP 1&2 portal.
4. E-invoice download for past six months for both buyers and sellers via e-invoice portals and G2B APIs.
5. E-invoice QR code verifier App for verification of e-invoice, and search IRN functionality for online verification of IRN.

(Source: GSTN Portal dated 21.02.2024)

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