GST extends deadline for filing annual returns by two months to August 30

GST returns filing deadline extended till August 30; new returns form from Jan 2020; use of Aadhaar for GSTN registration approved
For representational purposes.
For representational purposes.

NEW DELHI: The GST Council, which met for the first time after general elections on Friday, extended the date for filing annual returns under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime by two months to August 30. It also agreed to introduce a new one-form GST returns filing system, which will kick in from January 1, 2020.

The Council also allowed businesses to use Aadhaar for registration with GST-Network, easing the process.“One of the major changes we’ve made is for the ease of GST registration. In the earlier system, people had to submit various documents. Now, we have decided to use Aadhaar.

The applicant can go online using his Aadhaar number; via OTP authentication, he can register himself on the GSTN portal and get GSTN registration number,” revenue secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey said.

The GST Council headed by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman also approved an electronic invoicing system and e-ticketing in multiplexes.Among other decisions, the council also extended the tenure of the GST Anti-Profiteering Authority by two years and approved imposing a penalty of up to 10 per cent of the profiteered amount on firms not passing on benefits of GST rate cuts to consumers.

Pandey said proposal to reduce the GST rate on electric vehicles to 5 per cent from the current 12 per cent, and on electric chargers from 18 per cent to 1 per cent, has been referred to the fitment committee, which will take a call before the next GST Council meeting.

The fitment committee will also decide GST on solar panels and wind turbines, in view of court judgments. The GST Council will decide on the issue of GST on lotteries after taking legal opinion from the Attorney General.

Officials said that though there were in all some 12 items on the council’s agenda, only a few could be taken up. The remaining would be taken up at the next meet. Among the demands that have been deferred is the GST cut on automobiles, Demand in the sector has been shrinking, forcing carmakers to shut down factories for weeks.

No tax breaks

While SIAM sought GSDT cut from 18 per cent to 12 per cent, finance ministry officials said that most states were having difficulty balancing their books and were chary of taking deep tax cuts

Related Stories

No stories found.
The New Indian Express
www.newindianexpress.com