The 56th meeting of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council on Tuesday approved several measures aimed at easing compliance and facilitating trade, including faster refunds, simplified registration schemes, and clarity on post-sale discounts. Most of these reforms will be operational from November 1, 2025.
For ease of doing business, a simplified GST registration scheme will be introduced for small and low-risk applicants, allowing automated registration within three working days. Applicants with monthly output tax liability of up to ₹2.5 lakh on B2B supplies will be eligible, covering nearly 96% of new registrants. A separate simplified registration scheme for small e-commerce suppliers operating across multiple states was also approved in principle.
One of the key decisions was to sanction risk-based provisional refunds for exporters and suppliers to SEZs. Under the revised framework, 90% of refund claims will be released provisionally based on system-identified risk parameters, while only high-risk cases will undergo detailed scrutiny. A similar provision has been extended to refund claims arising from the inverted duty structure (IDS), ensuring quicker release of funds to businesses.
The Council also approved an amendment to the CGST Act to remove the threshold limit for refunds on low-value export consignments, a move expected to benefit small exporters using courier and postal modes.
The Council further recommended the omission of Section 13(8)(b) of the IGST Act, which currently deems the place of supply for intermediary services to be in India. With this change, such services will be treated as exports if the recipient is located abroad, enabling service providers to claim export benefits.
On post-sale discounts, the Council cleared amendments to Sections 15 and 34 of the CGST Act, removing the earlier requirement of pre-supply agreements and linking discounts to invoices. Discounts will now be allowed through GST credit notes, with corresponding ITC reversals. The government will also rescind its June 2024 circular on the issue and issue a fresh clarification to remove ambiguities.
Among other decisions, the Council recommended retail sale price (RSP)-based valuation for sin goods such as pan masala, cigarettes, gutkha, and chewing tobacco, to plug revenue leakages.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, briefing reporters after the meeting, said the measures reflect the government’s focus on making GST simpler, faster, and more predictable. “These reforms will especially help small businesses, exporters, and labour-intensive sectors,” she said.
It was also announced that the Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT) will be made operational for accepting appeals before the end of September and will commence hearing before the end of December this year.