July 1st, GST Day

On July 1st, the government celebrated GST Day, yes GST Day. The centre claimed GST has helped in significant growth and that it will be able to streamline GST to make it an easier indirect taxation system.

 Now comes news that the centre is looking to make amendments to GST in as many as 46 categories. A government panel has proposed compliance-related changes - in Central GST, State GST, Integrated GST and the Compensation of Sales Act - with the aims of simplifying the indirect tax system and bringing more entities under the tax net. In a move that may have a retrospective fallout, the amendments propose to clarify that transitional credit cannot be claimed for cesses levied in a pre-GST era.

The panel has proposed amendments like the omission of liability to pay tax on the reverse charge; enabling new return filing procedures and allowing more service providers to opt for composition scheme. The government has invited stakeholder comments on draft proposals for amending GST by July 15. Meaning they are open for public comments until the 15th of this month. These proposals will then have to be cleared by the GST council, the union cabinet, state legislatures and Parliament.