The 37th GST Council meeting took place on 20th September in Goa and Finance Minister (FM), Nirmala Sitharaman, chaired the GST Council. In this meeting, FM announced the decision taken around linking Aadhaar with taxpayers registering under GST. A decision has also been made to see the probability of making Aadhaar compulsory for GST refund claims.
FM also mentioned that a committee would be set up to make sure that the forms around annual return and reconciliation are simplified. Furthermore, appropriate amendments will be made in the CGST Act, UGST Act, and the interrelated SGST Acts considering the creation of Union Territories of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh.
The GST Council has also taken a decision to impose feasible restrictions on taxpayers who default on passing ITC benefits; this will be inclusive of new taxpayers too. FM believes that with this decision, the menace of fraudulent refunds and fake invoices could be controlled.
Also Read: FM on MSME: GST refunds to pace up; TReDs to associate with GSTN
The GSTR-9 filing for MSMEs with an annual turnover of up to Rs 2 crore will be optional for the last two fiscal years. Also, GSTR-9A filing has been waived for composition taxpayers for FY 2017-18 and 2018-19.
The GST council has also made a decision to withdraw a particular circular that was issued in June. This circular specified that the extra discount a company gives to a dealer in specific cases will be accountable for GST.
Another critical decision was made in the 37th GST Council meeting with regards to the new GST return system. With an aim to give taxpayers more time to adapt to the new return system, the implementation of the new GST returns has now been deferred to April 2020.
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Bhavana is a Senior Content Writer handling the GST vertical. She is committed, professional, and has a flair for writing. When away from work, she enjoys watching movies and playing with her son. One thing she can’t resist is SHOPPING! Her favourite quote is: “Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity”.
