What forced GSTN to defer invoice uploading service

Taxpayers will have to wait for another week before they can access the Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN) for uploading invoices. GSTN -- the company that provides IT infrastructure services to GST taxpayers, central and state governments -- was supposed to open the invoice uploading services from  July 16 but has now extended the date by a week to July 24.

The reason for the deferral apparently is to check the readiness of the GST Suvidha Providers (GSPs), the entities who are supposed to facilitate uploading of invoices and returns. Navin Kumar, Chairman, GSTN, said that they wanted to see how the GSP systems are working, and therefore, instead of going live from July 16, they have decided to do a trial run for a week in which they have asked all the GSPs to participate. "We will release this (service) to a close group of tax officials and taxpayers...5,000 of them at the last count. We have asked all the GSPs to participate in the trial run. We want to see how prepared their systems are," say Navin Kumar of GSTN.

The target is to involve up to 10,000 taxpayers and officials in the trial run. Kumar was, however, not sure if all the GSPs would participate in the trial run. So far, GSTN has given approval to 34 GSPs. "Large businesses that generates thousands and lakhs of invoices would use the GSPs for uploading these documents and if GSPs are not ready what is the use of starting the service," says Kumar raising doubts over the preparedness of GSPs. Kumar says that from their side they have given the APIs to GSPs and now they want to see if they are ready with their systems. '' Whatever has been rolled out, the APIs of these are ready and have been given the GSPs," he says. APIs are set of protocols and tools used for creating application software.

Earlier, Kumar had told Business Today that they had given updated APIs till June 28, and that GSPs would take a week to make these changes and be ready by July 16. But now it seems not all GSPs are ready with their system. Meanwhile, GSTN has received 7.4 lakh applications for new registrations out of which 5 lakh have been approved. Among the 80 lakh existing indirect taxpayers, 70 lakh have migrated to  the GST network.