New Delhi: Revenue collections from Goods and Services Tax inched up marginally in July to ₹ 96,483 crore indicating the efficacy of GST e-way bills now compulsory for shipment of goods within states and across the country in checking tax evasion. A statement from the finance ministry said the improved GST collections come in the wake of higher tax filings in July. About 6.6 million GST returns (referred to as GSTR 3B) have been filed up to 31 July. In June, 6.46 million returns were filed.
July’s GST collection, that relates to sales made in June, does not reflect the latest round of GST rate cuts which came into force last Friday. Considering its impact to slow down revenue growth, the tax authorities are likely to keep compliance improvement high on their priority. The central government, is banking on robust revenue collections from corporate and personal income taxes as well as petroleum products, which are outside GST, for overall revenue growth.
The finance ministry statement said that ₹ 3,899 crore has been released to the states as GST compensation for the months of April-May to meet their revenue shortfall.
“Certainly, GST revenue collections are improving from last three months after implementation of e-way bill which is a major tool to curb tax evasion,” said Vishal Raheja, deputy general manager (GST) of Taxmann, a publisher of tax and corporate law.
The latest GST rate cuts will impact revenue collection in the short run but demand for goods will go up due to lower prices, which will boost collection in the long run, he added.