It has been over three years since the introduction of GST, and it’s been a roller coaster ride for all the stakeholders. There continues to be several areas of inconsistency between the GST law and the GST portal. To name a few, GSTN portal does not have a functionality to link multiple invoices with a single credit note, non-availability of date of filing of the GST returns by the vendor, no possibility to track the amendment of any invoices, inability to provide negative values in GSTR 3B, and the list is long. However, GST policy makers have been very proactive in taking cognizance of the hardships faced by the industry and are committed to bring about requisite amendments from time to time.
The huge compliance burden posed under GST has been a matter of huge concern for India Inc. Recently, senior officials from the GSTN and GST policy wing, with a view to remedy the hardships faced by the taxpayers, announced certain steps that are proposed to be taken to improve the overall compliance framework. The key proposal is scrapping of new returns format proposed last year and streamlining the existing GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B returns. This is a welcome move given that the industry is well settled with the existing return formats.
A series of other changes have been proposed to the GSTN infrastructure and return formats. Key changes include:
It is imperative to note that the relevant notifications and updated APIs to give effect to the above changes is expected to be released soon. Needless to say, these measures would contribute a great deal in easing the compliance burden and will provide much-needed relief to taxpayers. Slowly and steadily, the government is moving towards its vision of creating a fully automated tax ecosystem, and augmenting trust and transparency among all stakeholders.
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The writer is Partner and Leader - Indirect Tax, BDO India)