Latest news with #IGST
Hans India
2 days ago
- Business
- Hans India
Every 1 in 5 GST taxpayers in India now a woman: SBI Research
New Delhi: There are over 1.52 crore active Goods and Services Tax (GST) registrations and one-fifth of registered GST taxpayers in India now have at least one woman, and 14 per cent of registered taxpayers have all female members (on the basis of the constitution of business), an SBI report revealed on Tuesday. This representation is substantially high in limited liability partnership (LLP) and private limited companies and the vectors of increased formalization and momentum in corporate playbook augur well for equitable representation in the offing, according to the SBI's Economic Research Department report. 'This data, along-with 15 per cent share of women in overall income taxpayers and 40 per cent in overall deposits, mirrors women empowerment,' said Dr Soumya Kanti Ghosh, Group Chief Economic Advisor, SBI. In just five years (FY21-FY25), gross GST collection doubled and even average monthly gross GST collection is now Rs 2 lakh crore. Top five states account for 41 per cent of gross revenue and six states have crossed Rs 1 lakh crore mark, Dr Ghosh added. States having GST collection of more than Rs 1 lakh crore have Integrated Goods and Service Tax (IGST) share of more than 30 per cent in their total domestic collection, emphasising the contribution of larger states in pushing GST collection across other states. On July 1, the GST completed eight years since its rollout. Introduced in 2017 as a major step towards economic integration, GST replaced a maze of indirect taxes with a single, unified system. It made tax compliance easier, reduced costs for businesses, and allowed goods to move freely across states. By improving transparency and efficiency, GST helped lay the foundation for a stronger, more integrated economy. 'Our results indicate that convergence pattern strengthens over time, peaking in FY25 across all quantiles. By FY25, convergence is strong across the spectrum, indicating a broad-based equalising effect of GST,' said Dr Ghosh. Surprisingly, some of the larger and richer states like Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and even Karnataka have low share in active GST taxpayers vis-a-vis the state's share in overall GSDP (Gross State Domestic Product). 'Interestingly, states like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Gujarat share in total GST taxpayers is larger than the state's share in overall GSDP. This indicate that there is still a vast untapped potential in GST in these states,' the report mentioned.
The Hindu
2 days ago
- Business
- The Hindu
Heritage to claim ₹4.53 cr refund of GST paid under protest
Dairy company Heritage Foods said it will claim a refund of more than ₹4.53 crore Goods and Services Tax paid under protest consequent to the Supreme Court dismissing a special leave petition in a matter pertaining to flavoured milk HSN classification and the applicable rate of GST. The Supreme Court has dismissed the SLP filed by the GST Department of Andhra Pradesh against the final judgement passed by High Court of Andhra Pradesh in a writ petition. Pursuant to the dismissal of the SLP, flavoured milk is now conclusively classifiable under tariff heading 04029990, attracting 5% GST, as opposed to heading 22029990, which attracts 12% GST. The company said the more ₹4.53 crore it paid under protest consists of IGST of around ₹17 lakh and CGST and SGST of over ₹2.18 crore each.
Time of India
7 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Hyderabad GST scam busted: Rs 6.25 crore ITC fraud via fake toy firm; FIR filed
Representative Image HYDERABAD: Commercial tax department has uncovered a goods and services tax (GST) racket by a city-based proprietor through a fictitious toy-trading firm, illegally pocketing and passing on input tax credit (ITC) worth over 6 crore. A complaint filed by assistant commissioner (State Tax) G Narender Reddy on Monday stated M/s Bala Corporation, headed by N Vinod Kumar, obtained GST registration in Feb 2025 by uploading a forged electricity bill as proof of premises. The declared address at Cristal Complex in Hill Fort Street, Adarsh Nagar was found non-existent during a panchanama inspection of the department in May 2025. Although the firm had declared toys and video-game consoles as its business, e-way bill analytics of the company showed that in March and April 2025 it generated 1,268 outward consignments for portland cement, copper pipes, plywood, iron rods, and other construction materials. You Can Also Check: Hyderabad AQI | Weather in Hyderabad | Bank Holidays in Hyderabad | Public Holidays in Hyderabad "No corresponding inward bills were filed. During the two months, Bala Corporation used bogus documents to avail ITC of 6.25 crore under IGST and pass on 3.12 crore each in SGST and CGST to 32 other entities, despite zero reflection of the same in the auto-drafted ITC statement (GSTR-2B)," the complaint stated. The registration of the company was cancelled on May 9, 2025, with retrospective effect from Feb 25, 2025, but by then the exchequer had suffered a loss of 6.25 crore. The commercial tax department has notified concerned jurisdictional tax officers about the illegally availed ITC benefit, seeking immediate recovery. CCS police have registered a case against Bala Corporation and N Vinod Kumar. Evidence was being analysed to initiate legal action against the accused, an official said.
Mint
7 days ago
- Business
- Mint
Simplify GST: It's time for a single all-India identification mandate
The goods and services tax (GST), which recently completed eight years in India, was originally envisioned as a 'good and simple tax." However, over time, it has become increasingly complex. While a national GST would have been an ideal value added tax (VAT) system, the imperatives of a federal structure led to a compromise, resulting in a dual GST system comprising Central GST (CGST), State GST (SGST) and Integrated GST (IGST). Under this system, the Centre and state governments have concurrent authority to tax the consumption of goods and services based on the principle of incidence at destination, in contrast with the previous indirect tax regime, which followed an origin-based taxation approach. Also Read: Ajit Ranade: A progressive GST is easier to promise than achieve While the uniformity of SGST laws across states has reduced compliance complexities compared to the VAT regime, challenges remain. Businesses with a pan-India presence still need multiple SGST registrations and must manage compliance separately for each state, including GST payments and return filings. This fragmented approach retains some of the administrative burdens of the VAT era despite the procedural standardization. Compliance burden: The Indian GST framework, often referred to as a 'one nation, one tax' system, has unified tax rates across states and Union territories (UTs), eliminating other taxes on goods and services under its scope. While this standardization simplifies the tax structure, businesses that operate across multiple states or UTs, as mentioned above, are required to obtain separate GST Identification Numbers (GSTINs) for each state or UT and file individual GST returns by using separate usernames and passwords for each jurisdiction. This has led to complex compliance procedures and a notable increase in related costs, especially due to the extensive reconciliations needed on a monthly and annual basis. Also Read: How India's GST revenues can sustain their incline On another front, the central government is working to address inter-governmental settlement issues related to IGST. Between April and July 2024, excess IGST allocations amounting to ₹10,659 crore were made to certain states. To resolve this, an internal committee has been set up that is chaired by the additional secretary of revenue at the Centre and comprises officials from both state and central governments. This panel aims to review the IGST mechanism and develop strategies for recovering these excess transfers. These developments highlight the operational complexities and financial implications associated with the implementation of GST, despite its overarching goal of creating a unified tax system. E-invoicing: The GST compliance process is largely digitized, with e-invoicing now mandatory for all business-to-business (B2B) transactions for taxpayers with an annual turnover exceeding ₹5 crore. There are plans to extend this requirement to all taxpayers and eventually to business-to-consumer (B2C) transactions. Once fully implemented, e-way bills should be eliminated. This move would significantly reduce the compliance burden for taxpayers and streamline operations, leading to faster turnaround times for transport vehicles and improved efficiency in the supply chain. Also Read: Mint Quick Edit | India's GST peak is reassuring PAN 2.0: The Union government recently unveiled plans to introduce PAN 2.0, an upgraded version of the longstanding Permanent Account Number system used by the Income Tax department as a unique taxpayer identifier. PAN 2.0 aims to modernize and streamline operations for businesses and citizens alike. The revamped system will leverage advanced technology to enhance efficiency, integrate PAN as a single identifier for specified business activities and introduce a unified portal for all PAN-related services. This presents an ideal opportunity to design a single GSTIN for taxpayers operating across India. Under this system, tax allocation can occur seamlessly at the back-end, using place-of-supply rules and data captured through e-invoicing. Such a framework would eliminate the need for an integrated GST administration across levels of governments under the GST Council. Since transaction-wise granular data would be available, GST revenues can be allocated equally between the Centre and states—and, on a destination-based principle, between states. Also Read: Simplify India's GST regime: The case for it is clear and it's time to act In this context, lessons can be learnt from the experience of other federal countries such as the United Arab Emirates (UAE), where a single VAT registration number is used for operations across all its constituent emirates. In the UAE, a unified VAT applies to intra-emirate, inter-emirate and import transactions without the need for separate registration in each emirate. India's next GST Council meeting should discuss this crucial aspect as well, since taking such simplification steps for GST compliance could significantly ease operational challenges for businesses and reduce administrative overheads, thus fostering economic growth by creating a more efficient and business-friendly tax regime. These are the authors' personal views. The authors are associated with the Pune International Centre (PIC), a think tank.
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Business Standard
14-07-2025
- Business
- Business Standard
Supreme Court dismisses tax demand raised by CBIC against IndiGo
The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a plea by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) against InterGlobe Aviation, the parent company of India's largest airline, IndiGo, seeking to impose integrated goods and services tax (IGST) on re-imported aircraft and parts sent overseas for repairs. The tax demand was based on a 2021 government notification that sought to clarify and retrospectively amend a 2017 exemption. The government had challenged the Customs, Excise & Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) ruling of August 2024, which rejected the retrospective tax demand, stating that it would place an additional burden on airlines. A bench comprising Justices B.V. Nagarathna and K.V. Viswanathan on Monday refused to admit the customs department's appeal and dismissed it. Additional Solicitor General (ASG) N. Venkataraman, appearing for the customs department, argued that nearly ₹100 crore in tax revenue was at stake. He also submitted that the interpretation of the 2017 notification is already under challenge before the Supreme Court. 'Even if the 2021 notification is struck down for being retrospective, our case survives because duties of customs under the 2017 notification include IGST. All I am requesting is that if we win on the 2017 notification, the benefit of that ruling should apply to these bills [and] other imports as well,' he said. The court, however, rejected the argument, stating: 'You can't do it by a retrospective amendment… If the 2017 notification did not cover IGST, you cannot use the 2021 notification to impose it retrospectively.' The government has announced that a uniform IGST rate of 5 per cent on all aircraft and aircraft engine parts will come into effect from 15 July. Last week, the 53rd GST Council recommended a uniform 5 per cent tax on imports of parts, components, testing equipment, tools, and toolkits of aircraft, irrespective of their HSN code. The aim is to reduce operational costs, resolve tax credit issues, and attract investment. IndiGo has also challenged the constitutionality of the 2021 notification before the Delhi High Court. On 4 March, the High Court struck down the additional tax imposed on the repair cost of goods re-imported into India after being sent abroad for maintenance. The airline's parent company argued that it had already paid import duties on overseas repairs as part of the import of services and should not be taxed again upon the re-import of the repaired aircraft parts. IndiGo, which is principally engaged in the transportation of passengers and goods by air within and outside India, sends its goods to maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) service providers outside the country. Once repaired, the goods are re-imported. S.R. Patnaik, Partner and Head of Taxation Practice at law firm Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, said the Supreme Court's decision to dismiss the revenue's plea reinforces a vital principle in tax jurisprudence—that retrospective tax demands must pass the test of fairness and legal certainty. 'This ruling provides much-needed reassurance to businesses that tax exemptions, once validly claimed, will not be reopened by retrospective changes. It will likely influence how courts approach other cases involving retrospective levies, and hence, it is expected that the tax authorities shall use their powers in a more restrained manner,' he said. 'This precedent strengthens challenges in sectors like online gaming, where the retrospective levy of GST on the face value of bets is under judicial scrutiny. The ruling signals that tax certainty cannot be achieved by imposing obligations retrospectively, a development that certainly restores hope among taxpayers,' said Karan Sarawagi, an advocate practising in the Bombay High Court. 'The Supreme Court's decision is rooted in the jurisprudential principle that notifications are inherently prospective in nature. Since this was a notification and not a legislative clarification, its applicability should always be considered prospective, starting from the date of its publication in the official gazette,' said Sachin Sharma, Managing Partner of KSV Tax Consultants.
