Making GST Return Filing Process Easier

Making GST Return Filing easier- A drill kicked off by Finance Minister

  • On November 16th, 2019, a nation-wide tax consultation was kicked off by the Finance Minister of India Nirmala Sitharaman with the tax payers all over India.
  • Her meeting with the accountants and different business representatives in the National Capital Territory of Delhi, is said to be a landmark of the beginning of the second generation of the changes brought in the whole GST Return Filing System.
  • This is a step taken to make the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Return filing system much easier and viable to the taxpayers and to make it more user friendly.
  • The system of filing returns has already undergone various and a number of changes in the past, in order to simplify the whole regime. The latest one introduced in the second week of November, is for simplifications in Annual return and the reconciliation form for the first two years under the GST Regime.
  • Laghu Udyog Bharati, the Institute of Chartered Accountant of India (ICAI), Rajasthan Tax Consultants Association, Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) and a very senior chartered accountant from Kolkata were among the notable persons and institutions that attended the meeting.
  • The representatives from the industry, accountants and the institutions demonstrated the necessary changes they wanted in the GST Return Filing system to Nirmala Sitharaman.
  • It was also stated and notified by the Revenue Secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey, who was also present at the meeting that their demands also included introduction of facilities to make changes and corrections in records and data filed by the taxpayers earlier and to facilitate a system to download the earlier filed returns that is more flexible.
  • The Ministry of Finance has also suggested that on December 7th, 2019, a similar meeting or drive will be held all over the country in every tax circle for the taxpayers by the concerned taxation officers. To understand the needs of the taxpayers in a better way, the taxation authorities will invite them along with their accountants on the above-mentioned date.
  • The Revenue Secretary also said in a statement that the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) and Goods and Services Tax Network will also consult regularly with each other on how to further evolve the GST Return Filing System for betterment.
  • He has further said that if better user interface and improvement suggestions come into light, whether it is related to one small taxpayer or to a whole group, it will be accommodated by the ministry.
  • The ministry has further sought and ease the GST Return filing services, even in facilities that were working properly earlier, changes have been brought in them as well because there were cases in which the taxpayers and accountants were confused or not aware about such available facilities. The ministry will issue notifications through circulars regarding the same very soon.
  • On voluntary basis the taxpayers have been asked by the Finance Ministry to file the available form and provide with their feedbacks about the new notified monthly return form. Around 85,000 forms have been fled on voluntary basis till now by the taxpayers.
  • These new GST Return Filing forms will be mandatory to file by all taxpayers from April, 2020.
Author: Anil Agrawal
EZYBIZ India Consulting LLP, New Delhi. The firm is business and tax consultancy firm providing consultancy in Taxation, Regulatory, Transfer pricing, Valuation, Corporate funding and Business set up matters. He may be reached at 9899217778 or anil@ezybizindia.in.