GST – here’s how it will help your startup

GST will benefit across the country, but startups have a lot of reasons to rejoice. Simplifying the tax structure means startups can be both disruptive and innovative in their business models.

The GST will champion Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s drive to build a more conducive environment for doing business in India.
As the GST Bill appears in the Rajya Sabha today, Business Insider looks into the nitty-gritty of how this new tax structure can help startups in India.

Easier to do business:
A lot of startups in India, e-commerce ones in particular have faced several gnawing tax regulations in several states. GST will bring a much needed uniform legislation where registration is centralized, and scaling isn’t a pain.

Save on Logistics:
In the day and age of Amazon Prime, your parcel can’t afford to get stuck at small border checkpoints due to tax issues. Inter-state commercial transport will get cheaper by up to 20%.

Ashish Goel, CEO and Co-founder at Urban Ladder validates the point. "Introduction of GST will be a huge step by the government in backing its promise of ease of doing business. As a consumer e-commerce brand, our focus is on building a seamless supply chain and logistics network that helps us fulfil customer orders in different parts of the country" , he says.

Moving right ahead!

Boost India’s growth
GST will boost India’s GDP growth. How you ask - by bringing down the fiscal deficit.

GST will boost the GDP. “By eliminating the cascading effect of multiple Central and State taxes, GST would reduce the cost of doing business and increase profitability, which in turn, would attract investments and ultimately help GDP growth,” the CRISIL analysis report stated.

Mind, the end-consumer bears the GST charged by only the last dealer in the supply chain. This makes it for the consumer and increases the profitability of his business. Simplifying the tax regime would also lead to better compliance, i.e. better tax collection. This will help bring down the fiscal deficit.

Exceptions for startups:
Any business with revenue of over Rs. 5 lakhs has to pay VAT now. With GST coming in, this will be bumped up to Rs 10 lakhs. Also, businesses with revenues of up to Rs. 50 lakhs will have lower tax slabs. More savings means more expansion.

Process gets simpler:
A young startup can’t afford to spend too much time and energy looking into elaborate tax procedures. GST will help cut to the chase by integrating all taxes.

Also, GST will not distinguish between sales and services. Tax calculation will get easier, meaning more time to brainstorm.

The GST will help everybody. It seems so obvious now, doesn’t it?

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