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The <keyword id="19994390" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="GST-Council" source="keywords">GST Council</keyword> on Saturday decided to tweak <keyword id="20452955" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="tax-rates" source="keywords">tax rates</keyword> on items, including accommodation services for students and solar cookers, and took a host of taxpayer-friendly measures including waiver of interest and penalty for demand notices issued in the first three years of <keyword id="6354679" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="GST" source="Orion">GST</keyword> rollout. Briefing reporters after the 53rd <keyword id="3680839" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="GST-Council-meeting" source="Orion">GST Council meeting</keyword>, Finance Minister <keyword id="129243" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Nirmala-Sitharaman" source="Orion">Nirmala Sitharaman</keyword> said the Council has recommended to roll-out the biometric-based <keyword id="20433416" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Aadhaar-authentication" source="keywords">Aadhaar authentication</keyword> of registration applicants on pan-India basis in a phased manner. This will help check fraudulent registration done to avail input tax credit and evade taxes. To reduce litigation, the Council decided to fix a monetary limit for tax officers to file appeals before the GST Appellate Tribunal, the High Court and the Supreme Court at Rs 20 lakh, Rs 1 crore and Rs 2 crore, respectively. It also recommended reduction of the quantum of pre-deposit required to be paid by taxpayers for filing of appeals under Goods and Services Tax (GST). The maximum amount of pre-deposit for filing appeal with the appellate authority has been reduced from Rs 25 crore CGST and SGST each to Rs 20 crores CGST and SGST each. This will help ease cash flow and working capital blockage for the taxpayers. "The 53rd GST Council meeting has taken a number of decisions on trade facilitation, easing compliance burden and giving relief to taxpayers in terms of easing compliance," Sitharaman said. The Minister said the next meeting of the GST Council will be held in August in which the Group of Ministers (GoM) on GST rate rationalisation under Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sumant Chaudhary, will give a presentation on the status of the work and aspects covered by the panel and work pending before the panel. "What was decided in the Council is, when we meet in the next GST Council meeting we will start a discussion on rate rationalisation... There will be a presentation by the GoM irrespective of whether the report is draft... and then Council will start the discussion on rate rationalisation in the next meeting in August," Sitharaman said. The GST Council on Saturday recommended to exempt Accommodation Services of up to Rs 20,000 per person per month from GST. This is subject to the condition that these services are supplied for a minimum continuous period of 90 days. "It's primarily meant for students," Sitharaman said. In a taxpayer friendly move, the Council has decided to waive interest and penalties for demand notices issued under Section 73 of the CGST Act (for cases not involving fraud, suppression or wilful misstatement) for the fiscal years 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2019-20, if the full tax demanded is paid by March 31, 2025. GST, which subsumed 17 local taxes and cesses, was rolled out on July 1, 2017. With its introduction, prices of various products and services used by masses have moderated. As per the CBIC data, mobile phones and many household items including TV, refrigerator, washing machine and AC have become cheaper post GST. It has reduced burden on household income and improved affordability. The Council also decided to refer the standing committee's recommendation to exempt GST on fertiliser and cut rates on raw materials to the GoM on rate rationalisation. Currently, GST is levied at 5 per cent on fertilisers, while its raw materials like sulphuric acid and ammonia face 18 per cent tax. Also the Tax Collected at Source (TCS) rate for e-commerce suppliers has been cut from present 1 per cent to 0.5 per cent, which will ease the financial burden on the suppliers making supplies through E-commerce platform. Besides, services provided by Indian Railways to the general public, namely, sale of platform tickets, facility of retiring rooms/waiting rooms, cloak room services and battery-operated car services as well as intra-railway transactions would be exempt from GST. GST Council has prescribed a uniform rate of 12 per cent on all milk cans meaning steel, iron, aluminum which are irrespective of the use. The Council also recommended a uniform GST rate of 12 per cent on all carton boxes and cases of both corrugated and non-corrugated paper or paper board, which in particular, help the apple growers of Himachal Pradesh and Jammu &amp; Kashmir. All types of Sprinklers, including fire water sprinklers, will attract 12 per cent GST. Solar Cookers, whether it has a single or dual energy source, too will attract a 12 per cent tax. The Council also decided that GST anti-profiteering provisions will have a sunset date of April 1, 2025. Current cases and investigations with regard to profiteering complaints will be handled by the Principal bench of GST Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT), instead of the Competition Commission of India (CCI). Also, the time limit to avail input tax credit w.r.t. any invoice or debit note through any GSTR 3B return filed up to November 30, 2021 for FY 2017-18, 2018-19, 2019-20 and 2020-21, has been fixed at November 30, 2021. Sitharaman said less than two per cent of the total 58.62 lakh taxpayers under Central GST administration has been sent tax notices and the intention of the government is to make GST assessees life easier by reducing compliance requirements. "I want to reassure the assessees that our intent is to make GST assessees life easier, we are working towards less and less compliance. On behalf of the CGST, notices are not being sent left, right and centre. Only 1.96 per cent of all active tax assessees have been sent notices from Central GST," Sitharaman said.

GST Council tweaks tax rates; Waives interest, penalty on tax dues for first 3 years of rollout

<keyword id="19896016" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="new-delhi" source="keywords">New Delhi</keyword>, <keyword id="4938005" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="gst-collections" source="Orion">GST collections</keyword> in March grew 11.5 per cent to Rs 1.78 lakh crore, buoyed by domestic transactions, the <keyword id="19900485" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="finance-ministry" source="keywords">finance ministry</keyword> said on Monday. The gross <keyword id="19951327" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="gst" source="keywords">GST</keyword> collection for the last fiscal (April 2023-March 2024) stood at Rs 20.18 lakh crore, 11.7 per cent higher than the mop-up in the preceding fiscal. The average monthly gross collection for FY24 stood at Rs 1.68 lakh crore, exceeding Rs 1.5 lakh crore in the preceding fiscal. "Gross Good and Services Tax (GST) revenue for March 2024 witnessed the second highest collection ever at Rs 1.78 lakh crore, with a 11.5 per cent year-on-year growth. This surge was driven by a significant rise in GST collection from domestic transactions at 17.6 per cent," the ministry said in a statement. The highest-ever GST collection was recorded at Rs 1.87 lakh crore in April 2023. GST revenue net of refunds for March 2024 was Rs 1.65 lakh crore, 18.4 per cent higher over the same period a year ago.

GST collections hit ₹1.78 lakh crore in March, second highest since roll-out

<keyword id="19896016" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="New-Delhi" source="keywords">New Delhi</keyword>: The 54th Meeting of the <keyword id="21275205" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Goods-and-Services-Tax-Council" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Goods and Services Tax Council" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Goods and Services Tax Council">Goods and Services Tax Council</keyword> or GST Council, will be held on 9th September 2024 in New Delhi, the GST Council said in a post on social media platform "X" on Tuesday. On June 22, <keyword id="19956758" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Finance-Minister" source="keywords">Finance Minister</keyword> Nirmala Sitharaman said that the next meeting of the GST Council will take place in mid to late August. The aim of this meeting will be to discuss the pending issues of the last meeting. The council is expected to discuss rate rationalisation and compliance, among others. The GST Council, consisting of the Union Finance Minister and representatives from all States and Union Territories, was established to make decisions on various aspects of GST, including <keyword id="20452955" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="tax-rates" source="keywords">tax rates</keyword>, exemptions, and administrative procedures. It played a crucial role in shaping the GST framework in India. The last meeting of the GST Council was held on 22 June 2024 this year. During the meeting, the council recommended relaxation to taxation, Input Tax Credit (ITC) claims and demand notices. The GST Council proposes exemptions for specific services offered by Indian Railways to the general public, as well as for intra-railway transactions. During the 53rd meeting of the council, it proposed an exemption for specific services offered by Indian Railways to the general public, as well as for intra-railway transactions. The sale of platform tickets and services such as retiring rooms, waiting rooms, cloakroom facilities, and battery-operated car services are now exempt from GST. The 53rd council meeting was marked by several key decisions aimed at easing the compliance burden and providing relief to taxpayers. "Today's <keyword id="20115983" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="GST-Council-meeting" source="keywords">GST Council meeting</keyword> has taken a lot of decisions on trade facilitation, easing compliance burden and relief to taxpayers in terms of compliance easing out," the Finance Minister had said. The GST Council recommended waiving interest penalties on demand notices issued under Section 73 of the GST Act for fiscal years 2017-18, 2018-19, and 2019-20. The Council, in its June 22 meeting, approved an extension for availing input tax credit (ITC) on any invoice or debit note. To curb government litigation, the Council has recommended setting monetary thresholds for filing appeals by departments: Rs 20 lakh for the GST appellate tribunal, Rs 1 crore for high courts, and Rs 2 crore for the Supreme Court. In a move to assist small taxpayers, the Council, in its last meeting, extended the deadline for furnishing returns from April 30 to June 30 for the fiscal year 2024-25 and subsequent years. The Council, in its last meeting, recommended the phased rollout of biometric-based Aadhaar authentication for GST registration applicants across India. The Council recommended a uniform GST rate of 12 per cent on all milk cans, regardless of their material (steel, iron, or aluminium), to eliminate disputes. The Finance Minister, during the last GST meeting, reiterated the central government's intent to bring petrol and diesel under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) framework. She highlighted that the groundwork for this inclusion was laid during the initial implementation of GST and emphasized that the decision now lies with the state governments. The central government has long maintained that incorporating petrol and diesel into GST would streamline tax rates and potentially reduce prices for consumers.

54th GST Council meeting to take place on September 9 in New Delhi

India's biggest tax reform, the <keyword id="6359833" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="goods-and-services-tax" source="Orion">Goods and Services Tax</keyword> (<keyword id="6354679" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="gst" source="Orion">GST</keyword>), completes its half-a-decade journey on June 30, with many hits and some misses, and also brought about a paradigm shift in use of technology to bring about tax compliance and making over Rs 1 lakh crore revenue collection every month 'a new normal'. A nationwide Goods and Services Tax (GST), which subsumed 17 local levies like excise duty, <keyword id="6355686" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="service-tax" source="Orion">service tax</keyword> and <keyword id="6370857" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="vat" source="Orion">VAT</keyword> and 13 cesses, was rolled out at the stroke of midnight on July 1, 2017. Under GST, a four-rate structure that exempts or imposes a low rate of tax of 5 per cent on essential items and top rate of 28 per cent on cars is levied. The other slabs of tax are 12 and 18 per cent. In the pre-GST era, the total of VAT, excise, CST and their cascading effect led to 31 per cent as tax payable, on an average, for a consumer. Besides, there is a special 3 per cent rate for gold, jewellery and precious stones and 1.5 per cent on cut and polished diamonds. Besides, a cess is levied on the highest tax slab of 28 per cent on luxury, sin and demerit goods. The collection from the cess goes to a separate corpus — Compensation fund — which is used to make up for revenue loss suffered by the state due to GST rollout. GST also represents an unprecedented exercise in fiscal federalism as the Centre and states come together in the GST Council to thrash out modalities for smooth functioning of the relatively new tax regime. The Council has met 47 times so far and have taken measures which made Rs 1 lakh crore <keyword id="4943720" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="gst-collection" source="Orion">GST collection</keyword> per month 'a new normal' and on course to take the figure to Rs 1.4 lakh crore every month. As the government releases the June GST collection numbers on July 1, it is widely expected that the collections will follow the past four months' trend and be around Rs 1.4 lakh crore. The collections had touched a record Rs 1.68 lakh crore in April 2022, it had for the first time crossed Rs 1 lakh crore mark in collections in April, 2018. On the 5th anniversary of GST, <keyword id="4336899" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Central-Board-of-Indirect-Taxes-and-Customs" source="Orion">Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs</keyword> (CBIC) tweeted "GST subsumed multiple levies and cesses, reduced compliance burden, removed regional imbalances and inter-state barriers, and significantly increased the transparency and overall Revenue collection". Over the past years the Government has been proactively issuing circulars and clarifications to clear doubts regarding taxation under GST and ensure ease of doing business. More recently, the GST Council, in its 47th meeting in Chandigarh, has decided to ease compliance for small taxpayers who supply through the e-commerce platform. Such suppliers, who make only intra-state supplies, need not seek GST registration if their annual turnover is less than Rs 40 lakh in case of goods and Rs 20 lakh in case of supplies. To help tax officers in administration, GST Network, which provides the technological backbone for the indirect tax regime, has been using artificial intelligence and machine learning to dish out newer data and plug revenue leakages. Tax experts, however, seek a simpler structure for Goods and Services Tax, a structure which would ensure seamless flow of input tax credit through the entire supply chain without losses. BDO India Partner and Leader - Indirect Tax Gunjan Prabhakaran said “over the past five years, the GST law has evolved and mitigated several issues faced by the taxpayers through timely clarifications and amendments. "However, the GST Council and the Government should quickly address few other hardships faced by taxpayers in relation to unwarranted and excessive issuance of show cause notices (for reconciliations of financial numbers, grant of registration, etc) and introduce a robust, technology driven single assessment process, which would achieve the twin objective of ease of doing business and remove the cascading effect of taxes". AMRG &amp; Associates Senior Partner Rajat Mohan said in the last five years, GST law has matured at a fast pace. First, the focus was on compliance and technology; sooner than later, it moved gears, and taxpayers were posed to self-regulate the annual filings. "Now it seems the law has entered the next phase whereby litigation needs to be reduced by either replacing ambiguous tax laws or clarifying the practical application of technical issues. Businesses expect the government to resolve all sectoral issues like would BPO/KPO qualify as an intermediary, tax credit for capital expenditure on building, levy of GST on Extra Neutral alcohol (ENA) etc," Mohan said. While the GST administration has moved forward with alacrity, it is still a long way to go to achieve the full potential of GST and make it a true 'good and simple tax'. With petrol, diesel, ATF outside GST, a large part of the economy is still not covered by the indirect tax regime. Inclusion of petroleum products under the GST net, could reduce cost for companies, tax experts say. With emerging technology, there is emergence of newer asset classes like the virtual digital assets (VDA) or cryptocurrency. There is a need for clarity on whether they would be classified as supply of 'goods' or 'services' and what would be the tax rate on them. Tax rate rationalisation is something which would happen sooner or later. Current inflationary concerns may have derailed the plans to tweak rates and GST slabs, but it would eventually be a reality as both the Centre and states need revenues and lesser slabs would mean a simplified tax regime. Besides, the decision makers in the Council too have to work out a solution as state governments, from July 1, 2022, stare at a stoppage of compensation for revenue loss due to GST implementation. When GST was rolled out on July 1, 2017, states were promised a compensation, from the cess fund, for five years if their GST collection falls short of the 14 per cent compounded revenue growth. Most states have sought an extension to the compensation mechanism and a final decision is likely to be taken at the next GST Council meeting in Madurai in the first week of August. Abhishek Jain, Partner Indirect Tax, KPMG in India, said going forward, the Government can consider setting up of Central authority to resolve conflicting AAR judgements across states and consider doing away with anti-profiteering provisions freeing businesses to set prices. "Further, bringing petroleum and electricity under GST ambit will help prevent cascading and ensure further uniformity. Lastly, some checks can also be incorporated on system generated GST notices, so as to avoid any unnecessary harassment of taxpayers," Jain said. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/startups-like-unacademy-vedantu-blue-stone-caratlane-go-physical-from-digital-as-pandemic-boom-ends/articleshow/92564319.cms">Startups go physical from digital as pandemic boom ends</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/news/indian-credit-card-users-spend-40x-more-than-debit-card-users-online/articleshow/92543305.cms">Indian credit card users spend 40x more than debit card users online</a>

GST had its hits and misses but made ₹1.3 lakh crore monthly tax, the new normal

The <keyword id="47209" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Finance-Ministry">Finance Ministry</keyword> revealed that the government collected Rs 92,150 crore as <keyword id="6359833" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Goods-and-Services-Tax">Goods and Services Tax</keyword> from 42.91 lakh businesses last month. September was the third month of <keyword id="6354679" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="GST">GST</keyword> roll-out. Of 92,150 crore, Rs 14,042 crore is on account of Central GST, while State GST is to the tune of Rs 21,172 crore. Integrated GST collections stood at Rs 48,948 crore, of which Rs 23,951 crore was on account of imports. Collection under compensation cess stood at Rs 7,988 crore, of which Rs 722 crore is compensation cess from imports in September. Till yesterday 42.91 lakh business entities had filed initial GSTR-3B returns for September. As per the data available, GST collections for the maiden month of July were over Rs 95,000 crore, while for August the figure was over Rs 91,000 crore.

This is how much the government earned from GST in September

The Good and Service Tax has been rolled out. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had stated that those food items which were imposed an average of 12.5% under the VAT laws will subsequently be cut-down to 5% under the new GST regime. As per the GST law, all items falling under its regime will be imposed tax rates at 5%, 8%, 18% and 28%. GST will not have any impact on the list of products and services which come below the term ‘Essential’, and this list will have zero tax rate. A survey by All India ITR shows that personal care products, entertainment activities and household items under GST will become cheaper than its current rate. However, many of the services such as mobile phone services, healthcare services as well as transportation charges are expected to attract a tax rate of 18%, which is 3% more than its current 15% tax rate. Once the new rates will come into action, your monthly household budget will also be impacted. The analysis shows that entertainment tax rate under GST will successively be reduced to a 28% tax rate as against its current 30% tax rate. The effect of GST on the current tax rate To keep a surveillance of the goods manufacturers and service providers, the GST council has also taken the resolution to form an anti-profiteering committee. This committee will be the authority responsible for taking care of the grievances to ensure that the benefit of GST upon the lower tax rates doesn't get tampered. It has been declared that the committee will be formed by officials of the central and state revenue departments. <table> <tbody><tr> <td> Goods and Services </td> <td> The Impact of GST </td> </tr> <tr> <td> GST Tax Rate on Automobiles: </td> <td> The GST rate will be higher for SUVs (55% to 43%) as compared to smaller cars (30% to 29%). </td> </tr> <tr> <td> GST Tax Rate on Beauty and Makeup Products: </td> <td> The current tax rate of 26% on these items will increase to 28% (applicable on items like perfumes, skin care products, shampoos etc.). </td> </tr> <tr> <td> GST Tax Rate on Gold Ornaments: </td> <td> The tax rate on gold metal will be 3% while 5% rate will be imposed on making charges. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> GST Tax Rate on Hotel Stay: </td> <td> GST is not applicable for hotel rooms that cost below Rs. 1,000, any cost above this will be taxed progressively, however, all room charges above Rs. 5000 will be charged a whopping 28% tax rate. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> GST Tax Rate on Refined Cooking Oil: </td> <td> Edible oil will be taxed at 5%, a subsequent decrease from its current tax rate. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> GST Tax Rate on Air Travel </td> <td> An economy-class air ticket which is currently taxed at 5.6% will decrease to 5%. While business class travelers will have to shell out a lot more than which is currently charged since it will increase from 8.4% to 12%. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> GST Tax Rate on Telecom </td> <td> The existing tax rate of 15% on telecom services will increase to 18% as these services will not benefit much input tax credit. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> GST Tax Rate on Eating Out </td> <td> Non-AC eateries will charge 12% against GST on your total bill. But, you will have to pay the price of eating out at a 5-star restaurant as 28% in GST will be the tax rate (an increase from the existing 18%). </td> </tr> </tbody></table> A List of Items Exempted from GST Here are a few commonly utilized goods and services which have been exempted from the GST regime. Unprocessed cereals (rice, wheat etc.) Unprocessed proteins (milk, vegetables, meat, fish etc.) Train travel via local and sleeper class. Education. Healthcare (exclusive of medicines). Hotel stay or lodges with room rented at less than Rs. 1,000. Kid’s Stationery items (color pencils, crayons, drawing books etc.) Bindis, sindoor, bangles etc. All India ITR summarizes that the upcoming GST Law will have its own sets of pros and cons - many necessities will get cheaper but in the meanwhile, the rest of the necessities that falls under the higher GST tax rate bracket will ultimately cause a discomfort in the household budget. <keyword id="6360118" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="GST-Rates">GST rates</keyword> will also bring about a bigger tax burden on the use or purchase of goods and services which are deemed as luxurious. (This article has been written by Vikas Dahiya, founder, and CEO of <a href="https://www.allindiaitr.com/">All India ITR</a>)

Here's how GST rates will impact your monthly household budget

Logistics is one tricky sector that is surely going to benefit once the Good and Service Tax (<keyword id="6354679" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="GST">GST</keyword>) gets rolled out from July 1. However the results won’t be too quick. Right now, Blue Dart Express, Gateway Distriparks and Allcargo Logistics are running negative return in the market. At such a juncture, logistic industry is waiting for July just like the farmers of Maharashtra awaiting the rain. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Heres-why-this-is-the-worst-time-to-be-in-the-business-of-hospitality-in-India/articleshow/58805542.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink">Here’s why this is the worst time to be in the business of hospitality in India</a> The current system of indirect taxation in India is very complex and logistics faces it the most. Each of the 29 states levies different magnitude of taxes when goods are moved across their borders. Both central and state taxes sums up to around 25-27% on goods. Pratish Sanghvi, Co-Founder of Grab a Grub Services Pvt. Ltd said that once GST implementation gets in place, existing taxation structure will dissolve and a new unified structure for all states will come into force. Hence, the effective rate is expected to come down to around 19-21%. This reduction of 6% in taxes will count a lot for the final burden bearing consumers. Grab is India’s first and leading last mile delivery service for businesses and merchants to bridge the gap between them and consumers. GST will lead to a total reduction of 20% in other logistics cost like warehousing, freight forwarding etc. However Sanghvi cautions the major challenge before the government is to arrive at a revenue neutral rate to ascertain no adverse effects on the revenues of central and state governments after the implementation of GST. Furthermore, the government has to protect the interests of all the stakeholders including the ultimate consumers. Structural re-engineering of the logistics network GST will remove process bottlenecks. A recent study revealed that out of the total transit time taken by a truck, it remains idle for 40% of the time due to border checks for octroi and other entry barriers. After removal of this hurdle, quicker movement of goods and increased number of deliveries will ensure operational efficiencies. Also, an estimated cost of 25% can be saved, which is incurred due to stoppages and idleness. “Currently to avoid interstate taxes, businesses build warehouses near their manufacturing facilities, ignoring the geographical disadvantages. After GST implementation, businesses will warehouse their goods at most suitable locations without the fear of multiple taxes,” said Sanghvi. Government has also allowed 100% FDI in warehousing. It will be much easier for foreign players to comply with the single point GST norms than with the previous ones. Trucking business: the major blind spot “Trucking business was always unorganized and fragmented, and it hasn’t changed much in recent time. Local businesses are largely dependent on the nearby transporters which usually rip off the users despite poor quality and inefficiencies,” Singhvi informed. There are many startups such as Rivigo and Blackbuck that are eyeing a complete revolution of the industry. A cost effective mix of higher efficiencies and lower transit time is the product they are going with into the market. India vis-à-vis global benchmarks after the implementation of GST GST has received critical acclaim globally. There are more than 160 countries around the world that have already implemented GST. After a delayed roll out, drastic changes will take place in India’s economic future. Globally, the average rate of GST ranges between 15-20%. We are yet to decide a revenue neutral rate, but the vibes are positive for logistics industry. In India, the operational inefficiency exists in the core and costs are on a higher side than other countries. This bullwhips the inflation on other products as well. So, for a crucial industry like logistics, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Heres-why-this-is-the-worst-time-to-be-in-the-business-of-hospitality-in-India/articleshow/58805542.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink">GST is the need of the hour.</a> Better logistics = Better nation Logistics is considered as most crucial for any nation’s development. Level of economic activity in country and scale of logistics are positively correlated. Ecommerce penetration and schemes like Make in India will push it even further. If taxation regime is simplified through GST, it will prove to be major reboot for the logistics industry. GST will also be a key enabler for businesses to reorganize their supply chain, in accordance with various business considerations.

Here's how GST is going to be ‘legendary’ for logistic industry in India

<keyword id="6359833" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Goods-and-Services-Tax">Goods and Services Tax</keyword> (GST) is the biggest tax reform introduced in India since independence, and is certainly a game changer. However, the process undertaken by the government to implement GST was no less than a game changer itself. 
 
Several aspects had to be taken care of, and the most important part of the whole process was to stay focused on the bigger picture, not bowing down to the political and administrative negotiations that came with it. 
 
It was <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/topic/Narendra-Modi">PM Narendra Modi </a>who was the leader of the process, along with finance minister <keyword id="42575" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Arun-Jaitley">Arun Jaitley</keyword>, who served as the bridge between him and the stakeholders. 
 
How often does it happen that the key members of the leading party of world’s biggest democracy meet up with the opposition leaders and that too a month after losing elections in a key state. However, it was the commitment that BJP had for GST that made him, along with Jaitley and parliamentary affairs minister Venkaiah Naidu had a meeting with former PM Manmohan Singh and Congress President Sonia Gandhi, a month after BJP lost Bihar elections. 
 
The PM, sources say, said that India needed GST and then the FM took over, explaining to the opposition why their positions, like capping tax rate at 18% in the GST statute, had to be reconsidered. He added that while a poor GST was not an option, their other demands will be duly considered. 
 
Also read: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/removal-of-cesses-for-gst-would-cost-government-rs-65000-crore/articleshow/57793686.cms">Removal of cesses for GST would cost government Rs 65,000 crore</a> 
 Ever since then, the <keyword id="117924" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="GST-Rollout">GST rollout</keyword> became a big puzzle with several tangled knots, which could be and was solved keeping in mind one thing, that GST was too big a reform to fail. The idea was to unite the country in a fundamental way, and before a deadline but only after clearing every doubt that anyone had. 
 
As per officials that <a href="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/policy/how-modi-government-managed-to-solve-the-gst-puzzle/articleshow/57980627.cms">ET </a>contacted, Modi referred to GST as more than a tax reform at Cabinet meetings, exemplifying India's "unity in diversity," asking his team to prioritise GST. The FM, very smartly negotiated the terms so that political rivalries didn’t hinder the implementation process. 
 
In total, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/gst-council-clears-almost-allrules-except-for-remaining-four/articleshow/57959857.cms">GST council </a>had 12 meetings; however, from the second meeting itself, there were signs of political bitterness raising its head, which is why the government decided to seek consensus and encourage everyone to offer solutions. 
 
While taking care of the taxation, the government had to get into intense detailing with the tax administration, which is when it demonstrated that it had no intention of cornering states. 
 
Also read: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/markets/economy/gst-to-keep-an-eye-on-your-perks-outside-ctc/articleshow/57889157.cms">GST to keep an eye on your perks outside CTC</a> 
 
In the whole process, the leading party is said to have never shied away from reaching out to rivals, just so the GST could be passed without fail. It involved reaching out to CPM's Sitaram Yechury, SP's Ram Gopal Yadav, TMC's Derek O'Brien, BJD's Dilip Turkey, NCP's Praful Patel, and several other point-persons from <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/politics/delay-in-implementing-gst-during-nda-government-led-to-rs-12-lakh-crore-loss-says-congress-party/articleshow/57892537.cms">Congress party</a>. 
 
The PM had a message for his team working on GST, which was to work at top speed without compromising with the quality. The team included hundreds of officials spread in small groups, solving difficult questions of both producing and consuming states and working for a period of more than eight months, including holidays and weekends. 
 
"It took us several months and many informal discussions to reach a consensus on how the final draft should look like," said a top official. 
 
Also read: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/no-gst-for-education-and-healthcare-this-year/articleshow/57972964.cms">No GST for education and health care this year</a> 
 
The work of these teams should be credited for the fact that the GST framework is ready three months before the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/markets/economy/eyeing-july-1-rollout-arun-jaitley-introduces-four-bills-on-gst-in-parliament/articleshow/57851897.cms">July 1 deadline</a>. 
 
(Image source GST Taxation)

Here’s how difficult the GST process was for the Modi government

With less than a month left for the rollout of the <keyword id="6354679" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="GST">GST</keyword>, the Indian Banks' Association (<keyword id="50362" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="IBA">IBA</keyword>) has informed a Parliamentary panel that lenders are not yet geared up for implementation of the new indirect tax regime, according to a PTI news report. "Since the GST will be operational from July 1, 2017, banks have to make lot of changes in their systems and other procedures. The preparedness of all banks for implementation of GST on July 1, 2017, is a question mark," the IBA has conveyed to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on <keyword id="25455" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="finance">Finance</keyword>. The IBA further said that several services by banks to customers are centralised while several others are localised. Banks will have to make changes in the existing infrastructure which would be a huge challenge for the banks. The IBA had taken up the case for central registration, the association added. Touted as the biggest taxation reform since independence, the GST will subsume central excise, service tax, VAT and other local levies to create a uniform market. The new indirect sales tax is expected to boost the GDP growth by about 2 percentage points and check tax evasion. The powerful GST Council, comprising representative of Centre and states, has recommended a four-tier tax structure -- 5, 12, 18 and 28 per cent for goods and services. On top of the highest slab, a cess will be imposed on luxury and demerit goods to compensate the states for revenue loss in the first five years of GST implementation. All the states have agreed for the roll out of the new indirect tax regime from July 1.

Banks not yet prepared for GST roll-out: Indian Banks' Association

The <keyword id="6355040" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="GST-Council">GST Council</keyword> at a meeting today broadly agreed on the contours of two key legislations - CGST and IGST - but a final approval is likely only by mid-March, according to news agencies. 
 Union <keyword id="6355261" type="POSITION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Finance-minister">Finance Minister</keyword> <keyword id="42575" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Arun-Jaitley">Arun Jaitley</keyword> met with his state counterparts today and discussed the <keyword id="6354679" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="GST">GST</keyword> legislation to be adopted by Union Territories, but there was no discussion with regard to the State GST Bill. 
 "It (GST) looks on track. Subject to <keyword id="6354721" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="parliament">Parliament</keyword> approval, it looks like the possible date of implementation of GST is July 1," <keyword id="6390789" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Jaitley">Jaitley</keyword> said after the 11th GST <keyword id="51646" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Council">Council</keyword> meet. 
 "As many as 26 changes sought by the states have been accepted by the Centre. This shows the federalist character of India. CGST and IGST will come up for further discussion at the next meeting of the Council in mid-March," <keyword id="6357783" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="West-Bengal">West Bengal</keyword> <keyword id="25455" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="finance">Finance</keyword> Minister <keyword id="107244" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Amit-Mitra">Amit Mitra</keyword> said. 
 <keyword id="2481" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Mitra">Mitra</keyword> further said both the Centre and states have agreed to provide a composition scheme to dhabas and small restaurants. 
 
"States were seeking that dhabas and small restaurants can adopt the composite scheme. The Centre has agreed to that and now these small businesses will pay 5 per cent tax (to be shared equally between the Centre and states)," Mitra said. 
 Delhi Deputy Chief Minister <keyword id="6354681" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Manish-Sisodia">Manish Sisodia</keyword> said the central GST and integrated GST legislations have been broadly agreed upon at the Council meeting today. 
 "Real estate should be brought under GST. Everybody knows that a lot of blackmoney finds its way into real estate and bringing real estate under GST will help in curbing black money," <keyword id="6356536" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="sisodia">Sisodia</keyword> said. 
 <keyword id="4251044" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="jammu-kashmir-finance">Jammu &amp; Kashmir Finance</keyword> Minister <keyword id="97187" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Haseeb-Drabu">Haseeb Drabu</keyword> felt that "some minor editorial changes" are required in the legislations and they have to be sent to the legal department again. 
 
Mitra further said IGST, which relates to taxation of inter-state transfer of goods, the legislation will provide for cross empowerment of state and central officers. 
 
"It has been agreed that there will be cross empowerment of states. Also, we did not want this as a notification, we wanted in the Act so that never in future can another council come and say states won't have power," Mitra stressed.

Finally! GST confirmed for July
rollout

The exchange sale offers will be of no use once the <keyword id="6354679" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="GST">GST</keyword> gets rolled out as the GST will be levied on the original price of the item and not the exchange price. 
 
For instance, if you buy a new laptop for Rs 50,000 and in case you take the exchange offer and get it for Rs 45,000, the GST will be levied on Rs 50,000. 
In the draft valuation rules, in cases where the supply of goods is not wholly in money, the value of the supply will be its open market value. 
 
Various stores and online marketplaces roll out exchange offers for mobiles, laptops, TVs, washing machines, etc. 
 
"Currently, in most states (Gujarat being a notable exception), VAT is payable on the money consideration paid by a customer. Under the proposed draft rules, the supply value will be the market value of the goods itself. The differential levy, which arises owing to non-adjustment of the value of the old product, will pinch the pocket of an individual customer (say a salaried employee) who cannot claim any input tax credit for the GST borne by him," Badri Narayanan, partner at law firm Lakshmikumaran &amp; Sridharan, told ET. 
 
The valuation draft rules also provide that the value of supply of services by an agent for booking of air travel tickets shall be 5% of the basic fare in case of domestic and 10% in case of international travel. This remains the same as current rates, even as the industry had recommended that a lower rate be introduced under GST. 
 
"However, if the GST on air travel is higher than the current rate of 15%, say 18%, it would also have a cascading impact on booking costs. In such an eventuality, the customer would pay more for air travel," Narayanan told ET.

Products will become expensive even during exchange sale after GST rollout. Here’s how

If you have been thinking about driving your dream car home, it might just be the best time to do so. Indian auto industry players, like Hyundai, Mahindra, and Ford have announced attractive offers before <keyword id="6354679" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="GST">GST</keyword> is implemented on July 1. Hyundai is offering discounts ranging from Rs 25,000, on Elite i20, Rs 2,50,000 on Santa Fe, Rs 45,000 on Eon, Rs 62,000-73,000 on Grand i10, Rs 80,000-90,000 on Verna and Rs 25,000 on its new XCent till June 26, 2017. Datsun, on the other hand, is offering free insurance and reduced interest rates. <keyword id="44883" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Maruti-Suzuki">Maruti Suzuki</keyword>, India’s biggest carmaker, has decided to broaden its discounts to Rs 25,000-35,000 on Alto and Swift. Mahindra, similarly, is offering Rs 27,000 off on Scorpio, Rs 61,000 on TUV300, Rs 72,000 on KUV100 and Rs 90,000 on XUV500 till June 30. There is a strategic reason behind these discounts, says a senior industry executive on the condition of anonymity. "Dealers can claim 60% input tax credit on stocks lying unsold till June 30. While most companies have agreed to provide financial support to dealers during the transition, the effort is to liquidate inventory to the extent possible ahead of July 1." To lure customers who are waiting till GST gets implemented in the hope that prices would fall, Honda has come up with an innovative scheme. "If vehicle prices decline post GST, the company will directly refund the difference to the consumer. The buyer is not required to pay any additional amount if price of the model purchased goes up from July. This is valid for all models till the end of this month," a dealer of <keyword id="1381889" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Honda-Cars-India">Honda Cars India</keyword> told <a href="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/auto/news/industry/ahead-of-gst-rollout-carmakers-offering-direct-price-benefits-and-free-insurance-to-lure-buyers/articleshow/59150792.cms">ET</a>. Volkswagen, to lure its set of customers, is offering discounts of Rs 76,000 and Rs 1,00,000 on Polo and Vento cars booked till June 20, even if payment is deferred till June 30. Other than this, the company is also offering reduced interest rates, free insurance, road-side assistance and extended warranty for three years. Not willing to be left behind, Nissan has come up with price benefits of up to Rs 80,000 on its popular SUV Terrano, while Micra can be claimed at Rs 25,000 discount. Ford too is offering price benefits on Figo, Aspire and EcoSport, depending on variants.

It’s raining discounts in auto market ahead of GST rollout

It is likely that <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=arun+jaitley&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">Finance Minister Arun Jaitley</a> will increase the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=service+tax&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">service tax</a> from 15% to at least 16% in the run up to Goods and Services Tax (GST) rollout. 
 
During <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=budget+2017&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">Budget 2017</a>, Jaitley is expected to close gap with 18% <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=GST&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">GST</a> rate as most of the services are likely to attract a tax of 18% under GST. 
 <keyword id="117924" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="GST-Rollout">GST rollout</keyword> is expected to happen on July 1 as stalemate over dual control continued in the GST Council meeting. 
 
So, the government may slap a higher service tax for three months to somewhat offset the revenue loss after the GST kicks in. 
 
As per industry experts, a service tax closer to the GST rate will give time to consumers to adjust to the new rate. 
 
Service tax accounts for over 14% of Indian government’s total tax revenues. In 2016-17, Rs 231,000 crore service tax accounted for total tax revenues of Rs 16,30,887 crore. 
 
The GST Council has agreed on a four-slab structure –5, 12, 18 and 28 percent—along with a cess on luxury and sin products such as tobacco.

Arun Jaitley may increase service tax from 15% as precursor to GST rollout

Here’s some bad news for flyers: Flight tickets may become costlier after the rollout of Goods and <keyword id="645517" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="services-tax">Services Tax</keyword> (<keyword id="6354679" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="GST">GST</keyword>). The GST is going to increase the operational cost and it is likely the airlines will increase the fares. "Under GST, airlines will be taxed for importing spares for their use and on aircraft lease rentals, and these are not being taxed in the current regime. Any new tax on the aviation industry, which operates under thin margins, may drive fares higher,” a senior airline executive told ET. Apart from increase in tax incidence, airliners are also worried about reductions in input tax credits on revenues earned through economy class seats. "Regarding input tax credits (ITC), the lower rate of 5% on economy class travel comes with restrictions, whereby ITCs can be claimed on input services. ITCs are not claimable on the purchase of good or stock transfer,” Alexandre de Juniac, director general of global industry grouping IATA, wrote in a letter to finance minister <keyword id="42575" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Arun-Jaitley">Arun Jaitley</keyword>. Besides, GST is likely to make direct flights to several international destinations costlier. "The first leg of the flight may be Delhi-Dubai for a passenger flying to the US via Dubai, but an Indian airline like <keyword id="2573" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Air-India">Air India</keyword> that flies directly to the US has to charge GST for the full ticket until the US, making it expensive for the passenger booking a direct flight, thus, making it difficult for Indian carriers,” another airline executive, who did not want to be identified, told ET.

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