Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Revenue Secretary Ajay Bhushan at the 38th GST Council meeting, in New Delhi. (Source: PTI)
6 years ago
Dec 18, 2019
The agenda for the 38th Goods and Services Tax Council meeting, scheduled to take place in New Delhi, includes a presentation by the committee of officers to suggest ways to augment tax revenues. The panel had sought views from states for increasing GST collections, and suggestions like removing items from the exempted list, increasing cess on luxury items, were received.
Grievance redressal committees will be set up at zonal or state levels with both CGST and SGST officers, industry representatives and other stakeholders to address problems of taxpayers.
The GST Council has also decided to waive the late fee for filing GSTR1 from July 2017 to November 2019 if all returns are filed before Jan 10. 2020. This has been done to facilitate filing of all past returns.
Besides, E-way bill for the taxpayers who have not filed GSTR-1 for two tax periods will now be blocked.
The GST council has extended the annual return date Form GSTR9 and the reconciliation statement in Form GSTR 9C for 2017-18 to Jan. 31, 2020 from Dec. 31, 2019.
The Council also decided to exempt GST payable on long term lease of industrial or financial infrastructure plot by an entity having 20 percent or more ownership of centre or state government.
Presently, the exemption is available only to those entities having 50 percent or more ownership.
The Council decided to levy a uniform rate of 28 percent on all state-run and state-authorised lotteries. Earlier, state-run lotteries were taxed at 12 percent while state-authorised ones were taxed at 28 percent.
Punjab Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal has said that the revenue position shown by the Centre was worse than what they were expected. He said that the delay in GST compensation to states is as good as a debt default.
Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sissodia has said that every state agreed that changing GST slabs or rates will be a knee-jerk reaction. Instead, he said, loopholes should be plugged in the structure to boost revenue.
West Bengal Finance Minister Amit Mitra has said that the GST Council did not discuss any proposal of a rate hike today. He added that the central government will have not have appropriated funds to compensate states after February.
The council voted in favour of having a single GST rate for lotteries. That’s according to Rajasthan Cabinet Minister Shanti Kumar Dhariwal. However, the discussions were still being held on the quantum of the rate, he added.
Madhya Pradesh government doesn't support any proposal to levy higher #GST on certain goods, says state commercial taxes minister Brajendra Singh Rathore
The agenda for GST Council meet does not include any rate hikes or increase in compensation cess on cigarettes, said V Narayanaswamy, chief minister of Puducherry.
Other proposals to be raised by the chief minister include:
Free loans be given to farmers from nationalised bank.
Farm loan waivers should be shared by both states and centre.
Incentives should be given to industries in the budget.
Delhi and Puducherry be treated at par with states devolution of centre funds.
Government is lowering grants for centrally-sponsored schemes needs to halt.
The biggest take home from Pre- Budget discussion of FMs is suggestion by Bihar and Kerala to raise the fiscal deficit limit to 4 %. It was agreed to large number of states. In current year real expenditure of states will decline- a crazy macro outcome in time of recession.
