GST Council to take up next leg of reforms initiated last year; process overhaul on cards to boost ease of doing business

In its 57th meeting today, the GST Council will take up the next leg of reforms under GST 2.0 rolled out in September last year. A five-pillar reform agenda has been prepared for today’s meeting after eight-month long deliberations with the state governments and will focus on process reforms, structural overhaul, ease of living, export of services, and e-commerce.

A senior government source said the rate rationalisation announced last September was a very well thought out decision.

“It was time now to come up with the process reforms, and we started working with the states immediately after the last year’s GST Council meeting. Multiple rounds of meetings have been conducted with the state governments to arrive at the measures that need to be taken. The proposals to be discussed in today’s GST Council meeting will have an impact on the businesses and consumers,” said sources.

What is expected on decriminalisation, input tax credit reforms?

The GST council will take up large scale decriminalisation of the GST Laws and removal of arrest provisions. Yet another crucial proposal, which the GST council is scheduled to examine pertains to refund. "Refund claims will be acknowledged in ten days. If the refund is not acknowledged in ten days, they will be deemed to be acknowledged," sources said.

On enforcement, the sources pointed out that it is to work through money rather than through custody, and through a system that detects fraud rather than a provision that deters it.

The GST council will take up large scale decriminalisation of the GST Laws and removal of arrest provisions. Yet another crucial proposal, which the GST council is scheduled to examine pertains to refund. "Refund claims will be acknowledged in ten days. If the refund is not acknowledged in ten days, they will be deemed to be acknowledged," sources said.

What are the proposals for e-commerce?

Sources said a seller at present needs a registered place of business in every state he sells into. “This is not practical for a small seller and keeps him inside his home state while larger sellers sell across the country. Verification will be done once, in the home state, with reach across the country thereafter,” sources said.

“Nine out of ten sellers on platforms are small and pass on very little credit, so the facility can be opened to them with confidence,” they added.