Skip to main content

Govt sitting still on GST refunds

By
Govt sitting still on GST refunds
Last week, The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) brought to the government’s attention several issues in filing of GSTR-1 returns and enabling of transitional credit to assessees which could not file TRAN-1 returns due to system glitches. A follow-up to its representation of two weeks earlier
ICAI said the GST Network system was not generating a summary within five minutes. Sometimes, it takes around 12 hours, due to which assessees are not able to proceed further. Though the latter are generating ‘a json’ file in the latest version of the offline tool, on uploading such a file, the system shows it as generated in the old version. In the B2B sheet, assessees round off the tax dues billwise but the system is finalising without rounding it off to rupees.
Due to such system errors, assessees are finding it difficult to file before the due date. So, ICAI requested that assesses get relief by having the last date for filing of GSTR-1 returns be extended by one month, after proper testing of the system and waiving of fees for filing after the due date. The government has ignored the request so far.
ICAI pointed out that some assessees which were required to file TRAN-1 before the due date were unable to do so due to a message from the website showing “some uploaded records are in progress; kindly submit once it is processed”. Such assessees would not be able to claim the TRAN-1 transitional credit. So, ICAI also requested the government to resolve this issue. The government has not acceded to this.
ICAI also represented that the recent instructions for filing of refund claims manually defeats the fundamental premise of GST. These are taxes already paid for supplies by exporters. ICAI suggested that in the interim, till matching is firmly in place, 90 per cent be paid provisionally, subject to verification within the next two months. This part of the representation is somewhat unclear and ICAI should agitate the issue again with greater clarity.
Meantime, exporters continue to struggle for their refunds. On taxes paid on export of goods, many do not even know why their refunds are held up or where they have to lookp for reasons or with whom they have to take up the matter. The government should give suitable guidance. Better still, the government should straightaway disburse the refunds on the basis of shipping bills, later taking up instances of mismatch.
The government should also clearly again instruct that refund of 90 per cent of unutilised input tax credit due to export without payment of tax should not be delayed under any pretext. And, that the balance 10 per cent also be released as quickly as possible. It would be better, however, to amend the law for allowing 100 per cent refund immediately, subject to later scrutiny.
At the operating levels, an impression is gaining ground that the government is not keen on granting refunds due to shortfall in revenues. The best way for the government to counter this is by giving detailed figures of refunds claimed, disbursed and held up, with the reasons for delay.
The Business Standard, New Delhi, 15th January 2018

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

RBI deputy governor cautions fintech platform lenders on privacy concerns during loan recovery

By
  India's digital lending infrastructure has made the loan sanctioning system online. Yet, loan recovery still needs a “feet on the street” approach, Swaminathan J, deputy governor of the Reserve Bank of India, said at a media event on Tuesday, September 2, according to news agency ANI.According to the ANI report, the deputy governor flagged that fintech operators in the digital lending segment are giving out loans to customers with poor credit profiles and later using aggressive recovery tactics.“While loan sanctioning and disbursement have become increasingly digital, effective collection and recovery still require a 'feet on the street' and empathetic approach. Many fintech platforms operate on a business model that involves extending small-value loans to customers often with poor credit profiles,” Swaminathan J said.   Fintech platforms' business models The central bank deputy governor highlighted that many fintech platforms' business models involve providing sm
Post a Comment
Read more

Credit card spending growth declines on RBI gaze, stress build-up

By
  Credit card spends have further slowed down to 16.6 per cent in the current financial year (FY25), following the Reserve Bank of India’s tightening of unsecured lending norms and rising delinquencies, and increased stress in the portfolio.Typically, during the festival season (September–December), credit card spends peak as several credit card-issuing banks offer discounts and cashbacks on e-commerce and other platforms. This is a reversal of trend in the past three financial years stretching to FY21 due to RBI’s restrictions.In the previous financial year (FY24), credit card spends rose by 27.8 per cent, but were low compared to FY23 which surged by 47.5 per cent. In FY22, the spending increased 54.1 per cent, according to data compiled by Macquarie Research.ICICI Bank recorded 4.4 per cent gross credit losses in its FY24 credit card portfolio as against 3.2 per cent year-on-year. SBI Cards’ credit losses in the segment stood at 7.4 per cent in FY24 and 6.2 per cent in FY23, the rep
Post a Comment
Read more

India can't rely on wealthy to drive growth: Ex-RBI Dy Guv Viral Acharya

By
  India can’t rely on wealthy individuals to drive growth and expect the overall economy to improve, Viral Acharya, former deputy governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said on Monday.Acharya, who is the C V Starr Professor of Economics in the Department of Finance at New York University’s Stern School of Business (NYU-Stern), said after the Covid-19 pandemic, rural consumption and investments have weakened.We can’t be pumping our growth through the rich and expect that the economy as a whole will do better,” he said while speaking at an event organised by Elara Capital here.f there has to be a trickle-down, it should have actually happened by now,” Acharya said, adding that when the rich keep getting wealthier and wealthier, they have a savings problem.   “The bank account keeps getting bigger, hence they look for financial assets to invest in. India is closed, so our money can't go outside India that easily. So, it has to chase the limited financial assets in the country and
Post a Comment
Read more