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over 9.3 crore PANs linked with Aadhaar: I-T department More than 9.3 crore Permanent Account Numbers (PAN) have been linked with Aadhaar, a senior Income Tax  Department officer said . Of the total PAN-Aadhaar seeding, which is nearly 30 per cent of about 30 crore PAN card holders,  about three crore linkages were done in June and July. "By August 5, which was the last date for filing Income Tax Returns (ITRs), over 9.3 crore PAN-Aadhaar  linkages have been registered by the I-T department," he said. According to the officer, the tally is expected to grow as the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT),  the policy-making body of the department, has already extended the last date for linking the two  unique numbers till August 31. The government had made the PAN-Aadhaar linking mandatory for filing ITR and obtaining a new Permanent  Account Number (PAN) from July 1. The CBDT has said that for the purpose of e-filing of returns (by August 5), it would be sufficient to

Unmasking Shell Companies Legal experts say a stricter definition of ‘beneficial interest in a share’ under company law and strengthening of the monitoring mechanism of listed entities may help  prevent abuse of shell companies Two recent events, though unrelated, could have a wide-ranging impact on the abuse of shell companies for money laundering and tax evasion. The first is a provision in  the Companies (Amendment) Bill, 2017, that was recently cleared by the Lok Sabha. It proposes to define, for the first time, the term “beneficial interest in a share”.  It further makes it mandatory to maintain a register of persons with a significant beneficial interest in a company. The other event is the Securities and Exchange  Board of India (Sebi) setting up a committee on “fair market conduct” to suggest measures to improve surveillance of the markets. “The Companies (Amendment) Bill, 2017, gives an extremely wide and inclusive definition of ‘beneficial interest in a share’ that

Importer has ‘no-fault’ liability to pay The Supreme Court has ruled that a port trust can demand demurrage and other charges from the importer  even if the entity was unable to clear goods for no fault or negligence on its part. Even if the  Customs authorities had detained the goods, which action was later found to be illegal, the charge  must be paid. The court stated so while setting aside the judgment of the Bombay High Court in the  case, Mumbai Port Trust vs Shri Lakshmi Steels. The court said neither can any shipping line involved  in such an instance be burdened with the detention charge, nor the Customs department. The judgment  explained: “The Customs authorities can be directed to pay the demurrage/detention charges only when  it has proved that their action is absolutely mala fide or is such a gross abuse of power that the  officials should be asked to compensate the importer for the extra burden which he has to bear. Even  if an importer feels that it has been unjustl

Govt to amend cost audit rules under companies law The government will amend the cost audit rules under the companies law in order to ensure parity  between financial and cost records. The amendments have been mooted pursuant to implementation of the Indian Accounting Standards (Ind  AS), which is converged with global accounting norms. The corporate affairs ministry, which is implementing the Companies Act, has come out with a draft of  the proposed amendments to the Cost Records and Audit rules. Various existing provisions under these rules, including some related to intangible assets, would be  done away with while Ind AS compliance would be required for certain other aspects. The Business Standard, New Delhi, 14th August 2017

18% GST on takeaway food from non AC area of AC restaurant A uniform goods and services tax (GST) rate of 18 per cent will be charged on take aways as well as food  served from a non AC area of a hotel or restaurant if any of its part has a facility of air conditioning, the  government said. The new GST regime, which was rolled out from July 1, provides for levy of 12 per cent on food bill in  non AC restaurants. The tax rate for AC restaurants and those with liquor licence will be 18 per cent while 5 star hotels  will charge 28 per cent GST. The Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) has clarified through an  FAQ on the GST rates that will be levied by restaurantcumbars where the first floor area is  air conditioned and used for serving food and liquor, while the ground floor only serves food and  non AC. The CBEC said tax will have to be charged at 18 per cent irrespective of from where the supply is  made, first floor or second floor. “If any part of the establishmen

3% GST rate for gold is low Chief Economic Advisor Arvind Subramanian batted for a higher goods and services tax (GST) rate for  gold and jewellery in the Survey, arguing these were consumed by the rich. The Survey also argued for inclusion of electricity, real estate, health and education in the GST  framework, rolled out from July 1. “There isaneed to simplify the GST tax structure in the medium  term,” Subramanian told journalists. The GST is expected to result in price reduction on account of lower taxation as compared to the  combined incidence of central and state taxes previously, the Survey noted. It added that deflationary tendencies, including transitional friction from GST implementation, weigh  on the economy, which was yet to gather full growth momentum. Gold, disproportionately consumed by the “very rich” is taxed at three per cent under GST, which the  Survey said was “still low”. The view comes atatime whenaflood of gold import from free trade partner Sout

Govt hikes import duty on crude, palm oil The government on Friday hiked the import duty on crude palm oil to 15 per cent from 7.5 per cent and  on refined to 25 per cent from 15 per cent to curb cheaper shipments and boost local prices for  supporting domestic farmers and refiners. The import duties on other crude edible oils like soya and sunflower have been raised to 17.5 per  cent from 12.5 per cent, according toanotification issued by the Central Board of Excise and Customs. The hike in import duty of crude and refined palm oil will help restrict cheaper imports from  Malaysia and Indonesia and benefit farmers which are in distress due to fall in prices of oil seeds  below minimum support price because of bumper production. The Business Standard, New Delhi, 12th August 2017