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Jaitley to chair GST Council on May 4, simplifying return form on agenda The 27th GST Council meet will also mull over the proposal of converting GSTN into a government company Finance Minister Arun Jaitley-chaired GST Council will meet on May 4 to discuss a simpler return form and the amendments required in the indirect tax regime rules. The 27th meeting of the Council, comprising state finance ministers, will meet through video conferencing and will also mull over the proposal of converting GSTN into a government company. A decision on return simplification could be on the cards with the Sushil Modi-led Group of Ministers putting before the Council the three models of new return form for discussion, an official said. With Jaitley been advised by doctors to stay in isolation to avoid contracting infection, the meeting has been planned through video conferencing. The Council had in March discussed on two models of GST returns and suggested that the GoM would work further simpli

How can you mandate Aadhaar-mobile linking without our order? SC asks govt The lawyer referred to control being enjoyed by UIDAI over entities, private, government which seek Aadhaar authentication for providing services The Supreme Court on Wednesday raised questions over the government's decision ordering mandatory seeding of mobile numbers with Aadhaar and said its earlier order on mandatory authentication of the users was used as a "tool". A five-judge Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra, hearing a clutch of petitions challenging Aadhaar and its enabling 2016 law, said its order on a PIL filed by 'Lokniti Foundation' had said that mobile users needed to be verified in the interest of national security. "In fact, there was no such direction from the Supreme Court, but you took it and used it as a toll to make Aadhaar mandatory for mobile users," the bench, also comprising Justices A K Sikri, A M Khanwilkar, D Y Chandrachud a

3.11 million jobs added in 6 months, first EPFO payroll count shows The payroll count is essentially the difference between the number of workers who joined and exited from the EPFO's fold and as such is the net addition to jobs The Union government’s first-ever estimate of payroll count based on Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) subscription database showed that 3.11 million jobs were added in the formal economy in six months, even as there was a fall of 22 per cent in incremental employment in February 2018, compared to January to a four-month low of 472,075 persons. The payroll count is essentially the difference between the number of workers who joined and exited from the EPFO’s fold and as such is the net addition to jobs. The provisional figures released by the EPFO for six months showed 3.11 million workers joined the workforce in the formal sector during September 2017-February 2018. On a pro-rata basis, this would mean that 6.22 million additional jobs

Sebi could make 'pre-trade' allocation mandatory in Indian markets Pooled investors such as MFs or FPIs will have to state schemes under which they are acquiring shares The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) will soon issue a set of rules for trade allocations of institutional investors such as mutual funds (MFs) or foreign portfolio investors (FPIs). Sources say Sebi could make ‘pre-trade’ allocation mandatory. Currently, pooled investors, including MFs and FPIs, are allowed to buy blocks of shares from the market without assigning these to a specific scheme. Under the new framework, funds will have to determine beforehand how much of the purchased shares would go into each scheme. The move comes after several MFs were reportedly allotting shares to their schemes on an arbitrary basis, often giving preference to flagship schemes. There is no uniform framework for allotment of shares to schemes. Some institutions currently apply scheme-wise for allocations

GST Council Meet on May 4, Simplifying Returns on Agenda Finance Minister Arun Jaitley-chaired GST Council will meet on May 4 to discuss a simpler return form and the amendments required in the indirect tax regime rules. The 27th meeting of the Council, comprising state finance ministers, will meet through video conferencing and will also mull over the proposal of converting GSTN into a government company. A decision on return simplification could be on the cards with the Sushil Modi-led Group of Ministers putting before the Council the three models of new return form for discussion, an official said. With Jaitley been advised by doctors to stay in isolation to avoid contracting infection, the meeting has been planned through video conferencing. The Council had in March discussed on two models of GST returns and suggested that the GoM would work further simplification. The Economic Times, New Delhi, 26th April 2018

  E-commerce policy in six months; to tackle data privacy and tax issues On the issue of a potential regulator for the sector, the Commerce Secretary said it would depend on whether the policy needed legislative requirements and new regulations or existing laws sufficed The government has announced that a framework for an e-commerce policy will be prepared within the next six months. The comprehensive policy is expected to focus on all aspects of the e-commerce business and consumers. It will encompass data privacy and taxation, apart from a host of technical aspects such as technology transfer, server localisation and connectivity issues. Commerce Secretary Rita Teaotia said on Tuesday that a large number of ministries, key industry players and several regulators, including the Competition Commission of India and the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, would be involved in drafting the policy. The think tank tasked with drafting the policy held its first meeting on Tuesday.

Draft Rules Framed on Capital Gains Tax Where STT Not Paid Bonus shares, policy compliant foreign investment eligible for 10% tax even though STT not paid The income tax department has put out draft rules specifying situations where the recently imposed capital gains tax would apply even though no securities transactions tax (STT) has been paid. Bonus shares, policy compliant foreign investment, shares acquired via a will or inheritance, court or regulator approved acquisition, shares acquired under insolvency resolution and those under government disinvestment among others would be eligible for the new capital gains tax regime even though STT is not paid. The department has sought comments on the draft rules that recognise genuine transactions where STT could not have been paid. Once these rules are in force, these transactions would be eligible for tax at the rate of 10% even though there is no STT paid. Otherwise, such gains can face higher tax if clubbed with income. The