Highlights of 39th GST Council Meeting dated 14th March 2020

Looking for the updates of the 39th GST Council Meeting? Here are the most important ones-

The 39th GST Council meeting was held on 14th March, 2020 Smt Nirmala Sitharaman, the Union Finance Minister along with Minister of State Finance Anurag Thakur chaired the said Council meeting which was conducted at New Delhi.

The GST Council has taken some of the firm decisions based on the requirement of the market including an increase in the tax rate on mobile phones and specified parts to 18 percent from 12 per cent. Also, Infosys which is the main developer of the GSTN portal has required some more time to finally clear all the issues on the IT portal. Let us have a look at the Key highlights of the 39th GST Council meeting.

1. Extension of GSTR 9 & 9C due date:

• The deadline for Form GSTR 9 & 9C for the Financial year 2018-19 is extended to 30th June, 2020.
• Also, Late fees will not be levied for delayed filing (late fees) of the Annual return Form GSTR 9 and the Reconciliation Statement Form GSTR 9C for financial year 2017-18 and 2018-19 for taxpayers with aggregate turnover less than Rs.2 crore. 
• That means filing GSTR 9C is optional for the taxpayers having the turnover of less than Rs. 5 crores

2. Extension of due date for GSTR 3B:

• The due date of Form GSTR-3B for July 2019 to January 2020 is extended till 24th March 2020 for taxpayers with a principal place of business in the Union Territory of Ladakh.

3. GSTR 1 filing would be done in staggered manner:

• The 39th GST council has decided that the GST taxpayers can file their GSTR 1 in a staggered manner. 
• The GST taxpayers whose turnover is more than INR 1.5 crores the due date for filing of GSTR 1 would be 10th of the following month.
• Taxpayers whose turnover is upto INR 1.5 crores the due date for filing of GSTR 1 would be 13th of the following month.
• The GSTR 2A can be generated on 14th of the following month.
•  New Returns would be applicable from 1st Oct 2020 onwards

4. New GST Rates:

• The 39th GST Council Meeting headed by FM Nirmala Sitharaman raised GST on mobile phones and specified parts to 18% from the existing 12%.
• The Goods and Services Tax (GST) on handmade and machine-made matchsticks has been rationalised to 12%.
• GST rate on MRO (maintenance repair overhaul) services of aircraft slashed to 5% from 18%. 
• All rate related changes will come into effect on 1 April.

5. Interest on delayed GST payments:

• The interest for delayed GST payment will be calculated on the net tax liability. 
• Delayed GST payment will attract interest on net tax liability from 1 July.
• The law will be amended for this retrospectively.

6. Approval to KYC Scheme:

• A new scheme called ‘Know your Supplier’ has been introduced
• Through this scheme, the taxpayers are informed about the basic details of the suppliers with whom they transact or propose to conduct business.
• The MSME could get an overview regarding the Potential supplier so that loss of the Input credit could be avoided.

7. Revocation of Cancellation amended:

• Taxpayers who have cancelled their GST registration till 14th March 2020 can file an application for revocation of cancellation of registration.
• The window to fill this application is available till 30th June 2020.
• The extension is a one-time measurement to facilitate those who want to continue conducting the business.

8. Time limit for E-exemption:

• The time limit for finalisation of the e-Wallet scheme for consumers is extended till 31st March 2021.

9. Refund and Recovery of GST refund:

• Allow for the refund to be sanctioned in both cash and credit in case of excess payment of tax.
• To provide for recovery of refund on the export of goods where export proceeds are not realized within the time prescribed under FEMA.

Moreover, Infosys Chairman, Mr Nandan Nilekani will present progress updates about the GST IT systems at the next three GST Council meetings. Infosys stated a one-year time frame to resolve GST portal & IT network issues.

Hope this article was helpful. Refer to the topics discussed in the 38th GST Council meeting 

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