GST, which stands for Goods and Services Tax, was levied in India on 1st July 2017. This has made the whole tax system a lot less complicated for the people. In case you are new to all this GST terminology, you have come to the right place. Read on to learn about the GST Compliance requirements and penalties under India’s GST Regime.
GST has proven to be a win-win situation for the whole country. Its benefits are enjoyed by all, including the government, the industry, and the consumers. This tax gives a boost to the country’s economy.
What is the aim of GST?
The main aim of GST is to make India a place that has common tax rates. This will pave the way for an independent and integrated economy at a national level. By permitting a set-off of different prior-stage taxes for various transactions over the overall value chain and by including most of the State and Central taxes in a single tax, it would reduce the ill cascading effects, improve the liquidity of businesses, and improve competitiveness.
GST compliance
The new and smart GST regime has introduced various compliance guidelines that work on mandating businesses so that they remain compliant. All the businesses are essentially required to adopt and sanction the new GST compliance rules that the government of India sets. Although the GST compliance rules keep updating and changing from time to time (depending on the requirements that the government sets), these rules of compliance can be clubbed into three different categories:
Tax Invoice Compliance
Registration Compliance
Return Filing Compliance
Keep in mind that other compliances differ and depend on the nature of the business.
Penalties and offences under the GST regime
There are different things that are considered offenses under the GST regime. Depending on the GST offence, the penalty will be levied.
An offence, in simple terms, is a breach of any rule or law, that is, an illegal act. Just like that, any offence under GST is considered a breach of certain provisions of the GST Act and Rules.
What are the offences under GST?
There are, in total, 21 offences under the GST regime. For better understanding, these offences have been divided into multiple groups. They are:
Wrong or fake invoices
Tax evasion
Fraud
Transport or supply of goods
Others
The others section of the offences includes multiple remaining offences. To know more about these offences and penalties in detail, make sure you get in touch with a professional.
What does a penalty mean under GST?
In GST, the word “penalty” is not defined. Hence, it takes its meaning from a lot of judicial pronouncements & principles of jurisprudence. To define a penalty in simple terms, it is a punishment imposed by the law for committing any offence (falling under the GST regime) or failing to follow through with the duty under the GST regime by the individual/organization. A penalty can be corporal, pecuniary, criminal, or civil. The penalties, including the corporal (jail) and pecuniary (monetary), are applicable under GST.