Goods & Services Tax (GST) assesses can breathe easy on the compliance front. The Finance Ministry has extended the date for filing annual return for financial year 2018-19 till September 30. At the same time NIL return can be filed through Short Messaging Service (SMS).

The Ministry has also notified extending the validity of e-way bill, expiring between March 20-April15, till May 31. This will facilitate smooth movement of trucks stranded at various places all across the country post announcement of lockdown.

Late in the evening on Tuesday, Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) notified five changes important from the point of compliance. All these intend to provide relief to various categories of GST assesses.

Annual Returns

In one notification, the Board permitted assesses to file annual return for fiscal year 2018-19 by September 30 as against earlier date of June 30. It is mandatory to file an annual return. There are three annual return forms, GSTR 9, GSTR 9A and GSTR 9C. Every GST assessee (those who submitted all the monthly return forms of GSTR 3B and GSTR 1) has to file an annual return in GSTR 9.

Among these assessees, every registered taxable person whose turnover during a financial year exceeds 2 crore, will also be required to get his accounts audited by a chartered accountant or a cost accountant and then submit a reconciliation statement in GSTR 9C along with GSTR 9. The assessees under the composition scheme (businesses with turnover up to 1.5 crore) will be required to file the GSTR 9A form.

e-Way Bill

The announcement of lockdown On March 24 put brakes on thousands and thousands of trucks. Now though the movement of trucks carrying various goods has been permitted, they cannot move as e-way bill for goods on these trucks have expired. Keeping this in mind, the board said that an e-way bill, generated on or before the March 24 and its period of validity expires during March 20 and April-15, will have extended validity till May 31.

In order to curb the tax evasion, the Government introduced e-Way bill system for inter-State as well as intra-State trade. The bill, which is a kind of document required to be carried by the person in charge of a consignment of goods of value exceeding  50,000, is generated from the GST Common Portal. The consignor or consignee, as a registered person or a transporter of the goods can generate the e-Way bill. The validity of the e-Way bill depends on the distance the goods have to be transported.

Filing of monthly return

In another notification, the Board said that a registered person registered under the provisions of the Companies Act, 2013 will, during the period from the April 21- June 30, 2020, be allowed to furnish GSTR3B return verified through electronic verification code (EVC). At present, assesses are allowed to furnish the documents or application verified through digital signature certificate. GSTR-3B is monthy return showing actual tax payment.

It has also been decided that a registered person who is required to furnish a Nil return in FORM GSTR-3B for a tax period can do so through a short messaging service using the registered mobile number. Such return will be verified by a registered mobile number based One Time Password facility.

Insolvency Process

Another notification prescribed procedure for registered persons who are corporate debtors under the provisions of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 and are undergoing the corporate insolvency resolution process, so as to enable them to comply with the provisions of GST Laws during the CIRP period. “The said class of persons shall, with effect from the date of appointment of IRP / RP, be treated as a distinct person of the corporate debtor, and shall be liable to take a new registration (hereinafter referred to as the new registration)in each of the States or Union territories where the corporate debtor was registered earlier, within thirty days of the appointment of the IRP/RP or by 30th June, 2020, whichever is later,” the notification said.