Question 11: I am an Indian Company who makes software and sells it outside the country. I have hired a firm (not a related party) ‘C’ located abroad to facilitate the supply of software in Europe and the USA; would I
be liable to pay GST on the payments that I make to this entity abroad?
Answer: No. In this case, ‘C’ is covered by the definition of ‘intermediary’ [section 2(13) of the IGST Act, 2017]. The place of supply of such intermediary service is location of the supplier in terms of section 13(8) of the IGST Act, 2017. As ‘C’ is located outside India, GST is not payable in this case.

Question 12: What factors determine the location of ‘C’ (in question 11) as being outside India?
Answer: In terms of section 2 (15) of the IGST Act, 2017, the location of a service provider is to be determined by applying the following steps sequentially:
(1) where a supply is made from a place of business for which the registration has been obtained, the location of such place of business;
(2) where a supply is made from a place other than the place of business for which registration has been obtained (a fixed establishment elsewhere), the location of such fixed establishment;
(3) where a supply is made from more than one establishment, whether the place of business or fixed establishment, the location of the establishment most directly concerned with the provision of the supply; and
(4) in absence of such places, the location of the usual place of residence of the supplier.
The location of ‘C’ is to be determined by applying the criterion from (2), or (3), or as the case may be, (4).

Question 13: I am an agent in India of a foreign IT/ITES provider (principal located outside India). For agency services, I bill the principal in convertible foreign exchange. Whether GST liability arises in this case?
Answer: You are an intermediary and the place of supply of the service provided by you to the principal is in India irrespective of the mode of payment. Hence, GST is payable on the services provided by you as an intermediary to the principal.

Question 14: I have more than one SEZ unit in different States; do I need to take separate registrations? Also, I have two SEZ units in one State. Can I take a single registration?
Answer:
(1) Yes. Under GST, every entity shall take GST registration in each State from which it makes taxable supplies. However, a single registration can be taken for all your SEZ units within a State, whether located in one SEZ or more than one SEZ.
(2) A person having unit(s) in a Special Economic Zone as well as outside the SEZ in a State shall make a separate application for registration for SEZ unit(s) as a business vertical distinct from his other units located outside the Special Economic Zone in that State (Refer Rule 8(1) of CGST Rules, 2017).

Question 15: I have a unit in the DTA and another in the SEZ; can I take a common registration?
Answer: No. A person having unit(s) in a Special Economic Zone as well as outside the SEZ in a State, shall make a separate application for registration for SEZ unit(s) as a business vertical distinct from his other units located outside the Special Economic Zone in that State (Refer Rule 8(1) of CGST Rules, 2017).

Question 16: If I supply a laptop bag along with the laptop to my customer, what would be the rate of tax leviable?
Answer: If the laptop bag is supplied along with the laptop in the ordinary course of business, the principal supply is that of the laptop and the bag is an ancillary. Therefore, it is a composite supply and the rate of tax would that as applicable to the laptop.

Question 17: I am obtaining online database access services from a company abroad over the net, would I have to pay tax on reverse charge?
Answer: The recipient, if registered, has to pay the applicable IGST on reverse charge basis. If the recipient is not registered, the matter is treated as an online information and database access or retrieval service (OIDAR) and the OIDAR service provider is liable to take registration and pay tax.

Question 18: When would it be construed that I have made a supply of services involving temporary transfer or permitting the use or enjoyment of any intellectual property right?
Answer: Generally, the End User Licence Agreement (EULA) is the legal contract between a software application author or publisher and the user of that application governing the usage. The agreement is renewable and/or could be amended from time to time. To find out as to whether there is an element of supply involved when software is delivered to its customer, the terms and conditions of EULA are material.
The contract for supply therefore assumes significance in this test to decide whether or not there has been ‘temporary transfer or permitting the use or enjoyment of any intellectual property right’.

Question 19: What special provisions are attracted in GST with regard to associated enterprises?
Answer: An enterprise which participates, either directly or indirectly, through one or more intermediaries, in the management, or control or capital of the other enterprise is an associated enterprise. In the context of GST, associated enterprise is particularly relevant in the case of supply of services, where the supplier is located outside India. In such cases, the time of supply will be the earlier of date of entry in the books of account of the recipient of supply or the date of payment – thus, within ‘associated enterprises’, the levy under GST is attracted once such book entries are made even if no actual payment takes place or no invoice
is issued.

Question 20: What would be the tax liability on replacement of parts (no consideration is charged from a customer) under a warranty and whether the supplier is required to reverse the input tax credit?
Answer: As parts are provided to the customer without a consideration under warranty, no GST is chargeable on such replacement. The value of supply made earlier includes the charges to be incurred during the warranty period. Therefore, the supplier who has undertaken the warranty replacement is not required to reverse the input tax credit on the parts/components replaced.