It has been more than a year since the biggest and the most comprehensive indirect tax reform, Goods and Service Tax (GST) has come into effect in India from 1 July 2017. This phenomenal task of shifting to the new digital regime of taxation is aimed at streamlining and consolidating indirect taxes in order to unify the market. This transition accounts for changes in all areas of business, tax rates and tax payment schedule, logistics, delivery, marketing and sales and so on. In this context let’s look at the few ways by which organizations can make the best use of GST.

·         Understanding and assessing the impact of GST on each aspect of the business.

·         Taking advantage of the integrated and unified system of taxes to streamline operations and rationalize prices.

·         By taking advantage of the single registration and seamless tax-credit flow mechanism, businesses can expand to other states/parts of the country.

·         Reaping out the benefits from increased at par competitiveness under unified GST which has replaced multiple tax systems levied by different authorities.

·         Increasing profit margins and reducing operational costs by ensuring all expenses where ITC can be claimed.

       Read more at: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/308667

GST regime necessitates a high level of synchronization between tax payer’s application, invoicing software, and  GST system, which without automation would be difficult. These include item level detail in invoices, maintenance of trail of all amended entries, reconciliation of sales and purchase register between vendors and buyers on a minimum three monthly returns and other events such as auto reversals demand or automation of tax compliance process within any tax entity. If anything is a miss, it will directly impact the business’s compliance rating and act as a deciding factor for the buyers, lenders and insurers, whether to deal with that business or not. Till now, Goods and Services Network (GSTN), a private company set up to provide IT infrastructure to the government, taxpayers and stakeholders for GST implementation have appointed 34 GSPs which will offer support and services in form of GST APIs to help tax payers and businesses in compliance. Functionalities available through GST APIs includes registration of tax payer and consultants, return filling , payments, ledger maintenance, etc. Factors such as intuitiveness of reconciliation, validation and tax determination engine, data security, storage and privacy policies etc. should be taken into consideration by taxpayers while choosing the right technology vendor to ensure smooth compliance. Read more at https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/297632

As from the past record, Indian retail industry transformed a lot. It can cross over USS $1.3 trillion by 2020. It accounts over 10 per cent of the Indian GDP. And now as GST implementation brings over greater transparency, reduced trade barriers and improved credit. 1.) pricing and promotions: Due to GST product pricing will be affected and also companies in B2C segment will be significantly affected. GST will impact prices of goods at every stage in the supply chain and retailers will need to review their prices studies by vendors. 2.) EOSS(end of season sale): there will be difficulty in clearing the stock of last year.3.) reduced rates of apparel and  changing purchase pattern. Read more at:  http://analyticsindiamag.com/can-retail-analytics-step-game-big-box-stores-rush-embrace-gst/

With the rolling out of the GST, there has been a whole set of expectations and  beliefs as to how this entire system is going to have an impact on the economy and bring changes in the existing structure. The main reason behind the fight to pass the GST was to subsume the various existing taxes into just one tax (one nation, one tax) and to mitigate the cascading effect of the taxes. The expectation is that the GST is going to increase the GDP by 100-150 basis point in the coming few years. But there are analysts who believe that this new system is going to have a short term negative impact and this shall last till the time the economy gets into the line of  this new system. But this disruption will mostly be reflected in the manufacturing activities. But at the end, the story is that the GST is being seen as a blessing in disguise, from which the economy is definitely going to be benefited! TO READ MORE GO TO 

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/stocks/news/how-painful-will-be-gst-for-stock-market-not-as-much-as-vat-was/articleshow/59348446.cms 

A reality check by ET Wealth for both GST supporters and its detractors. 1) Now it is one nation one tax: Goods like petroleum, diesel are still outside GST’s ambit 2) Small businesses will suffer: Shops can go for manual billing and only for filing internet connectivity is required  3) Prices will shoot up: It seems high because entire system is visible  4) Corporate may try to profiteer but government won’t: Some State govt also act greedy 5) No tax other that GST is a reality: It only considers local and state taxes not the other charges 6) Economic growth will rise: Recorded economic growth will rise not the real growth 7) Pay GST twice for card payments: No additional GST for credit card payments. Read more at: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/wealth/spend/gst-myths-busted-a-reality-check/articleshow/59501148.cms

The effectiveness of a strategy lies in its implementation. Before demonetization, India’s was 13% to the GD but the target is to cannibalize cash usage to 5 to 6% of GDP in coming years.  No single action leads to a transformation. The first to come was the Jan Dhan scheme, then comes the linking of Aadhaar number and the mother of all may be GST. With the GST, caps on cash transactions, opportunities to evade tax has shrunk. One may even see the 2,000 notes in circulation shrink as the RBI accelerates supply of lower denomination currencies which are on the rise. Read more at: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/banking/finance/banking/is-the-digital-india-dream-fading-think-again/articleshow/59276009.cms

Only filing ITR is not enough. It is also necessary to keep abreast of the latest changes in ITR rules so as to make your return filing complete in all respects. Ten facts to keep in mind before filing ITR this year for last financial year are: 1) Due date for filing returns 2) Mandatory return filing 3) Change in law with respect to revised return 4) Linking of Aadhaar card with PAN 5) Dividend Tax 6) Return filing mandatory even if TDS is deducted 7) TDS and Form 26AS 8) Savings Bank Interest Income 9) Schedule AL 10) E-Verification of Income Tax Returns. These are the important steps that are required to complete the process of online income tax return filing. Read more at: http://www.financialexpress.com/money/ten-facts-to-know-about-filing-income-tax-return-this-year/730293/

Infrastructure players are happy when they can complete a project in a short period of time. Regulatory changes may now undo all the good work the government has put in and may be the cause for project delays across India. The GST regime is estimated an 8-9% “tax impact”. Under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), the lenders appoint their own person to run the show and virtually take over the assets, leading to liquidation within 180-270 days which has worried the banks about their own survival.  Read more at: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/banking/finance/banking/banks-or-india-inc-who-will-come-back-from-the-brink-first/articleshow/59404105.cms

"Online shopping will be drastically affected by implementation of GST.  The article explains how GST will bring changes in online shopping, the areas which will be affected by this are:

• Tax collected at source

• Faster delivery

• End of freebies and discounts

• Shopping from global players

• Returns and cancellations will get difficult 

Read more at: 

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/59319112.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst"

Goods and Service Tax (GST) is implemented to eliminate the cascading effect of tax and also double taxation. Not only the insurance companies, but also its policy holders will be affected by GST implementation. The 18 % GST rate will apply for insurance sector as per the GST council rates. At present, service tax of 15 % is imposed on the premium cost of the term plans, health plan and motor insurance plan. As per rates declared GST rates will be 18% from July 2017. This means the premium will get costlier by 3 %. Currently, endowment plans attract a service tax of 3.75 % on the premium in the first year and 1.88% in the second , 3.5 % is levied on protection part of ULIPs in the first year and 1.75 % from second year onward and will rise to 4.5 % in the first year and 2.55% in the second under the new tax regime. Read more at: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/295143

To replace the web of indirect taxes, GST has been introduced. Registration is mandatory under GST if:

1. Sales of goods and services are more than 20 lakhs (Rs 10 lakh for North East states) in a financial year.

2. Business is involved in inter-state supplies or supplies via e-commerce.

3. Taxpayers already registered under VAT/service tax also needs to migrate and register under GST. 

The article furthers explains the benefits of GST registration such as claiming input tax credit, ease in paying taxes, paperless compliance of taxes , etc. It also explains the losses to be faced if the business is not registered under GST.

Read more at:

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/small-biz/policy-trends/heres-how-your-business-needs-to-change-for-gst/articleshow/58995677.cms

Blending GST with a clearly articulated manufacturing strategy would attract global investments, create jobs and there cannot be a better time to start the Make in India program. The GST rate has been reduced by 10% for most of the industrial products. Lower taxes, simplified tax structure, seamless tax credit facility and technology driven easy tax compliance system offered by GST will promote the manufacturing sector. Concentration should be on the following manufacturing Categories: semiconductor making equipment (SME) which is at the heart of most import products/ sectors today; manufacturing of specialty materials, nanotechnology, integrated circuits, etc.; manufacturing of computer, TV, mobile phone and other electronic and telecom equipment and producing skill- and labor-intensive products like auto components, furniture, apparel etc. Read more at: http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/toi-edit-page/how-to-combine-gst-with-a-sharp-make-in-india-strategy-to-convert-india-into-a-global-manufacturing-hub/

The increasing demands for online goods have led to a loss of revenue for those who delivers goods within the state. This led to the introduction of entry tax legislation targeting specifically the online portals although levying such tax is quite controversial as it is against our constitution which allows free trade within the country. Ironically the commerce sectors tend to bring cross-border equity by levying these taxes when in reality these levies create unwarranted divisions. Thus the ultimate expectation is that these levels will be subsumed by the GST and the state of issue should lawfully obtain their revenue from sales. In conclusion, these short sighted moves of states should be discouraged at that moment when ecommerce boom which led to a sale of goods worth $12 billion in India during 2015. Read more at: http://forbesindia.com/blog/economy-policy/taxing-times-for-ecommerce-sector/