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Registrations
registration
Obtaining registration under the goods and services tax is critical for undertaking the ensuing compliances.
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Taxpayers should ensure successful migration from existing indirect tax registrations as also, where applicable, obtain fresh registrations.

The window for obtaining fresh registrations had opened on June 25, 2017.

The government has set up a help desk portal to resolve the technical glitches faced, namely non-acceptance of OTP (one-time password), at the time of registration, signing off on the application, etc.

In this connection, it is pertinent to note that a taxpayer needs to obtain registrations covering every place of business.

Further, job workers' premises may also be required to be added as an additional premise in the registrations.

In cases, where expenses are incurred for operations across the country, the input tax credit related to these expenses are allowed to be distributed.

For this purpose, a separate Input Service Distributor registration needs to be obtained for establishments that incur such expenses.

2
Sales
Sales
The immediate focus would need to ensure ability to invoice customers and charge appropriate taxes.
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To this end, the following is required to be collated:

  • Ascertaining the location from where billing needs to happen and obtaining registrations for the said locations;
  • Determining the place of supply for a given transaction;
  • In case of supply to a registered person related obtain registration details;
  • Ascertain the relevant HSN for supply goods and/ or services;
  • Ascertain relevant applicable tax rates;
  • Apply the appropriate tax (IGST in case of interstate supply and CCGST/ SGST/ UTGST in case of intra state supply)
  • Wherever ERP systems are being used by the taxpayers, relevant masters related to customers/ products/ tax engine would need to be populated from a GST standpoint

3
Transition
Transition
The government has prescribed several regulations in relation to transition into the GST regime.
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Primarily, taxpayers engaged in manufacturing or sales or trading would be required to mandatorily ensure identifying opening stock of raw material and finished traded goods.

This would ensure alignment with transition provisions to enable availment of relevant credits of taxes embedded in such opening stocks.

Taxpayers to also account for procurements done in the existing tax regime and collate eligible tax credits and report the same.

It is imperative that relevant invoices from vendors are received in a timely manner for enabling appropriate compliances to be carried out.

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Procurements
Procurements
Taxpayers need to ensure that vendors are registered
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Procurements from unregistered vendors mandate additional compliances of payment of taxes on a reverse charge basis (input tax credit of such taxes so paid is available).

Furnish the relevant registration numbers to vendors so as to enable them to charge appropriate taxes. This will also ensure enabling collation of credits.

Reassess existing vendor arrangements to avail benefits of the new tax regime.

5
Consumers
Consumers
Primarily, the government has sought to either maintain or reduce the existing tax burden on most goods.
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For a consumer, therefore, in most cases, there should not be material change.

Hopefully, the reduction of cascading impact should flow though eventually and benefit the ultimate consumer.