This chapter is about goods and services tax (GST), the tax reform by the Government of India. GST seeks to bridge the gaps between different types of taxes and provide a common platform under the “one India one tax” initiative of the Indian government. The objective of this chapter is not only to understand it but also to comprehend the challenges the various stakeholders of GST would face. Moreover, this chapter discusses the key benefits to its stakeholders. The online system of GST has also been covered in detail.
TopIntroduction
The GST will deliver significant externalities by way of improved taxation efficiency and ease of doing business and will convert India into one common market. (Jaitley, 2017)
The bigger guys can employ talent and skills to quickly get on to GST. Businesses in the tier II and tier III towns who only have a local accountant to handle their accounts and are not yet completely familiar with electronic filing, it's a huge burden on them. (Chidambaram, n.d.)
Goods and Services Tax (GST) is a part of the tax reforms by the Ministry of Finance, Government of India. Being a nascent activity, not much is known to the common people on the nitty-gritty of the same. Several questions are being raised varying from the definition to implications of GST. Indeed, it is of paramount importance for its stakeholders such as public in general, government officials, and corporate entities to understand and comprehend this tax. GST is an indirect tax and an initiation of the Government of India to club all the different types of indirect taxes under one head.
It requires deep understanding of the concept and its application to be fully aware of the GST. Amid all this, the thrust of the Government of India is on e-taxation and so, knowledge of GST is equally important. Therefore, the objective of this chapter is two-fold. The first aim is to synthesize the existing understanding on GST. The second aim is to delineate the importance and application of GST over the existing system.
In order to accomplish the aforesaid objective, this chapter espouses a structured format that unveils the underlying concepts in a lucid and understandable manner. The chapter begins with the list of the features of GST. It is followed by giving a rationale in terms of the need for GST. Next, it discusses the GSTN, the electronic platform of GST, its characteristics, procedure of filing GST online, challenges involved, and its benefits. The chapter concludes with a summary and authors’ understanding on the content so discussed.