Model GST Law – Final version from the month end

The country is gearing up for the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax from July, but the nuances of the GST law are yet to be set in stone. The law department has been looking at the provisions of the GST, and states have been mulling over it as well, increasing delays.

However, a senior member of the finance ministry in Delhi said today that the model law could be finalised by the end of this month.Currently, the law ministry is in the process of vetting the model GST and the SGST, after which the final decision will be taken by the GST council on February 18. If all goes well, the model GST law could then be tabled in the Parliament during the Budget Session starting March 9. This would include both SGST and IGST.

The way forward

Once the model GST law is finalised and tabled in the Parliament, states will have to pass an SGST which will be charged on the movement of goods across state boundaries. The Parliament will also have to approve a GST Compensation Act which will help states earn back the revenue they might lose in taxes by implementing SGST for the first five years. A four-tier structure for taxes has already been decided by the council, with taxes calculated at 5 per cent, 12 per cent, 18 per cent and 28 per cent. However, the levy for various goods and services should be finalised by May or June.

How does this impact businesses?

Here’s an in-depth report on the various taxes under GST, which will help you understand the regime better. Under the GST model, 3 taxes will be implemented to help tax-payers to take credit against each other thus ensuring “One nation one tax”. While intra-state movement of goods will be charged under the SGST (State GST) and the CGST (Central GST), the inter-state movement of goods will be taxed under the IGST.

IGST will also impact imports. It is expected that this three-tax structure will make it easier for states to conduct businesses, as from now on they will only have to deal with the centre in the matter of taxes and not with every other state involved in the transaction. Dealers and businesses who have pan-India concerns should find this new tax regime to their benefit. To know more about GST, do read our blogs here. We would love to help you be GST-ready! Some of the key points that should be kept in mind are:

• Get your enrollment done on time. To read more about the enrollment process and its relevance, Click here.
• Plan your logistics and warehousing requirement carefully. To read our detailed guide on impact analysis on logistics and warehousing, Click here.
• Adopt such platforms, technologies which will enable your business to be GST-compliant. Click here to get all updates and access a pool of GST Calculators.

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