The article provides for an insight with respect to GST updates made on account of various announcements made by GST Council in its 37th meeting held on 20.09.2019. The amendments/changes are made by issuing various Notifications on 30.09.2019 and 09.10.2019.
This update covers the effect of such amendments and the amendments can be summarized as below:
- Substantial amendments made in GST Law
- Changes in Rate of Tax for Supply of Goods
- Changes in Rate of Tax for Supply of Services
- Various Exemptions granted from payment of GST
- Changes made under Reverse Charge Mechanism (RCM)
- Prescribing of Various Due Dates under GST
Substantial amendments made in GST Law
- Presently the Input Tax Credit is claimed by Assessee by filing GSTR – 3B and self-declaring the Input Tax Credit to be claimed. The amendment in GST Rules now provide that the Input Tax Credit can be claimed based on the invoices as reflected by their suppliers i.e. as appearing in GSTR – 2A. Further the credit in respect of invoices which are not appearing in GSTR – 2A can be claimed subject to an outer limit of 20% of ITC already reflected in GSTR – 2A.
- GSTR – 3B has been prescribed as a return as envisaged in Section 39 read with Rule 61 by making a retrospective amendment in GST law. This amendment is to overcome the decision of Hon’ble Gujarat High Court in the case of AAP & Co, Chartered Accountants wherein it was held that GSTR – 3B is not a return for the purpose of determining the claim of Input Tax Credit.
- Form DRC-01A has been prescribed to enable the officer to communicate the details of tax, interest and penalty payable by the assessee. Further the assessee is given an option to reply in DRC – 01B to intimate the payment of tax so made and reasons for non-payment of balance tax, if any
- Assessee’s having a turnover of less than 2 crores have been provided with an option of filing Annual Return (GSTR – 9). In case Annual Return is not filed before due date by such persons then it shall be deemed as if return is filed and no consequences shall apply
Changes in Rate of Tax for Supply of Goods
The changes in rate of tax of goods have been made effective from 01.10.2019
| Name of Product | HSN Code | Old Rate | New Rate |
| Tamarind, Dried | 0813 | 5% | Exempt |
| Marine Fuel 0.5% (FO) | 2710 | 18% | 5% |
| Woven and non-woven bags and sacks of polyethylene or polypropylene strips | 6305 33 00 | 5% | 12% |
| Wet grinder consisting of stone as grinder | 8509 | 12% | 5% |
| Rail locomotives powered from an external source of electricity or by electric accumulators | 8601 | 5% | 12% |
| Other rail locomotives; locomotive tenders; such as Diesel-electric locomotives, Steam locomotives and tenders thereof | 8602 | 5% | 12% |
| Self-propelled railway or tramway coaches, vans and trucks, other than those of heading 8604 | 8603 | 5% | 12% |
| Railway or tramway maintenance or service vehicles, whether or not self-propelled (for example, workshops, cranes, ballast tampers, track liners, testing coaches and track inspection vehicles) | 8604 | 5% | 12% |
| Railway or tramway passenger coaches, not self-propelled; luggage vans, post office coaches and other special purpose railway or tramway coaches, not self-propelled (excluding those of heading 8604) | 8605 | 5% | 12% |
| Railway or tramway goods vans and wagons, not self-propelled | 8606 | 5% | 12% |
| Parts of railway or tramway locomotives or rolling-stock; such as Bogies, bissel-bogies, axles and wheels, and parts thereof | 8607 | 5% | 12% |
| Railway or tramway track fixtures and fittings; mechanical (including electro-mechanical) signalling, safety or traffic control equipment for railways, tramways, roads, inland waterways, parking facilities, port installations or airfields; parts of the foregoing | 8608 | 5% | 12% |
| Woven and non-woven bags and sacks of polyethylene or polypropylene strips or the like | 3923 | 18% | 12% |
| Parts of Slide Fasteners | 9607 | 18% | 12% |
| Caffeinated Beverages | 2202 9990 | 18% | 28% |
| Motor Vehicle for disabled persons other than notified motor vehicles | 8703 | 18% | 28% |
| Precious stones (other than diamonds) and semi-precious stones, whether or not worked or graded but not strung, mounted or set; ungraded precious stones (other than diamonds) and semi-precious stones, temporarily strung for convenience of transport | 7103 | 3% | 0.25% |
| Synthetic or reconstructed precious or semiprecious stones, whether or not worked or graded but not strung, mounted or set; ungraded synthetic or reconstructed precious or semiprecious stones, temporarily strung for convenience of transport | 7104 | 3% | 0.25% |
| Plates and cups made up of all kinds of leaves/ flowers/bark | 4601 | 5% | Exempt |
| Any Goods meant for Petroleum operations or coal bed methane operations undertaken under specified contracts under the Hydrocarbon Exploration Licensing Policy (HELP) or Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP) | Depends | Depends | 5% |
| All goods supplied to the Food and Agricultural Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) for execution of specified projects | Depends | Depends | Exempt |
Changes in Rate of Tax for Supply of Services
The changes in rate of tax of goods have been made effective from 01.10.2019
| Nature of Service | HSN Code | Old Rate | New Rate |
| Accommodation Service for hotels having tariff above 1000 and upto 7500 per unit per day | 9963 | 12% /18% | 12% |
| Accommodation Service for hotels having tariff above 7500 per unit per day | 9963 | 28% | 18% |
| Outdoor Catering within the hotel having tariff above 7500 per unit per day | 9963 | 18% | 18% |
| Outdoor Catering within the hotel having tariff below 7500 per unit per day | 9963 | 18% | 5% |
| Outdoor Catering outside the hotel by the hotelier having tariff above 7500 per unit per day | 9963 | 18% | 18% |
| Outdoor Catering outside the hotel by the hotelier having tariff Below 7500 per unit per day | 9963 | 18% | 5% |
| Other professional, technical and business services relating to exploration, mining or drilling of petroleum crude or natural gas or both | 9983 | 18% | 12% |
| Services by way of job work in relation to diamonds falling under chapter 71 in the First Schedule to the Customs Tariff Act, 1975 (51of 1975); | 9988 | 5% | 1.5% |
| Services by way of job work other than the process amounting to Manufacture | 9988 | 18% | 12% |
Various Exemptions granted from payment of GST
- Services provided by FIFA in relation to FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup 2020 to be hosted in India
- Services by way of right to admission to the events organised under FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup 2020.
- Accommodation provided by hotels having tariff value upto Rs. 1000 per day per unit
- Services by way of transportation of goods by aircraft/vessel from customs station in India to a place outside India has been extended upto 30th September 2020
- Services by way of storage or warehousing of cereals, pulses, fruits, nuts and vegetables, spices, copra, sugarcane, jaggery, raw vegetable fibres such as cotton, flax, jute etc., indigo, unmanufactured tobacco, betel leaves, tendu leaves, coffee and tea
- Services of life insurance provided or agreed to be provided by the Central Armed Police Forces (under Ministry of Home Affairs) Group Insurance Funds to their members under the Group Insurance Schemes of the concerned Central Armed Police Force
- Services of General Insurance business provided under Bangla Sashya Bima Scheme
- Service by way of grant of alcoholic liquor licence, against consideration in the form of licence fee or application fee
Changes made under Reverse Charge Mechanism (RCM)
- Reverse Charge Mechanism introduced on services by way of renting of a motor vehicle provided to a body corporate
- Optional Reverse Charge Mechanism provided for Authors permitting the use or enjoyment of a copyright
Prescribing of Various Due Dates under GST
- The due date for GSTR – 3B for the month October 2019 to March 2020 has been notified as 20th day after the end of the month
- The due date for GSTR – 1 has been notified as below:
| Month/Quarter | Periodicity | Due Date |
| October 2019 | Monthly | 11th November, 2019 |
| November 2019 | Monthly | 11th December, 2019 |
| December 2019 | Monthly | 11th January, 2020 |
| January 2020 | Monthly | 11th February, 2020 |
| February 2020 | Monthly | 11th March, 2020 |
| March 2020 | Monthly | 11th April, 2020 |
| October 2019 to December, 2019 | Quarterly | 31st January, 2020 |
| January 2020 to March 2020 | Quarterly | 30th April, 2020 |
- Special Due dates prescribed for Jammu & Kashmir
| Particulars | Due Date |
| GSTR – 1 for July 2019 | 11th October 2019 |
| GSTR – 1 for August 2019 | 11th October 2019 |
| GSTR – 7 for July 2019 | 10th October 2019 |
| GSTR – 7 for August 2019 | 10th October 2019 |
| GSTR – 3B for July 2019 | 20th October 2019 |
| GSTR – 3B for August 2019 | 20th October 2019 |
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