Timeline for New GST Return

Update:

As per the decision taken on September 20, 2019 at the 37th GST Council Meeting, the implementation of the new GST return system for all taxpayers and for all forms stands deferred to April 2020. This date has now been further deferred to October 2020.

With the New Return Systems under the Goods and Services Tax to be officially rolled out soon, taxpayers need to start preparing to adapt to the simplified returns system. Here are details of dates that need to be kept in mind.

For those taxpayers looking to get a first-hand experience of the new return system under the goods and services tax, the GST Network introduced the implementation of the new GST returns system on a trial basis in July 2019. During this trial period, taxpayers could upload invoices using the new form viz. GST ANX-1. They would also be able to view and download invoices of inward supply. The GST network also introduced an interactive, web-based prototype of the GST New Return System called the Offline Tool. This prototype allows the taxpayer to navigate across different pages of the new system, giving them first-hand experience and sets their expectations of what is in store in 2020.

GST ANX-1 was made compulsory to be filed by large taxpayers viz. those with an annual turnover above Rs. 5 crores in the preceding financial year. For smaller taxpayers, viz. those with an annual turnover below Rs. 5 crore in the preceding financial year, the use of GST ANX-1 was implemented in January 2020.

Since this exercise is just to give taxpayers an idea of what to expect in 2020, large taxpayers have been required to continue filing of GSTR-3B during the months of October and November 2019, after which they will have to have to start filing FORM GST RET-01, the main return form in the new return system. This last date for filing this form was January 20th 2020.

Smaller taxpayers, however, were required to stop filing GSTR-3B and start filing FORM GST PMT-08 from October 2019. The objective of this exercise was to phase out GSTR-3B starting in January 2020.

To help you understand the new GST returns, we have broken down the system in a few essential topics, each answering the most critical questions around the New Returns under GST.

• GST 2.0 - Introduction to New GST Returns
• What to file under new GST returns system
• Features of the new GST returns system
• Changes under the new GST returns system
• New GST returns vs old GST returns
• Uploading invoices under the new GST returns system
• New GST Return Offline Tool