Filing Dates for GSTRs for July extended by a month to October 10

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Recommendations made by the GST Council in the 21st meeting at Hyderabad on 9th September, 2017

 

Press Information Bureau
Government of India
Ministry of Finance

09-September-2017 20:19 IST

 

The GST Council, in its 21st meeting held at Hyderabad on 9th September 2017, has recommended the following measures to facilitate taxpayers:

  1. a) In view of the difficulties being faced by taxpayers in filing returns, the following revised schedule has been approved:
Sl. No. Details / Return Tax Period Revised due date
1 GSTR-1 July, 2017 10-Oct-17
For registered persons with aggregate turnover of more than Rs. 100 crores, the due date shall be 3rd October 2017
2 GSTR-2 July, 2017 31-Oct-17
3 GSTR-3 July, 2017 10-Nov-17
4 GSTR-4 July-September, 2017 18-Oct-17 (no change)
Table-4 under GSTR-4 not to be filled for the quarter July-September 2017. Requirement of filing GSTR-4A for this quarter is dispensed with.
5 GSTR-6 July, 2017 13-Oct-17
Due dates for filing of the above mentioned returns for subsequent periods shall be notified at a later date.

b) GSTR-3B will continue to be filed for the months of August to December, 2017.

c) A registered person (whether migrated or new registrant), who could not opt for composition scheme, shall be given the option to avail composition till 30th September 2017 and such registered person shall be permitted to avail the benefit of composition scheme with effect from 1st October, 2017.

d) Presently, any person making inter-state taxable supplies is not eligible for threshold exemption of Rs. 20 lacs (Rs. 10 lacs in special category states except J & K) and is liable for registration. It has been decided to allow an exemption from registration to persons making inter-State taxable supplies of handicraft goods upto aggregate turnover of Rs. 20 lacs as long as the person has a Permanent Account Number (PAN) and the goods move under the cover of an e-way bill, irrespective of the value of the consignment.

e) Presently, a job worker making inter-State taxable supply of job work service is not eligible for threshold exemption of Rs. 20 lacs (Rs. 10 lacs in special category states except J & K) and is liable for registration.  It has been decided to exempt those job workers from obtaining registration who are making inter-State taxable supply of job work service to a registered person as long as the goods move under the cover of an e-way bill, irrespective of the value of the consignment. This exemption will not be available to job work in relation to jewellery, goldsmiths’ and silversmiths’ wares as covered under Chapter 71 which do not require e-way bill.

f) FORM GST TRAN-1 can be revised once.

g) The due date for submission of FORM GST TRAN-1 has been extended by one month i.e. 31st October, 2017.

h) The registration for persons liable to deduct tax at source (TDS) and collect tax at source (TCS) will commence from 18th September 2017. However, the date from which TDS and TCS will be deducted or collected will be notified by the Council later.

The GST Council has decided to set up a committee consisting of officers from both the Centre and the States under the chairmanship of the Revenue Secretary to examine the issues related to exports.

The GST Council has also decided to constitute a Group of Ministers to monitor and resolve the IT challenges faced during GST implementation.

 

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Centre asks banks to restrict accounts of 2.09 lakh firms

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The finance ministry has advised all banks to take immediate steps to restrict transactions in bank accounts of more than 2.09 lakh companies, whose names have been struck off the Register of Companies.

Banks have also been advised to step up due diligence while dealing with all firms in general and been alerted that even if a firm is ‘active’ in the corporate affairs ministry database, it should be seen with ‘suspicion’ if it has failed to file statements or returns.

‘Not compliant’

“…Prima facie, the company is not complying with its mandatory statutory obligations to file this vital information for availability to its stakeholders,” the finance ministry has reasoned.

On July 1, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had first revealed the government’s decision to cancel the registrations of one lakh companies that had suspicious and questionable operations, identified on the basis of data mined from the deposit of bank notes following last November’s demonetisation of Rs.500 and Rs.1,000 notes.

The PM had promised more action would follow on two lakh similar firms and 38,000 shell companies. Tuesday’s statement reveals that progress has been made in scrapping another 1,09,032 firms under the Companies Act since then.

‘Directors barred’

“The existing directors and authorised signatories of such struck-off companies will now become ex-directors or ex-authorised signatories. These individuals will therefore not be able to operate bank accounts of such companies till such companies are legally restored under Section 252 of the Companies Act by an order of the National Company Law Tribunal,” the ministry said, disclosing ‘stepped up decisive action’ against errant companies.

“Since such ‘struck off’ companies have ceased to exist, action has been initiated to restrict the operation of [their] bank accounts. The Department of Financial Services has, through the Indian Banks Association, advised all banks … [to] take immediate steps to put restrictions on bank accounts of such struck-off companies,” the ministry said, adding that the list of firms had been put up on the corporate affairs ministry’s website.

In addition, the statement said that banks had been advised to go in for ‘enhanced diligence while dealing with companies in general.’

“A company… even having an active status on the website of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs but defaulting in filing of its due financial statement/s or annual return/s in particular of charges on its assets on the secured loan should be seen with suspicion…” the ministry has told banks.

Source: The Hindu

Attack on shell firms: MCA issues notices to errant NBFCs

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In yet another attempt to crack the whip on shell companies, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs has issued notices to companies which were supposed to act as non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) but have not registered with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

The ministry has taken this action to seek an explanation from these companies on their businesses within 10 days, a source said

If companies are found to be in the non-banking financial activities such as lending, investment or deposit acceptance as their principal business, without the RBI registration, the central bank can impose a penalty or even prosecute them in a court of law.

A similar attempt was undertaken by the RBI a few years back. In 2013, the RBI had clamped down on unregistered NBFCs after the Saradha scam. The central bank undertook such an exercise even in 2014. The pan-India figure of such entities back then was around 70,000. The number of non-registered NBFCs has risen since then, an official said.

The Securities & Exchange Board of India (Sebi) had recently put 331 companies on heightened surveillance. It also delisted entities it suspected of being shell companies. The Centre, too, has frozen bank accounts of 200,000 companies after these were struck off by Registrar of Companies. The directors of these firms were also banned.

The Centre and its agencies are not only taking corrective action but are also initiating pre-emptive steps to check the menace of dormant companies. It is working with Sebi to get all public unlisted companies to issue shares online. Experts said this would ensure greater transparency in these companies and bring down litigation.

After demonetisation, a number of shell companies were found to be operating with the same address, not directly contributing to the mainstream economy. It was then that the government sprung into action.

An NBFC is a company registered under the Companies Act, 1956, engaged in the business of loans and advances among other functions. It is also a company which receives deposits under any scheme or arrangement in one lump sum or in installments by way of contributions or in any other manner, as its principal business.

 

Source: Business Standard

Forex kitty swells by $3.57 billion, closes in on $400 bn-mark

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In the previous week, the reserves had increased by USD 1.148 billion to USD 394.55 billion.

The forex reserves surged by a massive USD 3.572 billion to touch a record high of USD 398.122 billion for the week ended September 1, on account of rise in foreign currency assets, RBI data showed on Friday.

In the previous week, the reserves had increased by USD 1.148 billion to USD 394.55 billion.

Last month, American brokerage Morgan Stanley had forecast that the reserves might touch the USD 400 billion mark in the week to September 8. And if the rise in the kitty continues with the same speed, it may cross that magic numbers next week.

The foreign currency assets (FCAs), a major component of the overall reserves, increased by USD 2.808 billion to USD 373.641 billion for the reporting week, according to the data.

Expressed in US dollar terms, FCAs include the effect of appreciation or depreciation of non-US dollar currencies, such as the euro, the pound and the yen held in the reserves.

After remaining unchanged for many weeks, gold reserves also rose by USD 748.3 million to USD 20.691 billion.

The special drawing rights with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) increased by USD 6.5 million to USD 1.506 billion, the apex bank said.

The country’s reserve position with the IMF also increased by USD 9.8 million to USD 2.283 billion, it said.

Source: Zee News

SEBI warns of rising external debt risks as masala bonds surge

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The rupee-denominated bonds, popularly known as masala bonds, are likely to add to the nation’s external liabilities even if they don’t hold any risks to currency movement, a top SEBI official said.

The rupee-denominated bonds, popularly known as masala bonds, are likely to add to the nation’s external liabilities even if they don’t hold any risks to currency movement, a top Sebi official said on Wednesday.

“When money flows into the country from foreign investments, we are attracting some risks and it is not currency risk alone. Masala bonds don’t hold any currency risks but at the same time, the external liability of the country goes up. This needs to be kept in mind,” Sebi whole- time member G Mahalingam said here.

“And a huge amount of foreign inflows at a time when the currency has been substantially appreciating is something the regulators must be concerned about,” he said, addressing a capital markets summit organised by industry lobby Ficci.

The masala bonds are debt instruments through which designated domestic entities can raise funds by accessing overseas capital markets, while the bond investors hold the currency risk. In fact, the World Bank arm IFC thus far has raised the largest amount through this instrument.

According to some estimates, the masala bonds accounted for 39 per cent of the total ECBs of USD 7.39 billion reported by the Reserve Bank in the fourth quarter of FY17, while the approvals for the same rose to USD 2.9 billion over USD 0.8 billion in the third quarter.

For the full fiscal of 2017, the aggregate stood at USD 4.6 billion, according to a recent Icra data.

Of the total masala bonds of USD 4.59 billion approved during FY17, 55 per cent were for onward lending in domestic markets, 24 per cent for refinancing of the rupee loans and 14 per cent were for general corporate purposes.

Mahalingam said the Sebi is in advanced stage of talks with other regulators on allowing participation of FPIs in commodity derivatives market.

On the mutual fund industry, he said the sector should try to bring down its total expense ratio which is far higher than the comfort level. “It is time for mutual funds to shrink its margins attract more retail investors.”

He said benchmarking of returns will be healthy step for the overall industry.

Source: MoneyControl.com

Directors of Shell firms can’t join other companies’ boards

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Directors of shell companies which have not filed tax returns for three or more years will be barred from taking similar positions elsewhere or getting reappointed, the government said, as it intensified the crackdown on firms that exist only on paper.

The government has struck more than 2 lakh shell companies off the Register of Companies and put restrictions on their bank accounts as part of its clampdown on black money.

Directors of the companies that were struck off the RoC could face up to 10 years in jail if they were found siphoning off funds, the government said on Wednesday.

The government said it is compiling the profiles of the directors at such companies in collaboration with enforcement agencies and expects the move to cover 2-3 lakh people.

 Professionals such as chartered accountants, company secretaries and cost accountants associated with shell companies and involved in illegal activities have also been identified, according to a statement.

The decisions were made at a review meeting chaired by the minister of state for corporate affairs, PP Chaudhary, to strengthen the rules and procedures of corporate governance, it said.

The move “would not only help in checking the menace of black money but also would promote an ecosystem of ‘ease of doing business’ and enhancing investors’ confidence”, Chaudhary said.

Enforcement agencies are compiling profiles of directors, including their background, antecedents and role in the operations and functioning of these companies.

“All efforts are also being made to identify the actual beneficiaries and persons behind such shell companies,” the government statement said.
The government is also monitoring action being taken by professional institutes such as the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India and Institute of Company Secretaries of India.