GST rates need total overhaul: Rev Secy

SAYS IT WOULD TAKE A YEAR'S TIME TO STABILISE THE SYSTEM, WEED OUT SNAGS

Just when the GST regime is falling in place, Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia has suggested a complete overhaul of the tax rates to reduce the burden on small and medium businesses.

"There is a complete overhauling that is required... it is possible that some items in the same chapter are divided. So ideally we should do harmonisation of items chapter wise and wherever we find there is a big burden on small and medium businesses and on common man, we have to bring them down (and) then only there will be a better compliance, a better acceptability of GST," Adhia said. He, however, said the overhauling would require some calculations by the fitment committee, which will decide which items need a rationalisation of rate under the GST regime.

In an interview to PTI, he also said the Goods and Services Tax, which amalgamates more than a dozen central and state levies, will take about a year to stabilise.

Nearly four months since its introduction, the new indirect tax regime has thrown up teething troubles and compliance issues, which the apex body, the GST Council, has addressed through several rounds of changes.

To ease the hassles faced by medium and small businesses in paying taxes and filing GST returns, it has tweaked various aspects of the new regime to make it industry friendly. Also the GST Council has rationalised rates of over 100 commodities and made refund process easier for exporters.

The GST Council has also cleared an approach paper for items to be considered for rationalisation but it is not binding and the council can always deviate. "So, the committee will work on it for a

month and then we will try and bring something as early as in Guwahati or later on," Adhia said.

The 23rd meeting of the GST Council, chaired by Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and comprising representatives of all states, will be held in Guwahati on November 10. "We are very keen to do it as early as possible, it depends on how much time the fitment committee takes to work on it. They need data, calculate revenue loss. They need various comparisons. But harmonisation has to be done. A complete review has to be done," he said.

When asked how much time it will take to stabilise the GST system, Adhia said: "It will take one year. Because it is a new system for everybody...’’