GST Council cuts rates for 29 items, 54 services

NEW DELHI: The Goods and Services Tax Council (GST Council) on Thursday cut tax rates on 29 products and 54 services at its 25th meeting and agreed to make the process of filing tax returns simpler.

At the meeting chaired by finance minister Arun Jaitley, the federal indirect tax body cut rates on products including pre-owned vehicles, household cooking gas cylinders from private suppliers and precious stones. Services that will be taxed less include legal assistance provided to the government and its agencies, admission to theme parks and small housekeeping services provided by e-commerce firms such as Urban Clap. The revenue impact of these rate cuts will be to the tune of ₹1,100-1,200 crore.

The move to simplify the process of tax return filing comes amid revenue loss worries expressed by states, largely due to tax evasion. Easing the process could curb evasion.

Though a final decision is yet to be taken on the revamp of the return filing process, the GST Council is thinking of doing away with forms such as GSTR 2, dealing with purchases, and GSTR 3, a comprehensive return. Instead, the existing simpler summary return form GSTR 3B will continue, which will be supplemented with details from invoices to be uploaded by suppliers on the GST Network (GSTN). This will enable invoice matching and check tax evasion. “Initially there will be GSTR 3B return and then suppliers’ invoices, which will be adequate. This will be a simple process,” Jaitley said.