GST Notifications issued in November 20
Notification No. 89/2020 CT dt. 29.11.20
Requirement of QR Code on B2C Invoices deferred to 01-Apr-21
Central Government vide N No. 89/2020 CT dt 29.11.2020 waived the penalty till 31.03.2021 payable by a person for non-compliance of the provisions of QR Code on B2C Invoices laid down in N No. 14/2020 CT dt 21.03.2020.
No. 14/2020 CT required every registered person with turnover of more than Rs. 500 crores in the financial year to mention Dynamic QR Code on the B2C invoices. (I.e. invoices issued to unregistered persons.)
The provisions were earlier to be applicable from 01st October 2020 but later were postponed to be applicable from 01st December 2020.
Now the above November notification says that no penalty shall be levied from 01-12-2020 to 31-03-2021 if the provisions of QR Code are complied with by the registered person from 01st April 2021. The provision compliance is thus postponed till 01st April 21 but with a condition.
Therefore, in case the provisions of issuing QR Code on B2C Invoices are not complied with, from 01st April 2021 then penalty waived earlier for the period from 01-12-20 to 31-03-20 shall be applicable.
Notification No. 88/2020 CT dt. 10.11.20
E-invoicing for Turnover in excess of Rs 100 crores
Central Government vide N No. 88/2020 CT dt 10.11.2020 has stated that from 01st January 2021, a registered person having a turnover of more than Rs. 100 crores in any of the financial year from 2017-18 would be required to issue E-invoice for supplies made to the registered person.
Earlier from 01st October 2020, E-invoice was made mandatory for persons having turnover more than Rs. 500 crores. The second phase of E-invoicing is to start from 01st January 21 when medium scale entities having turnover more than 100 crores would be covered.
Notification No. 87/2020 CT dt. 10.11.20
Extension of GST ITC-04
Time limit for filing of GST ITC 04 has been extended till 30.11.2020 in respect of goods sent or received from a job worker during the period from July 20 to Sep 20. The time limit extension has been notified vide N No. 87/2020 CT dt 10.11.2020.
Form GST ITC 04 is a form to be filed on a quarterly basis by the manufacturer or principal in respect of goods sent or received from a job worker.
Notification No. 86/2020 CT dt. 10.11.2020
N No. 76/2020 CT dt 15-10-20 rescinded
Central Government vide N No. 86/2020 CT dt 10.11.2020 has rescinded the earlier N No. 76/2020 CT dated 15.10.2020 wherein the due dates of GSTR 3B was prescribed for the months from Oct 20 to March 21. The GSTR 3B return filing dates as per new quarterly return filing options have been mentioned in substituted Rule 61 of CGST Rules 2017 in N No. 82/2020 CT dt 10.11.2020 discussed later in this article.
Notification No. 85/2020 CT dt. 10.11.2020
Monthly Payment of Taxes under QRMP Scheme:
As the name suggest QRMP Scheme requires a taxpayer to make monthly payment of taxes even though the return is filed on quarterly basis. Now the question arises since GSTR 3B in the scheme would be filed on quarterly basis, then on what basis the taxpayer is going to pay the monthly taxes.
Here the government has proposed two options to choose from. Using one of these options, the tax is to be paid on monthly basis. These options have been specified by CBIC in N No. 85/2020 CT dt 10.11.2020
- Fixed Sum Method.
Here a fixed amount of tax is to be paid on the basis of previously filed quarterly or monthly return. Rather it is to be based on the amount of tax which is paid in cash during the previous return.
If the return filed before the current quarter was a quarterly return, then the monthly tax payment for the first two months shall be equal to 35% of the tax paid in cash in the previous quarter.
If the previous return was being furnished on monthly basis, then the monthly tax payment for the first two months shall be equal to the amount of tax paid in cash during the month immediately before the quarter.
- Self-Assessment method
In this case taxpayer is to self-assess the tax liability and on that basis shall pay tax on monthly basis. To facilitate this, auto drafted ITC statement shall be available in Form GSTR 2B for every month.
Monthly payment of taxes shall not be required in the following cases:
- In case of nil liability in the previously filed return
- If the balance in the electronic cash ledger /electronic credit ledger is sufficient to adjust the cumulative tax due for the first and second month of the quarter.
Notification No. 84/2020 CT dt. 10.11.2020
Class of person who can opt QRMP Scheme
QRMP scheme is being introduced which would enable small taxpayers to file all their returns on a quarterly basis and taxes would be paid on monthly basis. This scheme is expected to relieve the small taxpayers from the major compliance burden. The provisions of this scheme have been notified in November 2020.
QRMP Scheme has been launched on 05.12.2020. So now who can avail of this scheme of filing returns on a quarterly basis?
N No. 84/2020 CT dated 10.11.2020 provides for the class of person who shall be eligible for the option to file returns under QRMP Scheme
Registered person having aggregate turnover up to Rs. 5 crores in the preceding financial year shall be eligible to opt QRMP Scheme from 01st Jan 21. They can file GSTR 1 and GSTR 3B on a quarterly basis and tax through challan PMT-06 on monthly basis.
The option can be exercised provided the return of the previous month as falling due on the date of the exercising the option has been filed.
In case the aggregate turnover exceeds Rs. 5 crores in a quarter then the person shall be no more eligible for QRMP Scheme and from the next quarter he shall file a return on monthly basis.
Default Migration of taxpayers to the new QRMP Scheme has also been provided in the notification.
Earlier there was the option for quarterly filing of GSTR 1 up to the turnover of Rs. 1.5 crores. Therefore, those who were already filing the quarterly GSTR 1 return, by default shall be migrated to QRMP Scheme. Those taxpayers who have not chosen the option of quarterly filing of GSTR 1 earlier even with turnover up to Rs. 1.5 crores, such taxpayers won’t be migrated and kept in the monthly filing system
A registered person with turnover in the preceding year of more than Rs. 1.5 crore but up to Rs. 5 crore have also been migrated to QRMP Scheme by default.
The above default option may be changed on the portal from 05.12.2020 to 31.01.2021.
Notification No. 83/2020 CT dt. 10.11.2020
Due dates of monthly and quarterly GSTR 1
Central Government vide N No. 83/2020 dt 10.11.2020 has specified the due date of filing of return for outward supplies i.e. GSTR 1.
For monthly GSTR 1, the due date shall be 11th of the succeeding month.
And for quarterly GSTR 1 return, the due date shall be 13th of the month following the end of the quarter whose return is to be filed.
Notification No. 82/2020 CT dt. 10.11.2020
CGST Rules 2017 amended for Invoice Furnishing Facility and Quarterly Return & Monthly Payment (QRMP) Scheme
CGST Rules have been amended vide N No. 82/2020 CT dt 10.11.2020 through which Rule 59, 60, 61 have been substituted while new Rule 61A has been inserted.
These amendments have been introduced for bringing in the new simplified form of GST returns proposed from 01st Jan 21 involving Invoice Furnishing Facility (IFF), Auto populated GSTR 3B, availability of GSTR 2B and Quarterly Return and Monthly Payment (QRMP) Scheme.
As per Substituted Rule 59, those registered persons who have opted for quarterly GSTR 1 filing, may furnish the sales details for the first two months of the quarter through Invoice Furnishing Facility.
For those who have opted for quarterly GSTR 1 filing, their invoice details are getting uploaded on a quarterly basis. Thus, these details would also be appearing in the portal of the receiver on quarterly basis. This might not be acceptable to the receiver of these supplies as they might be required to compute their input credits on a monthly basis for their monthly return filing.
This might lead to problems for the small taxpayers as the quarterly return filing option is available to those whose aggregate turnover is up to 1.5 crores under prevalent available options and up to Rs. 5 Crores under QRMP Scheme. They might be forced to shift to a monthly return filing system because of their purchasers wanting the input credit to be reflected on a monthly basis.
Therefore to resolve this, Government has come up with Invoice Furnishing Facility. Under Quarterly Return filing when no outward supply return is submitted during the first two months of the quarters, the taxpayer can furnish the details of supplies through IFF upto the value of Rs. 50 lacs in each of the months. The invoice details which are furnished through IFF would not be required to furnish again in the quarterly GSTR 1. The details through IFF for a month can be submitted from 1st to 13th of the succeeding month.
As per Rule 60, the details of the invoice furnished in GSTR 1 or through IFF by the supplier would be auto-populated in GSTR 2B of the receiver of supplies. This GSTR 2B would further auto-populate the input credit details in GSTR 3B.
As per Rule 61, GSTR 3B filing due date for those opting to file it on monthly basis shall be 20th of the next month.
For a Registered person having turnover up to Rs 5 crores in the previous financial year and opting to file under QRMP Scheme, GSTR 3B due date shall be as per the following
Group A State : Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Goa, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, the Union territories of Daman and Diu and Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Puducherry, Andaman, and Nicobar Islands or Lakshadweep | Group B State : Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura, Meghalaya, Assam, West Bengal, Jharkhand or Odisha, the Union territories of Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Chandigarh or Delhi |
GST3B date for Group A State shall be 22nd of the next month to the quarter ended for which return is to be filed. | GST3B date for Group B State shall be 24th of the next month to the quarter ended for which return is to be filed. |
Newly inserted Rule 61A provides for the manner for opting for the filing of quarterly returns (QRMP) Scheme.
A person wishing to opt for the scheme in respect of a quarter shall opt for it within 1st day of the second month of the previous quarter and the last day of the first month of the current quarter. If a person wants to opt QRMP Scheme say for Oct to Dec quarter, then the same shall be exercised during 1st Aug to 31st Oct
Once the option to file returns on a quarterly basis is exercised, the option would continue being so until the taxpayer himself changes the return filing option or he becomes ineligible for the quarterly filing scheme owing to the increase in his turnover
In case the turnover exceeds Rs. 5 crores in any of the quarter of financial year, then the person shall be out of the QRMP scheme and will have to file his returns on a quarterly basis from the first month after the end of the quarter in which the aggregate turnover exceeds 5 crores.
Format of auto-populated form GSTR 2B has also been notified vide the notification.
Notification 81/2020 CT dt 10.11.2020
All the new provisions of Sec 39 of CGST Act amended to implement the Quarterly Return filing and Monthly payment (QRMP) Scheme shall be effective from 10th November 2020.
