GST, a comprehensive indirect tax system introduced on 1st July, 2017, has subsumed a host of Central and State levied taxes and has transformed the entire nation as ‘One Nation –One Tax –One Market’. The convergence of taxes into a single indirect tax system is a significant achievement. It aims at seamless availability of Input Tax Credit (ITC) across the supply chain and the state borders, and elimination of cascading effect. With the similar objective, GST is provisioned to allow the tax credit of duties and taxes paid on the closing stock held as on 30th June, 2017.

For businesses, availing accommodation in destinations outside the State where they are registered, is common. This could be for business events, meetings, seminars, employee engagement activities, functions, etc. In the previous tax regime, under Service Tax, there was no concern with regard to ITC on outstation hotel stays. As Service Tax registration was a centralised registration, businesses registered under Service Tax could claim full ITC of the Service Tax paid on the accommodation charges, irrespective of the State where the accommodation service was taken.
 

This article has been updated as per the GST Council’s decision to exempt transportation service provided by GTA to non-specified persons.
In our previous blog, we have understood who a GTA is and the GST tax rates applicable to the service of transportation of goods provided by a GTA. In this blog, we will understand who is liable to pay the tax on GTA service: the GTA or the service recipient.
 
For this, the first step is to identify who is the recipient of the transportation service provided by a GTA.

Under GST, a recipient of a supply can avail input tax credit (ITC) of the supply only on successful matching of invoice details with the supplier. The invoice wise details furnished by suppliers in Form GSTR-1 will be matched with the details of inward supplies furnished by recipients in Form GSTR-2. Input tax credit in GST will only be allowed to be availed for invoices where the details match.
 
Hence, it is important to know the details that will be cross checked by the GST portal to ensure that the invoice details are matching.

In our previous blogs, we have gone through the plethora of GST rate changes which have been introduced by the GST Council for various goods as well as services. The reduction of rates is indeed a welcome move for consumers, and at first look, it seems to be good news for traders as well – since a reduction in GST rates would essentially mean that the input tax credit being availed would be more than the tax liability for a business.
 

Invoicing is a crucial aspect of tax compliance for every business. It is essential to be aware of the rules of invoicing under GST. Let us understand these in detail.

Invoicing in the current tax regimes
In the current tax regimes, two types of invoices are issued:

1. 1. Tax invoice – This is issued to registered dealers, and can be used to claim tax credit. Sample formats of the two main types of tax invoice in the current tax regime, the Rule 11 Excise invoice and tax invoice are shown below.

Introduction
“At the stroke of the midnight hour, when the world sleeps, India will awake to life and freedom.”
These words of our first Prime Minister Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru, spoken at the midnight of 14th August, 1947 – as India prepared itself to welcome independence from the British rule – will hold true again 70 years later, as the nation prepares itself to herald a new era – promising freedom from tax duplications, freedom from tax complications and freedom from tax corruption.

In the GST regime, broadly two types of invoices will be issued – Tax Invoice and Bill of Supply. Tax invoice is to be issued by a registered taxable person for the supply of taxable goods or services. The bill of supply is to be issued by a registered taxable person for the supply of exempted goods or services, and for supplies by a composition tax payer.
In this blog, considering the latest additions in the GST Law, let us understand the invoices to be issued in specific business cases and the details required to be specified in these invoices.

Every tax invoice issued under GST has to contain certain details, which are mandatory to be mentioned. There is also a time limit within which an invoice should be issued. This checklist can be used by you to ensure that you issue valid and complete tax invoices. This will also help you to verify that the invoices received from your suppliers are complete, in order for you to claim input credit on them.

Should contain the name, address and GSTIN of the supplier

If the supply is of goods, quantity of the goods

Invoice matching is a unique and critical requirement of the GST regime. Therefore, we can understand that the businesses are worried about how to handle GST Bill Numbering under GST regime.