Technology has always been at forefront of implementation of GST. GST Portal plays a vital role in facilitating various compliance processes like registration, tax computation, tax payment, return filing etc.

From time to time, Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN) has issued various advisories to guide users on periodic changes made on GST Portal[1] and address their concerns.

We have discussed key relevant advisories issued by GSTN till date and our comments on the same hereunder:

 Filing of Table-6A of GSTR-1 for export of goods

• Table-6A of GSTR-1 captures transactions of export of goods. Details of exports reported in such Table are transmitted to ICEGATE Portal.

• Exporters must be consistent in reporting export invoice data in GSTR-1 vis-à-vis Shipping Bill data on ICEGATE Portal.

• IGST paid on export of goods in Table 3.1(b) of GSTR-3B must be equal to or in excess of amount of tax reported in Table 6A and Table 6B of GSTR-1.

NITYA Comments: A comparison between Table 6A of GSTR-1 and Table 3.1(b) of GSTR-3B serves as first verification step. Practically, there are mismatches between information provided by taxpayers in GSTR-1 between export invoices and shipping bills (like IGST value, port code, shipping bill number and date etc.). It is pertinent to note that incorrect details filled in GSTR-1 can be corrected in subsequent GSTR-1 by November of subsequent FY. To check whether invoice data has been transmitted to ICEGATE Portal, taxpayers can also use following facility:

 Log on to GST Portal > Refunds > Track status of invoice data to be shared with ICEGATE

 Reporting of ITC reversal on Credit Notes in Table-4 of GSTR-3B

•  Earlier ITC reversal on Credit Notes was required to be disclosed in Table-4(B) of GSTR-3B. Now, it needs to be reported in Table-4(A) of GSTR-3B by netting-off with total available ITC.

• GST Portal will accept even if final amount comes out to negative figure due to above reporting. 

NITYA Comments: In past, there was no advisory that ITC reversal on Credit Notes need to be reflected as ITC reversal. Accordingly, some taxpayers adopted practice of reflecting Net ITC. In several cases, department raised disputes seeking ITC reversal again. In our view, mere reflection of ITC reversal in incorrect column will not warrant ITC reversal again.

 Inter-head transfer of balances in Electronic Cash Ledger

• Amount deposited in minor and major heads of Electronic Cash Ledger (‘ECL’) cannot be utilized against each other. In case of deposits in incorrect heads, taxpayers had to apply for refund in past.

• Form GST PMT-09 is now available on GST Portal to allow intra-head or inter-head transfer of amount available in ECL.

NITYA Comments: Rule 87(14) of the CGST Rules was inserted in July 2022 to allow transfer of unutilized balance in ECL amongst distinct persons in same PAN. Practically, GST Portal permits transfer of only IGST and CGST balance in ECL amongst distinct persons. To transfer SGST balance, taxpayers can first transfer SGST balance to CGST / IGST within same registration and then transfer such balance to distinct person. 

Initiating Drop Proceedings of suspended GST registrations due to non-filing of returns

• GST registration is liable to be suspended in case of non-filing of GST returns for a continuous period of six months [Refer Rule 21A of the CGST Rules].

• Suspension is automatically revoked upon filing of pending returns as per second proviso to Rule 21A. If suspension is not automatically revoked after filing pending returns, taxpayers can initiate ‘Drop Proceedings’ on GST Portal to revoke suspension. Taxpayers can use following facility: 

Log on to GST Portal > Services > User Services > View Notices and Orders > Initiate Drop Proceeding

 Reporting of HSN codes on Invoice Registration Portal

• Taxpayers having turnover exceeding ₹ 5 crores in any previous financial year (since July 2017) need to report 6-digit HSN codes on Invoice Registration Portal (‘IRP’).

• Some 6-digit HSN codes are not available on IRP due to system constraints. In such cases, taxpayers need to report 8-digit HSN codes.

Reporting of E-invoices on IRP within specified time period

• E-invoice is currently applicable to suppliers having turnover exceeding ₹ 10 crores in any previous financial year. Presently, IRP does not have any time limit for reporting E-invoice. Practically, while some taxpayers report E-invoice on real time basis, others report E-invoices after delay of few days or even weeks.

• GSTN has prescribed time limit for reporting invoices on IRP to ensure timely compliance. Taxpayers having turnover exceeding ₹ 100 crores need to report documents (Invoices, Debit & Credit Notes) within 7 days on IRP. This will be implemented in due course of time by GSTN.

NITYA Comments: This restriction of reporting E-invoice within prescribed timeline (7 days) does not come from statute viz. Section 31 of the CGST Act, Rule 48 of the CGST Rules and Notification No.13/2020-CT dated March 21, 2020. The Government ought to amend GST law to bring such restriction. 

Independently, as supplier needs to issue tax invoice within prescribed time limit, such time limit will apply to E-invoice also. As invoice only becomes valid invoice on its uploading on IRP, recipient can claim ITC only post generation of valid E-invoice by supplier.

Geocoding of address of Principal Place of Business

• GSTN has implemented facility of geocoding of address of Principal Place of Business. Geocoding means conversion of address / location into geographic coordinates. Presently, this facility is available only in Delhi & Haryana.

Verification of document Reference Number mentioned on offline communications issued by State GST authorities

• State Tax officers need to generate document Reference Number (‘RFN’) for physically generated correspondences. Taxpayers can validate such RFN on GST Portal as below:

Services > User Services > Verify RFN 

NITYA Comments: The Supreme Court in the case of Pradeep Goyal v. UOI, 2022-VIL-42-SC recommended that officers must use RFN for all correspondences. Despite that, only few States implemented this facility. As there is no legal mandate on State officers to generate RFN for all documents, any document without RFN continues to remain valid.

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[1] https://www.gst.gov.in/, https://ewaybillgst.gov.in/login.aspx, https://einvoice1.gst.gov.in/