The first meeting of the GST i.e. Goods and Services Tax Council (GST Council) was held today i.e. on 22 June under the chairmanship of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. Finance ministers of many states attended this first meeting of GST in the Modi 3.0 government after the victory in the general elections.
Many important decisions have been taken in this meeting. After the GST Council meeting, the Finance Minister held a press conference. During this, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that there were many issues in the GST Council meeting. However, some could not be discussed due to lack of time.
The Finance Minister said that it has been decided to hold the next meeting of the Council in August to discuss the rest of the agenda. In this meeting, the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council has decided to implement biometric authentication across India to stop fake bills. Told that this will help in dealing with fraudulent input tax credit claims made through fake bills.
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First meeting of the GST Council
Union Finance Minister and GST Council Chairperson Nirmala Sitharaman said in a press conference after the meeting, “The time limit for availing input tax credit in respect of any invoice or debit note under section 16(4) of the CGST Act filed upto 30-11-2021 for FY 17-18, 18-19, 19-20 and 20-21 may be considered from 2011 to 2021. Therefore, for making the necessary amendment to the same retrospectively from 1st July 2017, the Council has made a recommendation.” This was the first meeting of the GST Council after the formation of the new government.
Railway services exempted from GST
To reduce government litigation, the department has recommended a monetary limit of Rs 20 lakh for GST Appellate Tribunal, Rs 1 crore for High Courts, and Rs 2 crore for Supreme Courts for filing appeals. Railway services have been exempted from GST. The Finance Minister said that services provided by Indian Railways such as platform tickets, battery-operated car services, etc. have been exempted from GST.
interest waived on penalty
To facilitate GST registration, according to the GST Council, Aadhaar biometric authentication is mandatory for new registrations across the country. The Council decided to waive interest and penalty on demand notices issued under section 73 of the GST Act.
12% GST rate on milk cartons
The council has recommended a uniform rate of 12 per cent on all milk cartons. This means that whatever is used for packaging milk, be it steel, iron, aluminium, GST will be paid at the same rate. They have a standard size, which will determine what is a milk carton and what is not. The council has also recommended a uniform GST rate of 12 per cent on all carton boxes and cases. This will especially help apple growers of Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir.
The Council has also recommended a uniform GST rate of 12 per cent on all carton boxes and cases of both corrugated and non-corrugated paper or paper board. The Finance Minister said that “this will especially help the apple growers of Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir.
Request to reduce GST
The Finance Minister said that the Council also clarified and recommended that clarification should be given that all types of sprinklers including fire water sprinklers will attract 12% GST. The GST Council has sent a request to the GoM to reduce GST on fertilizers to rationalise the rates. Currently, GST is levied at the rate of 5 per cent and the sector has been demanding exemption from GST on fertilizers for a long time.
In its 45th and 47th meetings held in September 2021 and June 2022, the GST Council discussed the possibility of further reducing the tax rate on chemical fertilizers. However, the Council did not suggest a change in the rates.
