GST Council proposes Key Amendments to Annual Return & Audit Forms

The GST Council, in its 31^st meeting, has proposed some major changes to the GST Annual Return and Audit Forms. The proposals are the following:

1. Amendment of headings in the forms to specify that the return in FORM GSTR-9 &FORM GSTR-9A would be in respect of supplies etc. ‘made during the year’ and not ‘as declared in returns filed during the year’;
2. All returns in FORM GSTR-1&FORM GSTR-3B have to be filed before the filing of FORM GSTR-9&FORM GSTR-9C;
3. All returns in FORM GSTR-4 have to be filed before the filing of FORM GSTR-9A;
4. HSN code may be declared only for those inward supplies whose value independently accounts for 10% or more of the total value of inward supplies;
5. Additional payments, if any, required to be paid can be done through FORM GST DRC-03 only in cash;
6. ITC cannot be availed through FORM GSTR-9 &FORM GSTR-9C;
7. All invoices pertaining to previous FY (irrespective of the month in which such invoice is reported in FORM GSTR-1) would be auto-populated in Table 8A of FORM GSTR-9;
8. Value of “non-GST supply” shall also include the value of “no supply” and may be reported in Table 5D, 5E, and 5F of FORM GSTR-9;
9. Verification by the taxpayer who is uploading the reconciliation statement would be included in FORM GSTR-9C.