In a major move to roll out GST in the coming July, the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council approved the drafts of four sets of rules and finalised five others on Friday.
The council, headed by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, approved the draft rules relating to composition, valuation, ITC (input tax credit) and the transition process.
Five other rules involving registration, payment, refund, invoices and returns, the drafts of which were already approved in the Council’s previous meeting, were finalised on Friday factoring in amendments to make these compatible with the GST Bills that the Lok Sabha passed earlier this week.
After the approval of bills, the focus will now shift to the “classification” or “fitment” exercise — a comprehensive, if not exhaustive, list specifying the tax rate that each good and service will attract.
“The five set of draft rules that were originally approved have been corrected in consonance with the GST legislations,” Jaitley told reporters after the Council’s meeting.
“The four new rules have been tentatively approved and put up in public domain for suggestions. These will be finalised in the Council’s next meeting,” Jaitley said.
The next meeting will take place on May 18-19 in Srinagar, where besides finalising these rules, the rate classification exercise will also be taken up.
