Higher TDS/TCS rates for non-filers require increased withholding and new TDS obligations on purchases and returns filing.
Amendments introduce higher withholding obligations: withholding at original rates on non-salary payments, an elevated withholding regime for payments to specified non filers, and withholding on purchase of goods by specified buyers. Provident fund interest on employee contributions above prescribed thresholds is taxable; employer must timely deposit employee contributions to claim deductions. Goodwill is not depreciable and its purchase price is treated as cost for capital gains with prior depreciation adjustments. Filing windows, audit thresholds, tax regime election filing, exclusions from presumptive taxation, ULIP equity conditions, notice timelines, equalisation levy scope, and assessment time limits are also modified. (AI Summary)

Input tax credit timing adjustment allows landowners in joint development agreements to claim credit earlier when developer pays GST.
Permissive amendment for Joint Development Agreements allows developers to discharge GST prior to issuance of completion certificate so landowners can immediately claim input tax credit when flats are sold before completion, enabling back-to-back contractual payment arrangements that remove prior timing mismatches in ITC utilisation. (AI Summary)

GST exemptions and rate changes extended for COVID items; amnesty and fee rationalisation introduced to ease compliance burdens.
Extension of GST Exemptions for specified COVID 19 items until 31 August 2021 and a targeted suite of clarifications and rate changes: exemption of mid day meal services to educational institutions; exemption of fee based examination services by recognised boards; permitted utilisation of input tax credit by land owner promoters with developer discharge rules; reduction of MRO services for ships to 5%; B2B place of supply as recipient location; conditional exemption/5% rate for milling services for PDS distribution; GST on annuity road payments; and specified rates for rope way construction and other services. (AI Summary)

Royalty taxation: characterization and place-of-supply rules determine GST and income-tax treatment of IP transfers.
Characterisation and contractual form determine tax consequences for IP exploitation: payments for use, licensing, or sale may be treated as royalties for income-tax purposes, while indirect tax treatment hinges on whether the transfer is a supply of goods (permanent transfer) or a service (temporary/short-term transfer), with place-of-supply rules governing short-term transfers and contractual terms and judicial criteria determining classification. (AI Summary)

Medical treatment deduction permits tax relief for health insurance, specified ailment treatment, and disability maintenance.
Deductions for medical treatment are provided under three regimes: health insurance and preventive care premiums and medical expenditure; treatment of specified serious ailments subject to specialist prescription and prescribed limits with enhanced relief for senior citizens; and maintenance and treatment of dependants with disability, subject to defined dependant and disability definitions, mandatory medical certification, approved insurance schemes with beneficiary nomination, and reduction for insurance reimbursements. (AI Summary)

Late fee Amnesty for GST returns reduces penalties and clarifies interest liability and temporary compliance extensions.
An amnesty reduces or waives late fees for past-period GSTR-3B filings within a prescribed window and caps prospective late fees across return types; interest remains payable on unpaid tax while a retrospective amendment clarifies interest is payable on tax actually paid from the electronic cash ledger. Extensions and staged reliefs for filing and interest are provided for various taxpayers and returns, several statutory provisions are excluded from the general extension, and operational changes include e invoice exemptions for certain public entities, temporary EVC filing for companies, and cumulative application of Rule 36(4) for ITC reconciliation. (AI Summary)

Interest on net tax liability: interest limited to tax paid from the electronic cash ledger, applied retrospectively and subject to disclosure rules.
Notification No.16/2021-CT notifies a proviso to the GST interest provision making interest on delayed tax payable only on the portion of tax discharged by debiting the electronic cash ledger, with retrospective effect from 01.07.2017. The proviso applies where the return for the period is furnished after the due date but excludes returns filed after commencement of assessment or adjudication proceedings; the net-interest benefit is available only if the tax and supporting invoices/debit notes are declared in the return for that same tax period. (AI Summary)

Tax Collected at Source on forex remittances applies beyond the exempt threshold, with special rates for education and tour packages.
W.e.f. October 1, 2020, remittances by resident individuals beyond the exempt threshold in a financial year attract TCS: a standard rate on amounts exceeding the exemption, a concessional rate for education-related remittances, and a higher collection rate where PAN is unavailable; TCS on international tour packages is collectible on the entire package amount regardless of the exempt threshold, GST on conversion/remittance charges is excluded from the TCS base, and individuals may claim refund or adjust collected TCS by filing their income-tax returns. (AI Summary)

GST late fee amnesty: reduced caps allow filing pending GSTR 3B returns within a specified window to avoid high penalties.
The 2021 GST relief package provides an amnesty permitting filing of pending GSTR 3B returns for July 2017-April 2021 within a specified window with capped late fees for nil and non nil returns; it also prescribes prospective capped late fees for GSTR 3B, GSTR 1, GSTR 4 and GSTR 7 by taxpayer category, and introduces a 105% cumulative ITC availment cap under Rule 36(4) to be applied in June 2021 GSTR 3B. (AI Summary)

Transitional credit for capital goods: accrued excise credit before law change may be claimed when goods received after appointed date.
Section 140(2) allows a registered person to take credit of unavailed CENVAT credit in respect of capital goods not carried forward under the existing law, provided that the credit was admissible under the Excise Act and is admissible under the CGST Act. The right to CENVAT credit accrues on invoice issuance and duty payment but is availed on receipt of goods in the factory; where accrual occurred before repeal and receipt occurred after the appointed date, section 174 preserves the accrued right, permitting transition of the unavailed entitlement subject to Rule 4's financial year claim mechanics. (AI Summary)

GST amnesty scheme reduces late fees and simplifies return filing while providing targeted COVID supply exemptions.
The GST Council proposed making the GSTR 1/3B system the default return regime and notified section 50 retrospectively from 01.07.2017 to allow interest on a net cash basis. Short term IGST exemptions for specified COVID 19 imports were recommended until 31.08.2021. Compliance reliefs include an amnesty scheme for GSTR 3B (July 2017-April 2021) with capped late fees for returns filed between 01.06.2021 and 31.08.2021, prospective late fee rationalisation by turnover bands, concessional interest rates for delayed GSTR 3B payments, and simplified/optional annual return requirements for FY 2020 21, to be implemented via notifications. (AI Summary)

CSR eligibility expanded to include COVID care facilities; excess contributions may be set off against future CSR obligations with conditions.
Spending CSR funds on COVID health infrastructure and equipment is eligible CSR activity; specified company and LLP filing forms due in April-May 2021 are exempted from additional fees until end of July 2021 with temporary relaxations for certain charge filings; board meeting gap extended to 180 days for the first two quarters of fiscal 2021-22; excess contributions to the national COVID relief fund made on 31 March 2020 may be set off against the following year's CSR obligation subject to non duplication with prior unspent CSR, CFO and statutory auditor certification, and disclosure in CSR and Board reports. (AI Summary)

Principal employer tracking of contractor EPF compliance enables oversight of contractor remittances and enrolment through unified portal.
EPFO provides a Unified Portal facility enabling principal employers to register and interlink with contractor employers, add contractor and contract-employee details, and view employee-wise remittances submitted by contractors through the electronic challan-cum-return (ECR), allowing verification of contractor enrolment and remittance to strengthen oversight and extend provident fund coverage. (AI Summary)

CPE compliance extension allows structured online credits to count for the extended period and relaxes attendance requirements.
Every member must obtain 20 CPE Credits annually through structured and unstructured activities, with unstructured credits capped; the deadline is normally year-end but was extended for 2020-21 to 30 June 2021 and may be further relaxed by the Council or authorised President for a limited period. Excess credits are non transferable; reduced obligations apply on reaching the qualifying age if in employment or practice. Exemptions are specified for certain public offices, newly admitted members, and case by case hardship, and the Institute confirmed that structured electronic programmes during the extended period will count for the 2020-21 compliance year without requiring physical attendance. (AI Summary)

CFO certification of CSR fund utilization now required, increasing CFO accountability and mandating signature on the annual CSR report.
The amendment requires the Chief Financial Officer or person responsible for financial management to certify that CSR funds were utilized for the purposes and in the manner approved by the Board and to sign the annual CSR report; compliance is supported by a utilisation certificate stating application of disbursements and a tabular summary of budgeted outlays, amounts spent, unspent balances and any excess expenditure. (AI Summary)

Judicial discipline eroded as mechanical pro revenue orders force avoidable litigation and undermine natural justice.
Mechanical pro revenue decision making within CBIC has produced avoidable litigation by pressurised adjudicators who issue low quality show cause notices, ignore natural justice, and fail to follow binding precedents and departmental litigation directives; the result is numerous one sided Orders in Original and Orders in Appeal that sustain judicial rebuke and a low appellate success rate for the department. (AI Summary)

e-Courts Services Mobile App expands access to digital case records and multilingual support for litigants and practitioners.
The e-Courts Services Mobile Application has been released with a manual in fourteen Indian languages to provide free, 24/7 personalized digital case diaries and consolidated access to case histories, orders, judgments, transfer details, interim application status and case information from High Courts and District Courts, integrating existing e Courts services into a multilingual mobile interface to improve reach and usability for litigants, advocates, law firms, police, government agencies and institutional users. (AI Summary)

GST exemptions for Covid relief imports extended, with amnesty for small taxpayers and revised filing and reconciliation rules.
The Council extended import exemptions for specified Covid relief items-including Amphotericin B-and exempted Covid-related relief imports for donation or purchase upon state recommendation for set periods. It recommended an amnesty to reduce late fees for small and medium taxpayers with the rationalized late fee applying prospectively, allowed optional annual returns for small taxpayers for FY2020-21 with reconciliation required only above a higher turnover threshold, tasked a committee on quarterly return modalities, and retained the prior compensation cess formula while proposing central borrowing to meet states' compensation demands. (AI Summary)

Balance sheet notes as part of financial statements can require adjustments to book profit based on ascertainable accruals.
Notes and disclosures forming part of financial statements are integral to the balance sheet and profit and loss account; where notes show profits understated or overstated, adjustments to reported profit may be made if the effect is reasonably ascertainable and consistent with accrual and matching principles. Disclosed liabilities or accrued expenses not debited in the profit and loss account should be deductible from book profit, and disclosed but uncredited income may be added to book profit, applying conservative treatment and considering reasons for non-recognition. (AI Summary)

Annual return optionality for smaller taxpayers and self certified reconciliation to ease compliance and reduce certification burden.
Annual return filing was relaxed by making FORM GSTR 9/9A optional for smaller taxpayers and limiting mandatory GSTR 9C reconciliation to larger taxpayers, with reconciliation statements permitted to be self certified by management rather than certified by accountants; the annual filing remains the final opportunity to rectify prior year errors and may trigger analytics based notices, so large taxpayers are advised to consider voluntary GST audit before filing. A retrospective amendment confines interest to delayed cash payments, resolving disputes about interest on input tax credits, and multiple COVID related extensions, fee concessions, exemptions for specified relief goods, amnesty measures, rate rationalisations and procedural simplifications were recommended to ease compliance. (AI Summary)