Annual Information Statement to be uploaded to taxpayers' registered accounts consolidating TDS, TCS, tax payments, demands, refunds and proceedings.
The law now mandates uploading an Annual Information Statement in Form 26AS to the assessee's registered electronic account, consolidating identifying information and operational tax data. The statement must include details of tax deducted or collected at source, specified financial transactions, payments of taxes, demand and refund information, and details of pending and completed proceedings. The Principal Director General/Director General (Systems) or an authorised delegate is required to upload received information within the prescribed short period and to specify procedures, formats and standards for such uploads. (AI Summary)

GST on directors' services: characterise employment versus professional status to determine reverse-charge taxability.
GST liability for a director's services depends on whether the director acts in the course of employment (Entry 1, Schedule III - not a supply) or in an individual/professional capacity (a supply). Notification No.13/2017 subjects director-supplied services to reverse charge, but RCM applies only if the service first qualifies as a supply under the CGST Act. Key indicia to distinguish employment from professional service include director type, board control, remuneration form, employment agreements, TDS/PF/ESI treatment, ROC filings and invoicing. (AI Summary)

Deposit repayment obligations: tribunal required repayment with interest from maturity and awarded costs to depositors.
Section 73 requires specified procedural and financial safeguards for accepting deposits and provides a depositor remedy where repayment or interest is not made. Deposit holders whose fixed deposits matured and remained unpaid petitioned the Tribunal; on appeal the tribunal affirmed that contracted interest must run from the date of maturity until receipt and ordered repayment with pendent lite and future interest at the contracted rate, together with awarded litigation costs. (AI Summary)

Auditor certificate requirement for DPT-3 governs mandatory certification and exemptions under deposit rules.
Auditor certification for Form DPT-3 is mandatory when filed as a return of deposits or combined return of deposits and exempted deposits, but not when filed only as a return of exempted deposits that do not amount to deposits under rule 2(1)(c) of the Companies (Acceptance of Deposits) Rules, 2014. The draft certificate should reconcile deposit figures with books, confirm maintenance of liquid assets for repayment, verify outstanding loans and advances, and cite section 73 and relevant rules of the Companies (Acceptance of Deposits) Rules, 2014. (AI Summary)

GST appeals tolled until appellate tribunal is constituted; limitation runs from when the tribunal President assumes office.
The State's Removal of Difficulties order preserves the right to file appeals to the Appellate Tribunal despite its non constitution by fixing the limitation to run from the date the President or State President assumes office and allowing a prescribed period thereafter; appellate authorities should note this in orders and dispose of first instance appeals expeditiously. Where an appeal order confirms or increases demand, taxpayers must file the specified declaration indicating intent to appeal to defer recovery, otherwise recovery may proceed under law. (AI Summary)

Extension of registration period for casual and non-resident taxable persons requires advance tax deposit and electronic application prior to expiry.
Extension of registration for casual and non-resident taxable persons requires an electronic application before expiry in the prescribed form, a prior advance deposit of estimated tax for the extension period into the Electronic Cash Ledger, filing of all due returns, and authentication by an authorized signatory using DSC or EVC; the proper officer may grant an extension on sufficient cause with an additional estimated tax deposit and system-generated acknowledgement and tracking upon filing. (AI Summary)

Best judgement assessment cannot be invoked solely for failure to file GSTR-3B absent material proving suppression of turnover.
An inspection, search and seizure power under GST requires written delegation from a competent officer of prescribed rank; actions by subordinate officers lacking such written authorisation are incompetent. Best judgement assessment should not be invoked solely for non-filing of a return where other statutory returns disclose turnover and no material proves suppression. Procedural protections-personal hearing, directory treatment of transitional credit rules, and distinction between employee remuneration and director fees for taxation-are critical to fair GST administration. (AI Summary)

Aadhaar-based e-KYC PAN allotment enables instant online PAN issuance on Aadhaar authentication for eligible applicants.
Instant PAN allotment through Aadhaar based e KYC allows applicants with a valid Aadhaar number and Aadhaar registered mobile to apply on the Income Tax e filing portal, authenticate by OTP, receive a 15 digit acknowledgement, and, upon successful Aadhaar authentication, download an electronic PAN (e PAN) which is also emailed if the email is seeded with Aadhaar; the process is paperless, free, and replaces the detailed application form. (AI Summary)

Liquidated damages under GST: compensatory breach payments are not consideration for tolerating an act and may not be taxable.
Liquidated damages are pre agreed compensation for breach intended to ensure performance, not consideration for tolerating an act; Schedule II's reference to agreeing to tolerate an act only creates a taxable supply where there is a clear consensual agreement to tolerate, and amendments to section 7 require that an activity first qualify as a supply before classification, so pure compensatory liquidated damages that do not reflect an agreement to tolerate should not be treated as supply under GST. (AI Summary)

Virtual hearings via video conferencing enable continuation of indirect tax adjudication, subject to consent and procedural safeguards.
Virtual continuance of adjudicatory and appellate proceedings in indirect tax matters is authorised through video conferencing technologies, subject to procedural safeguards. Courts may provide VC facilities or appoint an amicus curiae for litigants lacking access; evidence may be recorded by VC only with mutual party consent, otherwise recorded in court with distancing. CBIC instructions extend VC hearings to customs, central excise and service tax adjudications and appeals, requiring prior consent, advance notice and secure use of official VC platforms, and treating written records of personal hearings as documents under electronic evidence provisions. (AI Summary)

Intellectual Property Right classification affects whether transfers are goods or services and how goodwill is treated for tax purposes.
The article explains that statutory IPR comprises rights recognised under law (trademarks, patents, designs), that permanent transfers of IPR are treated as supplies of goods while temporary transfers or licences are supplies of services, and that authorities have differed on whether goodwill is an IPR-CESTAT reasoning being that goodwill, though an intangible deriving value from trademarks or business reputation, is not itself recognised as an IPR under the Finance Act, while other courts treat goodwill as a protected component of business value relevant to assignment, valuation and passing off claims. (AI Summary)

Input tax credit for pandemic protective measures may be allowed when expenses are in course or furtherance of business.
Whether input tax credit can be claimed for pandemic related protective equipment and services depends on whether supplies are used in the course or furtherance of business or fall within Section 17(5) exceptions such as personal consumption or gifts. Preventive equipment mandated by government guidelines and necessary to maintain workplace operations is characterized as business expenditure and may qualify for ITC, whereas free medical care to employees has been treated as personal consumption and disallowed. ITC for CSR, insurance and transport may be allowable when statutorily mandated. (AI Summary)

Input tax credit on medical insurance may be available where employer coverage was mandatory under emergency law during the lockdown.
Input tax credit for medical insurance is permitted only where employer-provided health or medical insurance is obligatory under law; emergency directions issued in mid-April 2020 made employer medical insurance mandatory until those directions were rescinded in mid-May 2020, and emergency-management measures have an overriding legal effect, so premiums for employer policies procured during that mandatory period would qualify for input tax credit, whereas premiums for individual family-member policies or for coverage outside the mandatory period would not. (AI Summary)

GST audit applicability requires audited accounts and reconciliation for qualifying registered persons despite limited MSME relaxations.
The GST statutory audit regime requires registered persons whose aggregate turnover exceeds the prescribed threshold to obtain an audit by a chartered accountant or cost accountant and to furnish audited annual accounts plus a reconciliation statement in FORM GSTR 9C. Three audit types operate under the law: practitioner audit under section 35(5), departmental audit under section 65(1), and special audit under section 66(1). Filing of the annual return (GSTR 9/GSTR 9A) is mandatory as prescribed, electronic filing is required, and commissioner-issued notifications may alter timelines or thresholds for specific years. (AI Summary)

Fraudulent incorporation: tribunal invalidated the company registration and assigned personal liability to promoter and certifier.
The Tribunal examined an incorporation in which a spouse was listed as a first director without her consent, with alleged forged identity and consent documents and a professional certification that misrepresented having verified signatures and premises. Finding documentary inconsistencies and professional failings, the Tribunal concluded the incorporation was vitiated by fraud, treated the certificate of incorporation as invalid and addressed the resulting liability exposure of the promoter and the certifying professional for company obligations undertaken in its name. (AI Summary)

Outsourcing of insolvency professional duties barred under the Code; delegation of claims verification risks regulatory sanction.
Verification of creditor claims is an express duty of the interim/resolution professional under the CIRP Regulations; while an IP may appoint professionals for assistance, the Code and Board circular prohibit outsourcing core statutory duties. Engaging a third-party Insolvency Professional Entity to verify and certify claims and charging the corporate debtor for that service constitutes delegation of the IP's verification duty, risks contravention of IP Regulations and CIRP Regulations, and may attract regulatory disciplinary action and sanctions. (AI Summary)

GST relief measures urged to urgently ease liquidity and stimulate demand amid pandemic economic disruption.
The commentary proposes targeted GST reliefs to ease liquidity and stimulate demand: expedited refunds, unconditional waiver of interest and late fees for delayed GST payments and filings, instalment-based payment options, cash-based taxation for small taxpayers; ITC measures including ITC on employer-paid health and life insurance premiums, relaxations of supplier-matching under Rule 36(4) and extension of ITC availing deadlines; and temporary GST rate reductions or waivers and liberalisation of export restrictions. (AI Summary)

Deficiency memo in GST refunds risks time barred claims when resubmission is treated as a fresh application by authorities.
Issuance of a deficiency memo under the GST refund rules often compels taxpayers to resubmit a fresh refund application, which administrative practice and certain circulars treat as restarting the statutory limitation period, thereby risking time barred claims. The rules implicated include acknowledgement and scrutiny under rule 90, recredit to the electronic credit ledger under rule 93(1), and notice procedures under rule 94(3). The article warns that technical or format deficiencies enforced by circulars can prejudice taxpayers and recommends filing early, adhering to master circular formats, and seeking clarification that limitation runs from the original filing when substantive entitlement is unaffected. (AI Summary)

SME listing eligibility relaxed for pandemic: lower net asset threshold and flexible track record with positive cash accruals.
BSE relaxed SME listing eligibility effective June 1, 2020: the net tangible assets threshold is lowered and the track record requirement is eased to allow qualification where the company shows combined positive cash accruals (earnings before depreciation and tax) in any one of the last three years together with a positive net worth; alternate routes for newer entities (funding or listed group) remain intact. NBFC and broking company guidelines are unchanged. (AI Summary)

Ancillary services to electricity: not naturally bundled and thus taxable separately under GST unless truly integrated.
Ancillary services and goods provided in relation to electricity distribution-such as connections, re connections, supervision, erection works, testing, and meter supply or shifting-are treated as independent, often non continuous supplies made at consumer request and not naturally bundled with continuous electricity supply; they therefore do not automatically qualify as a composite supply nor for exemption or concessional GST treatment merely because electricity itself is exempt. (AI Summary)