GST audit: taxpayers over Rs. 2 crore need GSTR 9C reconciliation, ITC verification, record retention and reverse charge checks.
Every registered person with aggregate turnover exceeding Rs.2 crore must obtain audit by a CA/CMA and submit audited accounts with a reconciliation statement in FORM GSTR 9C along with the annual return. Auditors must reconcile financial statements with GST returns, verify taxes, refunds and ITC (including eligibility, reversals under the 180 day rule, blocked credits and apportionment for exempt/non business use), confirm compliance with invoicing, time/place of supply and valuation rules, examine records retained for prescribed periods, and report observations and recommended adjustments; special audits and statutory access to premises apply where warranted.

TDS under GST applies to specified government entities for contracts where taxable supplies exceed Rs.2.5 lakh per contract.
TDS under GST requires specified government and public entities to deduct tax where the total value of taxable supply under a contract exceeds Rs.2.5 lakh (excluding GST); registration as a TDS deductor on the GST portal is mandatory, deduction rates differ for intra state (1% split between CGST and SGST) and inter state (2% IGST) supplies, and procedural obligations include deposit via challan, filing FORM GSTR 7, and issuance of system generated FORM GSTR 7A; specified exceptions, valuation rules, and penalties for non compliance are set out.

GST rate revisions narrow high rate items and fix a deemed value split for renewable-energy contracts.
GST Council recommended multiple GST rate reductions across specified goods and services, reclassifying items among 28%, 18%, 12%, 5% and Nil slabs and aligning rates for power banks with lithium ion batteries. It prescribed a deemed allocation of aggregate contract value for renewable-energy plant supplies-70% treated as goods at the concessional rate and 30% as services at the standard rate-and recommended reduced or exempt treatment for select services including cinema tickets, third-party goods-vehicle insurance and specified banking services.

Composition scheme: extension to small service providers referred for rate and threshold review by law and fitment committees.
Extension of the composition scheme to small service providers, including determination of applicable rate and threshold, was referred to the Law Committee and Fitment Committee; tax rate on lotteries was referred to the Committee of States; taxation of residential property in real estate was referred to the Law Committee and Fitment Committee; and the threshold limit of exemption under GST for MSMEs was referred to a Group of Ministers, with the Council to revisit these issues at a later meeting.

Return filing reform: trial then mandatory rollout with extended deadlines, sequencing rules, and electronic refund filing.
A package of GST compliance measures: a single cash ledger per tax head and a pilot single authority for refund disbursement; rollout of a new return filing system with extended deadlines and sequencing requirements for annual and periodic returns; mandatory electronic upload of refund supporting documents on the common portal and specified refund types permitted through the standard refund form; extensions for migration and historical filings with late fee waivers; and further clarifications and notifications to implement legislative amendments and portal functionalities.

Group of Ministers to study GST revenue trends and recommend structural responses after expert committee review
A Group of Ministers is constituted to analyse GST revenue trends, including structural causes for deviations from original design assumptions and implementation effects on state collections. A committee of experts from Central and State Governments and the National Institute of Public Finance and Planning will assist, provide findings to the GoM, and the GoM will submit recommendations to the GST Council; membership details will be announced later.

Centralised Appellate Authority for Advance Ruling proposed; interest to be charged only on net tax liability.
Creation of a Centralised Appellate Authority for Advance Ruling is proposed to address conflicting appellate advance ruling decisions. An amendment is proposed to make interest leviable only on the net tax liability after accounting for admissible input tax credit, such that interest applies only to amounts payable through the electronic cash ledger. Both proposals are approved in principle and await statutory amendment.

GST simplification aims to place the vast majority of goods into a lower tax slab, narrowing the highest slab to luxury items.
The document sets out a policy objective of GST simplification to move the vast majority of goods into a sub-18 per cent GST slab while limiting the top slab to select luxury items, with attendant goals of reducing slab complexity, expanding taxpayer registration, improving market transparency, and easing compliance burdens.

Return reconciliation enables authorities to identify reporting mismatches and e way bill non-filers for compliance follow-up.
GSTN is developing a new return-filing framework with user-interface improvements (questionnaire-guided GSTR-3B, pre-populated challans, one-click nil filing, suggested ITC utilisation and contextual help) and deploying BI & Analytics for persona-based and predictive analyses, fraud detection and network analysis; it reconciles GSTR-1 with GSTR-3B and GSTR-3B with GSTR-2A and monitors e-way bill generators who do not file returns, sharing analytic reports with tax authorities for compliance follow-up.

Goods and Services Tax collections show improvement, prompting procedural reforms and unresolved petroleum taxation under Council review.
Goods and Services Tax collections for FY 2018 19 show overall improvement over FY 2017 18, though direct comparison with the prior tax system is unreliable due to taxpayer overlap, varying exemption limits, and IGST apportionment. Implementation has involved procedural changes and statutory amendments to improve compliance. The GST Council recommended multiple rate adjustments following stakeholder representations but has not set a levy date for petroleum products under Article 279A(5), leaving their GST status unresolved.

GST evasion detection: recoveries reported and enhanced enforcement with analytics-driven risk management measures announced.
Suspected GST evasion of substantial aggregate value was detected in 3,196 cases up to November of the 2018-19 financial year with state-wise detection and recovery figures reported; the Government is enhancing enforcement through intelligence-based operations, E-Way Bill squads, systematic data analysis and creation of a Directorate General for Analytics & Risk Management to prioritise risk, improve detection and recover tax dues.

GST on property sales: completed units exempt, under construction sales taxable; input tax credit often offsets builders' liability.
Sale of a completed building or ready-to-move-in flat after issuance of the completion certificate is not subject to GST, whereas under-construction property or sales where the completion certificate is not issued at the time of sale are taxable. Under GST, affordable housing attracts a lower rate and other housing is taxed after abatement; major inputs attract higher GST but input tax credit availability yields a weighted ITC benefit that often offsets the output tax, frequently eliminating cash GST payable for affordable projects.

Extension of due date for GST annual returns; GSTR 9, GSTR 9A and GSTR 9C deadlines extended via portal.
Extension of due date for filing FORM GSTR-9, FORM GSTR-9A and FORM GSTR-9C until 31st March, 2019; requisite forms will be made available on the GST common portal and a relevant order is to be issued to give effect to the extension.

Goods and Services Tax lexicon supplying authoritative Hindi equivalents from statutory texts for accurate bilingual administration.
Legally authoritative Hindi lexicon of GST terminology compiled by extracting terms from English statutory texts and matching them to the Hindi Gazette versions with native speaker review; intended as an authentic desk reference for GST officers to enable accurate bilingual file notings, promote uniform terminology, and support implementation, and it includes the Hindi text of a recent amendment bill plus educational posters for dissemination and training.

Goods and Services Tax unified India's indirect taxes into a dual, destination-based VAT with IGST, compensation and IT-enabled compliance.
GST unified multiple central and state indirect taxes into a destination-based, value-added dual levy with constitutional amendments enabling concurrent Centre and State legislation, creation of the GST Council, IGST apportionment for inter-State supplies, exclusion of alcoholic liquor, and compensation to States. The design provides CGST/SGST for intra-State supplies, IGST for inter-State supplies to preserve input tax credit continuity, multiple rate bands with a compensation cess on select goods, zero-rating of exports, threshold and composition schemes for small taxpayers, and IT-enabled compliance and settlement through GSTN, e-way bills and anti-profiteering mechanisms.

GST practitioner examination eligibility expanded; provisional registrants may request NACIN approval and must attend allotted test centres.
Eligibility for the GST Practitioner confirmation examination is limited to persons enrolled under clause (b) of sub rule (1) and sub rule (2) of Rule 83 of the CGST Rules, 2017; those enrolled up to 4.12.2018 may register within the extended window until 7.12.2018 for the 17.12.2018 examination. Candidates enrolled between 5.12.2018 and 16.12.2018 may seek provisional registration from NACIN by email and must attend test centres as allotted; registration fees for such provisional registrants are non refundable.

GST refund processing urges exporters to respond promptly to deficiency memos to expedite refund clearance.
GST refund administration has disposed the majority of claims, with IGST refunds largely processed by Customs and RFD-01A refunds showing substantial disposals. Remaining claims are pending due to deficiencies communicated to exporters or awaiting replies to deficiency memos at Centre and State offices. Authorities emphasise rapid clearance of eligible refunds, ongoing processing of pending claims upon receipt of requisite information, and the need for exporter cooperation in responding to deficiency memos and ensuring accurate GSTR-1, GSTR-3B and Shipping Bill filings.

GST revenue collection reports component receipts, IGST apportionment to CGST/SGST and release of state compensation.
Total monthly GST revenue for November 2018 is reported by tax head (CGST, SGST, IGST including imports, and Cess) with the number of GSTR-3B returns filed. The release records regular IGST settlements apportioned to CGST and SGST, the resulting consolidated monthly receipts for Central and State governments after settlement, and the release of GST compensation to states for specified months.

Tax collection at source requires e-commerce operators to collect and remit tax on net taxable supplies made through their platforms.
E-commerce operators are required to collect tax at source on the net value of taxable supplies made through their platforms when they collect consideration; they must obtain separate TCS registration, calculate net value at the GSTIN level excluding exempt and reverse-charge supplies, and remit collected amounts within ten days after month-end. Operators must report monthly in FORM GSTR-8 and annually in FORM GSTR-9B; collected TCS is credited to the actual supplier's electronic cash ledger on the basis of the operator's statement and may be used against tax liability or claimed as refund under cash ledger rules.

Eligibility extension for GST Practitioner exam allows later-enrolled applicants to register on the examination portal before portal closure.
Extension of registration eligibility permits additional GST Practitioner applicants who enrolled on the GST Network after the initial cut-off to participate in the scheduled confirmation examination, and directs administrators to open the examination portal for these newly eligible registrants to register within the announced registration window.