Fraudulent input tax credit claims led to arrests under CGST provisions for offences involving fake invoices.
Investigation found fraudulent availment of input tax credit based on invoices issued by non-existent suppliers and without receipt of goods, prompting criminal enforcement under the CGST Act for cognizable and non-bailable offences; arrests were effected and the accused remanded to judicial custody while investigation continues.

Auto-population of e-invoice data must be verified; excluded or errored invoices are available in a downloadable report.
Auto-population transfers e-invoice data from the IRP into GSTR-1 and related inward tables based on the document date; entries are reflected after an operational latency and, if the period return is already filed, such entries appear in a consolidated downloadable excel labeled with the relevant error description. Validation rules exclude certain supplier types and date inconsistencies, and data-structure faults (for example prohibited item serials or incorrect place-of-supply coding) prevent auto-population. Taxpayers must verify all auto-populated details and use the downloadable report to address excluded or errored invoices.

GST compensation shortfall funding: back-to-back central borrowings supplied to states as loans to meet revenue gaps.
The Central Government disbursed another tranche of back-to-back loans under a specially created borrowing window to meet GST compensation shortfalls, passing funds raised on behalf of States and UTs to eligible recipients at the applicable borrowing interest rate; separately, States choosing the designated option were granted permission to raise additional borrowing up to a capped share of GSDP to address revenue gaps, with a statewise schedule distinguishing amounts released through the special window and additional borrowing permissions.

Communication Between Taxpayers facility enables registered GST taxpayers to notify counterparties of missing or deficient documents.
The GST Portal's Communication Between Taxpayers facility allows registered taxpayers (excluding TDS, TCS or NRTP registrants) to send notifications to suppliers or recipients about missing or deficient documents, attach up to fifty documents, add remarks, and manage messages via Inbox and Outbox; counterparties receive e mail/SMS alerts and portal login alerts; senders are limited to 100 notifications per GSTIN per tax period; suppliers can add documents into Form GSTR 1 if notified; upload/download document functionality is to be provided.

GST compensation loans released to states as back-to-back borrowing to meet revenue shortfall and additional borrowing permission granted.
The central government released an eighth weekly instalment of back-to-back loans through a special borrowing window to meet GST compensation shortfalls, passing funds to 23 States and three Union Territories while five States reported no gap. The latest tranche was raised at an interest rate of 4.1902%, contributing to an aggregate borrowing of forty-eight thousand crore at an average interest rate of 4.6986%. Additionally, permission to borrow an amount equivalent to 0.50% of GSDP was granted to 28 States under the prescribed option to address the compensation shortfall.

Reverse charge liability auto-population alert may trigger erroneously; declare correct liability and file the monthly return promptly.
The return filing system auto-populates inward supply reverse charge liability in Table 3.1(d) from counterparty-submitted return data; an erroneous alert appears when taxpayers revise the auto-populated reverse charge amount upward beyond a ten percent threshold. The technical team is working to resolve the defect. Taxpayers should nonetheless declare the correct reverse charge liability in Table 3.1(d) and file the return.

Staggered filing deadlines for monthly GST returns set by rule amendment; due dates now vary by turnover and location.
An amendment inserting sub rule (6) to Rule 61 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Rules establishes a staggered filing regime for Form GSTR 3B for the tax periods October 2020-March 2021, linking monthly due dates to PAN wise aggregate turnover in the previous year and to the taxpayer's principal place of business, and allocating three cohorts of due dates based on turnover threshold and State/UT groupings.

Auto-population of GSTR-3B fields from GSTR-1 and GSTR-2B aids filing while taxpayers retain amendment responsibility.
System-computed values in Form GSTR-3B are auto-populated from filed returns: liabilities from Form GSTR-1 and Input Tax Credit and inward reverse-charge supplies from system-generated Form GSTR-2B. A table-wise PDF of these computations is available. Taxpayers must verify and may edit auto-populated values, with the system preserving prior saved entries and alerting when edits diverge from system values beyond a threshold; placeholders indicate missing source filings and certain tables are excluded from auto-population.

QRMP Scheme eligibility enables quarterly returns with monthly tax payments; webinar guidance available for taxpayers.
The communication announces the QRMP Scheme, enabling eligible taxpayers-those below a specified aggregate annual turnover, filers of Form GSTR 3B, new registrants, and taxpayers exiting the Composition Scheme-to file quarterly returns while paying taxes monthly. It sets an effective implementation date and details GSTN outreach through multilingual webinars to explain scheme operation, portal procedures, and taxpayer responsibilities, with live links for participation.

Special borrowing window for GST compensation: central government released back-to-back loans to states to meet shortfall.
A special borrowing window was used by the Central Government to provide back-to-back loans to States and Union Territories with legislatures to meet GST compensation shortfalls; the seventh instalment was released on 14 December 2020, borrowed at an interest rate of 5.1348% with cumulative borrowings at an average 4.7712%. In addition, the Central Government granted additional borrowing permission equal to 0.50% of GSDP to States choosing Option I, and permissions for the aggregate additional amount were granted to 28 States; state-wise allocations and amounts passed through the special window are set out.

E-invoicing mandate: webinar guidance available to affected taxpayers ahead of January 2021 implementation; live Q&A included.
The e-invoicing mandate requires affected taxpayers to adopt electronic invoice generation and reporting from the implementation date; GSTN and NIC provided a targeted webinar in English with practical guidance and live Q&A to assist taxpayers in preparing systems and processes for compliance.

E-Way Bill blocking: online unblocking applications now available to restore generation facility for non-filing taxpayers.
E Way Bill generation is suspended for taxpayers who default in filing prescribed returns or statements for two or more consecutive tax periods, regardless of aggregate turnover. Affected taxpayers may apply to the tax officer to have the E Way Bill facility reinstated; the GSTN portal now enables the entire unblocking application process to be completed online, replacing the prior offline-only procedure.

Fraudulent Input Tax Credit claims exposed; director arrested and investigation into bogus GST refund network underway
Fraudulent availing of Input Tax Credit (ITC) was effected through five firms using fake invoices, fabricated GST registrations and manipulated E way Bill/GSTN portal data to obtain refunds; a director identified as a principal beneficiary was arrested and remanded to judicial custody while investigations continue.

Annual GST return availability: GSTR-9 enabled; taxpayers must complete Table 8A and file all returns before submission.
Form GSTR-9 for the fiscal year is enabled for taxpayers whose Table 8A computation is complete; auto-population of Table 8A from returns is pending completion. Taxpayers must ensure all applicable returns for the year have been filed before attempting to submit the annual return.

Special borrowing window for GST compensation enables central borrowing and back to back loans to states to meet revenue shortfalls.
The Centre provided a sixth weekly tranche of back to back loans to States/UTs under a special borrowing window, borrowing on their behalf at market interest and passing funds to meet GST compensation shortfalls; concurrently, the Centre has authorised additional borrowing permission equal to 0.5% of GSDP for States choosing that option, with state wise permitted amounts and funds transmitted via the special window annexed.

E-way bill generation blocked for return defaults; online taxpayer application enables unblocking after filing returns
E-way bill generation is blocked for taxpayers who default in filing Form GSTR-3B or Form GST CMP-08 for two or more consecutive tax periods, irrespective of Aggregate Annual Turnover. Affected taxpayers may seek unblocking by filing an application to the tax officer; the GSTN portal now allows this application to be filed completely online, and GSTN is offering webinars demonstrating the online unblocking process.

Input tax credit fraud exposed - arrest for availing and passing ITC on bogus invoices leading to improper IGST refunds.
Investigation by DGGI found two entities controlled by the accused that allegedly issued fake invoices to wrongfully avail and pass on Input Tax Credit, which was then used to obtain improper IGST refunds; the accused was arrested and remanded to judicial custody while further investigation continues.

Public education use of user generated GST contest entries, uploaded for awareness but not admissible as legal authority.
A month long public engagement invited user generated entries on GST benefits and reforms, evaluated for creativity and originality; winners and select entries were published on the public channel for taxpayer awareness. The network reserved rights to use submissions for public education, and clarified the participant created content is for general guidance only and not admissible as legal authority in judicial or quasi judicial proceedings.

Staggered GSTR-3B filing deadlines: due dates vary by taxpayer turnover and principal place of business for specified tax periods.
A sub rule to Rule 61 establishes a staggered filing regime for Form GSTR 3B for the tax periods October 2020-March 2021, categorising taxpayers by aggregate turnover and principal place of business to assign three different monthly due date tiers, with larger turnover taxpayers given the earliest due date and other taxpayers allocated later due dates by State/UT groupings.

Special borrowing window for GST shortfall: States choose Option One permitting central-facilitated borrowings and extra borrowing permission.
All States and Union Territories with legislatures have chosen Option One to address the GST revenue shortfall, gaining access to a centrally operated special borrowing window through which the Centre raises funds on their behalf and passes proceeds to participating States/UTs in instalments. Participating jurisdictions also receive unconditional permission to undertake the final tranche of additional borrowings (half a percent of GSDP) under the broader extra borrowing envelope; Jharkhand has newly opted in and will receive funds and the additional borrowing permission from the next borrowing round.