Amendment to GST notification updates Foreign Trade Policy definitions, affecting supply of gold by nominated agencies.
This amendment revises a West Bengal GST notification to substitute the opening paragraph reference from paragraph 4.41 to 4.40 and replaces Explanation clauses (a) and (b) with updated definitions: clause (a) defining "Foreign Trade Policy" as the Foreign Trade Policy, 2023, and clause (b) defining "Handbook of Procedures" as the Handbook of Procedure as notified by the Government of India; the amendment is effective from 27th July, 2023.

SGST rate amendment reduces tax on specified goods, adding snack pellets, fish soluble paste and LD slag to lower-rate schedules.
Amendment to SGST notification No. 1125-F.T. inserts un fried/un cooked snack pellets, fish soluble paste, Linz Donawitz (LD) slag, and imitation zari thread into Schedule I; substitutes the Schedule II description for metallised yarn; and amends Schedule III to add unfried snack pellets and carve out LD slag from the slag entry, with the notification deemed to be in force from 27th July, 2023.

Forward charge declaration broadened to cover supplies remaining under forward charge and not reverted to reverse charge.
The declaration in Annexure III for Goods Transport Agency providers is amended by substituting the phrase "during the Financial Year_____ under forward charge" with "from the Financial Year_____ under forward charge and have not reverted to reverse charge mechanism", thereby altering the representation required as to the charging basis of supplies. The amendment to notification No. 1137-F.T. is effective from 27th July, 2023.

Satellite launch services exemption expands to cover both government and private providers, extending GST relief.
Amendment expands the scope of an existing GST notification to exempt Satellite launch services from tax irrespective of whether the service provider is a government entity or a private organization, substituting the Table entry at the relevant serial number with the operative description "Satellite launch services."

Reverse charge election window for Goods Transport Agencies fixed to a defined January-March pre-year period to govern GST liability.
The notification amends prior GST rules to fix the period for GTAs to elect forward charge or to revert to the reverse charge mechanism to the January-March window preceding the financial year, provides that a GTA's election to pay under forward charge continues for subsequent years unless the GTA files Annexure VI to revert within that window, prescribes the Annexure VI declaration form with a non revocability rule for the financial year, and makes related edits to table entries and Annexure V; effective 27th July, 2023.

GST rate notification amendment substitutes tariff entries for specified essential oils, applying to both registered and unregistered persons.
Substitutes Sl. No. 3A in the State Tax (Rate) notification with specified HSN entries (3301 24 00; 3301 25 10; 3301 25 20; 3301 25 30; 3301 25 40; 3301 25 90) describing certain essential oils other than citrus (including peppermint and specified mints). The substituted entry applies to any un-registered person and any registered person and takes effect from the first day of January, 2023.

Voluntary delisting of non-convertible securities requires in-principle exchange approval, unanimous holder consent and trustee no-objection.
The inserted Chapter VIA prescribes a framework for voluntary delisting of listed non-convertible debt securities and non-convertible redeemable preference shares, specifying exclusions, procedural steps and timelines for seeking in-principle stock exchange approval, holder approval and debenture trustee no-objection, detailed disclosure obligations to exchanges and on issuer websites (including a disclaimer on loss of statutory investor protections), notice and e-voting requirements, events causing proposal failure, final application procedures, provisions for partial delisting across exchanges, and exchange monitoring and reporting of non-compliance.

Turnover threshold revised under GST, lowering eligibility and changing composition scheme applicability effective August notification.
Amendment reduces the turnover threshold for applicability of the specified Punjab GST notification by substituting the previous turnover expression with a lower one, effective from the 1st day of August, 2023, under the authority of sub rule (4) of rule 48 of the Punjab Goods and Services Tax Rules, 2017.

Late fee waiver for delayed final GST returns allows relief for returns filed between April and June 2023.
Waiver of late fee applies to registered persons who failed to furnish the final return in FORM GSTR-10 by the due date but furnished it between 1 April 2023 and 30 June 2023; the waiver covers the portion of the late fee under section 47 exceeding five hundred rupees and is effected under section 128, with the notification deemed effective from 31 March 2023.

Late fee waiver for delayed GST returns: caps by turnover class and conditional relief for prior-year filings.
A waiver prescribes defined daily caps on late fees for return filings for 2022-23 onwards, differentiated by aggregate turnover bands and subject to a maximum of 0.02% of turnover in the State; additionally, returns for 2017-18 to 2021-22 filed between 1 April 2023 and 30 June 2023 receive a waiver of late fees exceeding ten thousand rupees, with the notification effective from 31 March 2023.

Assessment order deemed withdrawn when registered persons file the required return and pay interest and late fee promptly.
Assessment orders issued on or before 28 February 2023 shall be deemed withdrawn for registered persons who failed to furnish a valid return within thirty days of service, provided those persons furnish the return by 30 June 2023 and pay the interest and late fee due, regardless of the filing or outcome of any appeal.

Revocation of cancelled GST registration permits late applications until June 30, 2023 subject to returns filing and payment.
Registered persons whose GST registration was cancelled on or before 31 December 2022 and who failed to apply for revocation within the statutory period may apply for revocation up to 30 June 2023 only after furnishing returns due up to the effective date of cancellation and paying tax, interest, penalty and late fee; no further extension of time will be available, and persons whose appeals were rejected for failure to meet the original time limit are included. The notification is deemed effective from 31 March 2023.

Late fee waiver for GSTR-4 returns: excess fees waived and fully waived where state tax payable nil for eligible filers.
The amendment waives late fee amounts in excess of two hundred and fifty rupees for registered persons who file FORM GSTR-4 for quarters from July 2017 to March 2019 or financial years 2019-20 to 2021-22 between 1 April 2023 and 30 June 2023; it fully waives late fee where the total State tax payable in the return is nil. The change inserts a proviso into the earlier notification and is made effective retrospectively from 31 March 2023.

Notification amendment adjusts statutory deadline and provides retroactive effective date altering prior GST notification for compliance purposes.
The amendment substitutes the deadline date in the sixth proviso of the earlier Punjab GST notification, effected under section 128, and declares the notification to be deemed to have come into force retrospectively from an earlier date in July 2022; its operation is confined to that textual substitution and the retrospective commencement.

Exemption from annual return filing for registered persons with limited turnover applies to the specified financial year in J&K.
Exemption from annual return filing is granted to registered persons in Jammu and Kashmir whose aggregate turnover in the financial year 2022-23 is up to two crore rupees, by Notification S.O. No. 88 dated August 23, 2023 issued under the first proviso to the Jammu and Kashmir Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, thereby removing the obligation to file the annual GST return for eligible registered persons for that year.

Aadhaar authentication requirement mandates biometric verification and in person document checks before GST registration is complete.
The amendment requires applicants (except those notified under subsection (6D) of section 25) who opt for Aadhaar authentication to undergo authentication at submission, making the submission date the authentication date or fifteen days from filing Part B of FORM GST REG 01, whichever is earlier; applicants flagged by portal data analysis and risk parameters must additionally undergo biometric Aadhaar authentication, have a photograph taken, and present original documents for verification at Commissioner notified Facilitation Centres, with the application deemed complete only after this process.

Exemption from specified income granted to Swasthya Sathi Samiti covering government grants and bank interest subject to conditions.
Notification exempts Swasthya Sathi Samiti, Kolkata, from tax on specified income comprising Government of West Bengal grants and bank interest, subject to conditions: no commercial activity, unchanged activities and income nature across the relevant years, and filing returns under clause (g) of sub section (4C) of section 139; the exemption is retrospective to the assessment year for financial year 2021-2022 and applies to subsequent specified assessment years.

Tax exemption for statutory authority: UIDAI's specified income exempted subject to non-commerciality and return-filing conditions.
Notification under section 10(46) recognises the Unique Identification Authority of India as eligible for exemption of specified incomes: central grants/subsidies; fees and subscriptions (including RTI and tender fees, sale of scrap, PVC card receipts); authentication, enrolment and updation charges; term/fixed deposit receipts; and interest on these receipts. The exemption is subject to conditions that the Authority shall not engage in commercial activity, the nature of activities and specified incomes remains unchanged, and the Authority files income-tax returns as mandated by clause (g) of sub-section (4C) of section 139.

Exemption for welfare board income: labour cess, contributions and interest notified as specified tax-exempt receipts.
Notification grants specified income exemption to Punjab Building and Other Construction Welfare Board for labour cess collection, contribution collection, and interest earned on those collections, subject to conditions that the Board shall not engage in commercial activity, its activities and the nature of the specified income remain unchanged during the financial years, and it files returns of income as required by the return-filing provision in clause (g) of sub-section (4C) of section 139.

Exemption for District Mineral Foundation Trust exempts specified DMF receipts from income tax subject to non commercial and filing conditions.
Notification designates District Mineral Foundation Trust as a notified class of Authority under clause (46) of section 10, exempting specified receipts-leaseholder contributions, interest on late payments, penalties, interest on DMF funds, savings account interest and term deposit interest-subject to conditions that Trusts not engage in commercial activity, maintain unchanged activities and income character across years, and file income tax returns as prescribed; the notification is applied retrospectively to the listed Trusts in the schedule.