Key Reliefs under GST Laws due to COVID-19 pandemic

Due to the outbreak of the second wave of COVID-19 across the country, the Government has issued several notifications on May 1^st, 2021 in order to provide relief under GST laws. The Government has announced various reliefs such as the extension of the due date of GSTR-1, GSTR-4 & ITC-04, waiver of late fees for GSTR-3B, relaxation in the interest rate on delay in filing GSTR-3B, extension in a time limit of various actions under GST, etc. The key measures taken by Government have been summarized as under:

1. Extension of Due Dates

The Government has extended the due dates of filing details of outward supplies under FORM GSTR-1 and IFF for the month of April by 15 days. The due date of filing of Annual Return by composition dealers under FORM GSTR-4 for FY 2020-21 has been extended from 30th April 2021 to 31st May 2021. Also, the due date of filing of a declaration of movement of goods to or from job worker under FORM ITC-04 for Jan-March, 2021 quarter has been extended from 25th April 2021 to 31st May 2021. The due dates for GSTR-5, GSTR-6, GSTR-7 & GSTR-8 along with other GST compliances is also extended. The summary of extension is as follows:

2. Reduction in Interest Rate and Waiver of Late fees

The Government has provided relief by way of reduction in the interest rate and waiver of late fees for delay in filing of GSTR-3B for the period March and April 2021. The relief of reduction of the rate of interest and waiver of late fees is summarized as under:

The Government has provided relaxation of interest on late filing of Form CMP-08 for a statement of Quarterly Payment of Tax for the last quarter of FY 2020-21. The relaxation provided is summarized as under:

3. Relaxation in availing of Input Tax Credit

As per Rule 36(4) of the CGST Rules, 2017, a person can take ITC claim in respect of invoices that are not uploaded by vendors in their Form GSTR 1 or through Invoice Furnishing Facility (‘IFF’) maximum of up to 5% of the invoices furnished by the vendors in their Form GSTR 1/ through IFF Facility i.e. only 105% of only invoices coming in GSTR-2A. Now, this condition has been relaxed for the month of April and relaxation has been given in respect of the month of April. The condition of Rule 36(4) would apply cumulatively in the month of May 2021 for both April and May 2021.

4. Other Measures

The Government has provided several other reliefs:

• • The filing of GSTR-3B and GSTR-1/ IFF by companies using electronic verification code has been enabled for the period from 27.04.2021 to 31.05.2021. The requirement of filing these returns through Digital Signature (DSC) is waived off.
  • The Time limit for completion of various actions such as completion of any proceedings, filing of appeal/reply/application, etc. by any authority or by any person, under the GST Act, which falls during the period from 15th April 2021 to 30th May 2021, has been extended up to 31st May 2021. Notably, the Hon’ble Supreme Court (Cognizance for Extension of Limitation, In re [2021] 127 taxmann.com 72 (SC)) by exercising its powers under Article 142 & Article 141 of the Constitution of India has passed an order directing that period(s) of limitation, as prescribed under any general or special laws in respect of all judicial or quasi-judicial proceedings, whether condonable or not, would stand extended till further orders.

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[1]Notification No. 12/2021- Central Tax, Dated 1st May 2021 read with No. 83/2020 – Central Tax, Dated 10th November 2020

[2]Notification No. 13/2021- Central Tax, Dated 1st May 2021

[3]Notification No. 11/2021- Central Tax, Dated 1st May 2021

[4] Notification No. 10/2021- Central Tax, Dated 1st May, 2021 read with Notification No. 21/2019- Central Tax, Dated 23rd April, 2019

[5] Notification No. 14/2021- Central Tax, Dated 1st May, 2021

[6] Notification No. 8/2021- Central Tax, Dated 1st May, 2021 read with Notification No. 13/2017 – Central Tax, Dated 28th June, 2017

[7]Notification No. 9/2021- Central Tax, Dated 1st May, 2021

[8]The registered person under the QRMP Scheme would be required to pay the tax due in each of the first two months of the quarter by depositing the due amount in Form GST PMT-06. The amount shall be deposited by the 25th day of next month.

[9]Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Goa, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Telangana or Andhra Pradesh or the Union territories of Daman and Diu and Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Puducherry, Andaman, and Nicobar Islands, and Lakshadweep

[10]Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura, Meghalaya, Assam, West Bengal, Jharkhand or Odisha or the Union territories of Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Chandigarh, and Delhi