Businesses that fail to fill in GST returns on time to be barred from generating e-way bills

By

Isabelle Crossley

Published
Apr 24, 2019

Effective from June 21, couriers that fail to fill in goods and services tax returns for two months in a row and businesses that fail to do so for six months will be barred from generating e-way bills. 

The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs has set June 21 as the date from which new GST filing regulations will come into force, the Press Trust of India reported. The new regulations will mean that e-commerce businesses, transporters, and couriers will no longer be able to generate e-way bills should they fail to submit GST returns for two months straight. Other businesses on the composition GST scheme will face the same consequence should they fail to submit GST returns for two consecutive filing periods, which amounts to six months. 

The GST regime requires businesses to submit monthly or quarterly tax returns depending on the relevant scheme. The new regulations are designed to prevent GST evasion which the government has continued to report. 

Businesses need digital e-way bills when transporting goods worth over Rs 50,000 ($715.08) across state lines. If a business were no longer able to generate the bills, it would be effectively barred from inter-state distribution. This new regulation will affect the business practices of all businesses that operate in more than one state.