GST known as the Goods and Services Tax is an indirect tax that came into existence to replace many taxes in India such as the excise duty, VAT, services tax, etc. The Goods and Service Tax Act was passed by the Parliament of India on 29th March 2017 and became effective from 1st July 2017.
GST was envisioned as a single domestic tax law for the entire country’s supply of goods and services and is a comprehensive tax that is levied on value addition done at every stage and destination. However, the Government has tried to simplify the tax structure and GST filing software has further eased the process.
The Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 has mandated that any business/person with an annual turnover of Rs. 40 lakhs and above, need to register for GST. The turnover threshold is lowered to Rs 10 lakhs for North Eastern and hill states of J&K, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttarakhand. The GST registration number is a unique 15 digit number that is assigned by India’s tax authorities to track payment of tax dues and compliance of registered businesses or individuals.
Apart from businesses with required turnover thresholds, the following individuals also need to register and acquire their unique 15 digits GSTIN:
- Individuals registered under various Pre-GST laws (i.e., Excise, VAT, Service Tax, etc.)
- Individuals eligible for tax deduction under section 37
- Non-Resident taxable person
- Agents of a supplier or Input service distributor
- Individuals paying tax under the reverse charge mechanism
- A person who supplies via an E-commerce aggregator
- E-commerce aggregator
- Persons supplying goods and services interstate
- Aggregators supplying services under a brand or trade name
- Any other individuals appraised by the Government as per the GST Council’s recommendation.
What documents are required for GST registration?
GST registration can be done by providing important documents such as PAN card, proof of business registration, address proof of individuals running the business, address proof of business premises, and bank account statement. Document requirement changes as per the type of GST registration needed and the type of business –
GST registration documents for individuals and sole proprietors:
- PAN card of the owner
- Aadhar card of the owner
- Photograph of the owner
- Address proof
- Bank account details
GST registration documents for partnerships and LLPs:
- PAN card of all partners
- Partnership deed copy
- Photograph of all partners and authorised signatories
- Address proof of partners
- Aadhar card of authorised signatory
- Proof of appointment of authorised signatory
- In the case of LLP, registration certificate/Board resolution of LLP
- Bank account details*
- Address proof of principal place of business
GST registration documents for Hindu Undivided Families:
- PAN card of HUF
- PAN card and Aadhar card of Karta
- Photograph of the owner
- Bank account details
- Address proof of principal place of business
GST registration documents for companies:
- Company’s PAN card
- Certificate of incorporation issued by Ministry of Corporate Affairs
- Memorandum/Articles of Association
- PAN card of authorised signatory. The authorised signatory must be an Indian even for registration of foreign companies or branches
- Aadhar card of authorised signatory
- PAN card of all directors
- Address proof of all directors
- Photograph of all directors and authorised signatory
- Signatory’s appointment proof
- Bank account details
- Address proof of principal place of business
GST registration documents for societies or clubs:
- Copy of registration certificate
- Copies of club or society’s PAN card and of the associated partners or promoters
- Partners’ or promoters’ photograph
- Copy of bank account statement
- Proof of registered office’s address or rent agreement in case of rented premises
- An authorisation letter signed by the authorised signatory
Verified copies of these documents need to be submitted/uploaded to complete the GST registration process. For bank account details, a copy of the cancelled cheque or extract of the passbook/bank statement (containing the first and last page) can serve as proof. For address proof, one may use — property tax receipt, municipal Khata copy, electricity bill, rent agreement, and so on.
Benefits of GST registration
While GST Registration is a tedious process that involves providing multiple documents and details of a business, it is both necessary and beneficial. A GST registration acts as legal proof of the existence of a business, allows one to take the input tax credit, conduct business across state lines without any hassles, and get a competitive edge over other businesses.
Credibility: A registered individual or a business enjoys more trust and faith from both consumers and suppliers. The company’s GST details can be verified to present the image of a compliant and law-abiding enterprise. The value of this has been recognised by UpScale which offers GST verification as part of comprehensive plans to grow a client’s business.
Input Tax Credit Benefit: Suppliers are now able to claim ITC when they engage in business with GST-registered individuals and companies. The benefit is derived all along the chain and can improve profit margins. Thus, more and more businesses are now keen to work with GST-registered partners.
Avoid Tax Liabilities: The Goods and Services Tax has been formulated to work efficiently as a chain system wherein a product is tracked from manufacturing to a supplier to wholesaler to retailer and ultimately the consumer. GST compliance is essential to avoid penalties, legal hurdles, and tax liabilities.
Avoid Government action: The government has the right to seize goods and products that are not registered under the Good and Services Tax Act. The confiscated goods result in various hardships like loss of time, damage to the goods, levy of heavy penalties that may exceed the cost of goods, inability to retrieve the goods, and so on. This can have detrimental effects on a business and may even lead to irreparable damage.
How to verify GST with UpScale
Business operations have been streamlined and now companies can get the benefit of the input tax credit at each stage, contingent on their dealing with businesses that are GST compliant. There are many other benefits in choosing a GST compliant firm to do business with; like simpler and lesser number of compliances, ease of inter-state movement of goods, and lower tax burden on industry. This is where it becomes imperative to be able to verify and authenticate a company’s GST details quickly and effortlessly as it creates a sense of trust and ease in commercial dealings. Upscale helps you do just that in 5 easy steps:
1) Sign up on Upscale from www.upscale.cash
2) Go to the ‘Tools’ section at the bottom of the left panel on your dashboard
3) Click on ‘GST Verification’
4) Verify GST details of your customers and suppliers > Enter GSTIN
5) Click on Proceed
Voila! You can now verify any GST number with UpScale.
GST registration is necessary to hold every business in a chain, accountable. The companies gain many benefits by registering their businesses on the GST portal and becoming tax compliant. The GST portal has been designed for use by common people and provides complete details about the different returns that one needs to file. GST filing software also aids in the process of generating compliant invoices and payment formats.
UpScale offers more Growth Tools like instant GST Verification such as PAN Verification, Bank Account Verification, Loan Interest Rate Calculator, and more. Sign up on UpScale to learn more about how it can help you.