Most GST refunds may be processed within 17 days
The GST Council is planning to streamline tax refund processes by reducing the turnaround time to 17 days and automating registration procedures. The proposal also aims to simplify compliance for small businesses and move toward a trust-based system for registration cancellations.
Why it matters
Improving tax administration efficiency reduces the compliance burden on small businesses and improves cash flow for exporters and taxpayers.
NEW DELHI: The GST Council, which meets Thursday, will seek to slash the refund period to around 17 days, which will include a maximum 10 days for acknowledgement, beyond which it will be deemed to have been acknowledged, and seven days for processing. Currently, acknowledgement itself can take 21-45 days and the idea is to process refunds faster, officials said Tuesday. Currently, around 90% of the refunds are processed quickly.Similarly, the idea is to prune the time taken for registering for a GST number through a more automated process. While 61% of the registrations take place within three days, the plan is to automate processes so that the time taken for the remaining 39% of the applications is reduced from several days.
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