Namaskar

I hope you find this Email in the best of your health.

The 45th meeting of the GST Council was held on the 17th of September, 2021. The taxation community was eagerly waiting for this meeting which happened physically at Lucknow.

In this Email, we cover the brief of the 3 main circulars issued by CBIC after the meeting and some of the highlights of the meeting.

Here are some more things that you should know of:

• The tenure of the National Anti-profiteering Authority was extended by one more year.
• The inclusion of petroleum products under the ambit of GST was a much talked about the topic before the meeting, but no decision was taken on it.
• Compensation Cess got extended till 2026.

Now, let's talk about the issued circulars:

Circular No. 159/15/2021-GST dated 20.09.2021:

This circular clarified the scope of the intermediary. The case of intermediary can only be applied if:

• Minimum of 3 parties are involved
• There must be 2 supplies, main supply and ancillary supply. Further, it is clarified that A person involved in the supply of main supply on principal to principal basis to another person cannot be considered as a supplier of intermediary service.
• The character of the person rendering the intermediary services should be that of an agent/broker or any other similar person.
• Principal to principal basis or sub-contracts are not covered in this;
• Even in case of sale or purchase of securities also;
• Either of the party must be located outside India;

Circular No. 160/16/2021-GST dated 20.09.2021:

A few things have been covered in this circular:

1. Debit Note

The date for availing Input Tax Credit on Debit Notes was not referred from the invoice date. This has been changed, and you can refer to the debit note date, meaning you get more time to avail of the ITC.

2. E-Invoice

There is no need to carry the physical copy of the tax invoice when the invoice has been generated as per rule 48(4) of the CGST Rules, and the person can produce the QR code with an embedded IRN.

3. Inverted Duty Structure Refund

The restrictions as per section 54(3) from availing of refund of accumulated ITC will be applied only to the goods that are subjected to some export duty and not others.

Circular No. 161/17/2021-GST dated 20.09.2021:

This clarification is regarding the export of services. A company incorporated in India and its body incorporated under the laws of a country outside India will now be considered separate persons under the CGST Act, allowing them to get GST related benefits. Similar provisions also exist for foreign companies. This clarifies the confusion and consideration as the same person/entity in Explanation 1 of section 8.

Conclusion

These are all the changes that have been announced so far. We have attached the full copy of the circulars with this Email. Make sure to read them in detail to know the minute details linked to every circular.

Thank you for your time, and I hope this information will help you in your business!

Thanks & Regards

Team GST DOST

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