What does GST compliance require?
GST compliance is the set of duties a registered person meets for each tax period. The person issues a tax invoice, files the return, pays the tax, and claims input tax credit only when the conditions for that credit are met.
What has to be done each period?
A person whose turnover crosses the threshold registers. The thresholds are on the registration page. Outward supplies go in GSTR-1. The tax is paid in GSTR-3B. The dates, including a quarterly filer, are on the return page. The annual return, where it applies, is on the annual-return page. The rate on a supply is looked up on the rate page. The rate does not replace the return.
When does the credit fail?
Input tax credit is not a percentage of purchases. It is the credit section 16 allows, and only when the conditions on the input-tax-credit page are met. The recipient matches the purchase invoice with what the supplier has reported. A supplier who is not registered, or who has not reported the supply, leaves the recipient without that credit. The records are kept for seventy-two months from the due date of the annual return for that year.
What else travels with the goods?
A movement of goods above the value on the e-way bill page needs an e-way bill. A person who must issue an e-invoice follows the e-invoice page. Those are extra documents. They do not replace GSTR-1 or GSTR-3B.
What follows a late return?
A late return draws the late fee in section 47. The caps are on the return page. Tax paid late draws interest under section 50. The proper officer may cancel the registration where returns are not furnished for the continuous period the rules prescribe. One late month is not that cancellation. A cancelled registration is a separate order. It is not the automatic result of a mismatch.
Frequently asked questions
Four questions cover cancellation, GSTR-1, a supplier’s invoice, and the rate.
Does one late return cancel the registration?
No. A late return draws the late fee, and unpaid tax draws interest. The proper officer may cancel the registration where returns are not filed for the continuous period the rules prescribe. That is not the result of a single late month.
Is GSTR-1 the payment return?
No. GSTR-1 reports outward supplies. The tax is paid with GSTR-3B. The dates are on the return page.
Does a supplier’s default block the credit?
The recipient claims credit only when the conditions on the input-tax-credit page are met. A tax invoice from a supplier who has not reported the supply is not, by itself, enough.
Do the rate slabs replace the return?
No. The rate decides the tax on the supply. The return is still filed. The rate list is a different page.
Sources
Registration is section 22 of the CGST Act. The outward return is GSTR-1. Tax is paid in GSTR-3B. Input tax credit is section 16. Movement of goods is rule 138.