GST AUDIT APPLICABLE FOR THE FINANCIAL
YEARS UPTO 2019-20
The Goods and Services Tax Act,
2017 came into force with effect from 1.7.2017 in
The Finance Minister has pointed out the following in the Budget Speech in respect of audit of accounts by Auditors.
Exemption from Audit 161. Currently, if your turnover exceeds `1 crore, you have to get your accounts audited. In the February 2020 Budget, I had increased the limit for tax audit to `5 crore for those who carry out 95% of their transactions digitally. To further incentivise digital transactions and reduce compliance burden, I propose to increase this limit for tax audit for such persons from `5 crore to `10 crore.
Exemption from Audit To incentivise digital transactions and to reduce the compliance burden of the person who is carrying almost all of their transactions digitally, it is proposed to increase the limit for tax audit for persons who are undertaking 95% of their transactions digitally from ` 5 crore to ` 10 crore.
It is proposed to make consequential amendment in the provisions relating to processing of returns for allowing certain deductions and to provide clarification for adjustment of income reported in Audit Report
These includes measures for (i) facilitating taxpayers, such as remove the mandatory requirement of getting annual accounts audited and reconciliation statement, filing of the annual return on self-certification basis and charging interest on net cash liability with effect from the 1st July, 2017.
The Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharam in her Budget Speech
substituted Section 44 of the CGST Act so as to remove the mandatory
requirement of furnishing a reconciliation statement (GSTR-9C) duly audited by
a practicing chartered accountant or cost accountant and to provide for filing
of the annual return (GSTR-9) on self-certification basis with a reconciliation
statement. Therefore, the responsibility of reconciliation has been shifted to
the taxpayers now instead of GST auditors earlier. It is noteworthy that the
proposed changes are not applicable for.
There is a doubt about filing of Annual Returns in FORM GSTR-9C under GST for the financial year 2019-20. For the doubt about filing of Annual Return in FORM GSTR-9C for the financial year 2019-20 under the Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 the CBIC has clarified and tweeted as shown below:
Please note Section 35 and 44 of CGST Act are proposed to be amended in Finance Bill 2021. However, these proposals will come into effect from a date to be notified later. For FY 2019-20, the existing provisions shall continue.
As per the above CBIC’s tweet, the Annual
Return in FORM GSTR-9C for the financial year 2019-20 has to be filed before the
stipulated date announced by the Central Government and there is no exemption
in filing GST Annual Return for FY 2019-20.