Existing provisions such as e-Sugam in Karnataka
or e-Suvidha in Uttar Pradesh might continue under the goods and
services tax (GST) regime till the electronic-way (e-way) Bill is
approved.
While
the draft e-way Bill proposed a threshold of Rs 50,000 over which prior
online registration of a consignment is required, there is no threshold
in the current systems of states.
Also,
while the e-way Bill was proposed for both interstate and intrastate
movement of goods, the existing system is only for interstate movement.
So, any truck coming to Karnataka or Uttar Pradesh (UP) has to fill a
form on e-Sugam or e-Suvidha, besides taking a challan and invoices, so
that the authorities in these states can track stocks with dealers. And,
if he has not paid value added tax (VAT) on it, they can ask him to
show the stock.
Then,
there are states such as Maharashtra which do not have this type of
system for all goods but only for evasion-prone items, explains M S Mani
of consultancy Deloitte. Maharashtra takes VAT as entry tax on goods
such as marbles, granites and tiles, he said.
While
the existing system in Karnataka and UP would continue if these states
want it, the one in Maharashtra has to be done away with, since both
entry tax and VAT would not be there under the GST regime, officials
said.
After
the GST Council meeting on Sunday, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley
had explained that an alternative or transient system would be in place
under the GST regime, allowing the existing system in states to continue
till a consensus is reached in the Council over the e-way Bill.
Opinion
was divided in the Council at Sunday’s meeting. Some felt the Bill
would not be required when the GST system got stabilised. Some said a
tracking system is not required for intrastate movement of goods but
only for interstate movement. The draft was proposed to be for both
types of movement.
Mani
also says: "We don’t need the e-way Bill at all under the GST system."
Movement of goods can be tracked by the GST Network (GSTN), the
information technology backbone, and via matching of invoices, he said.
However,
many states wanted to be doubly assured that there would be no evasion
of tax under GST and, so, were asking for the Bill.
Bipin
Sapra of consultancy EY also said the e-way Bill was not required. On
whether the existing system would create complications under GST, he
said, "We have to see how it works."
The
Central Board of Excise and Customs had earlier come out with draft
rules for the e-way Bill. These proposed a requirement for registered
entities to furnish, in a prescribed format on the GSTN website,
information relating to any goods worth more than Rs 50,000 that they
intended to move within a state or outside. GSTN will generate e-way
bills that will be valid for 1-15 days, depending on the distance to be
travelled — one day being for 100 km and 15 days for more than 1,000 km
transit.
The
person in charge of conveyance will be required to carry the invoice or
bill of supply or delivery challan, and a copy of the e-way bill or the
e-way bill number, either physically or mapped to a radio frequency
identification device embedded on to the conveyance.
The
rules authorised the tax commissioner or an officer empowered on his
behalf to intercept any conveyance to verify the e-way bill or the
number in physical form for all interstate and intrastate movement. The
officer will be required to give a summary report of every inspection of
goods in transit within 24 hours and the final report within three
days.
20 Jun 2017, 01:17 PM