The Goods and Services Tax (GST) bill was put in place in July of 2017. This new tax structure was implemented in place of the previous tax regime that incorporated a range of taxes like entertainment tax, services tax, and so forth. Under the GST regime, businesses that supply goods or provide services must complete the GST registration process before carrying out their processes and operations. So if you are a business owner and are trying to adapt to the new tax regime, check this out.

What are the advantages of the GST Bill in India?

The GST bill brings a bunch of benefits to the table. The two main ones are the elimination of the simplification of indirect taxes and the elimination of the cascading effect of taxes under the previous tax regime.

Simplification of Indirect Taxes

The GST was mainly put in place to replace indirect taxes that were a part of the previous tax regime. The old tax structure had many charges that made tax calculation a cumbersome process. This is especially true because taxes would be imposed at a state and the central level. However, the introduction of the GST bill has managed to nullify these problems by bringing one standard tax.

Eliminating the Cascading Effect of Taxes

The implementation of the GST bill orchestrated the removal of the cascading effect of taxes, such as the production costs, logistics charges, inter-state tax, and many more. The consumer would suffer under the previous tax structure because the overall cost of the services and goods would be extremely high due to the inclusion of various taxes. The GST bill replaces those taxes, thereby bringing down the overall cost of said goods and services.

What happens if you do not carry out the GST Registration Online?

Under the GST structure, businesses in India are required to register themselves for a GST certificate and GST number.

If you unintentionally do not register your business and continue to conduct operations and business procedures, you will be liable to pay a hefty fine of approximately 10% of your taxable amount or Rs. 10000, depending on which one of the two is more.

However, if it is proven that you purposely avoided registering your business under the GST, you will be charged for fraud and be liable to pay up to 100% of your taxable amount.

Considering the dire consequences of failing to complete your GST registration online in India, you are better off getting it done as soon as you possibly can. You can visit the GST portal to complete the GST registration and obtain a GST certificate and GST Identification Number (GSTIN). Most GST related activities can be done using the GST portal.

How do I Make a GST Payment Online?

After you are done registering your business on the GST portal, you may make your GST payments online. There are several ways to carry out this procedure. Here’s how you get this done:

Start by logging into the GST portal.
After this, click on the ‘Services’ tab, go to ‘Payments’ and then ‘Create Challan.’
Once you are done with this, you will be expected to fill in your GSTIN and enter the CAPTCHA code that pops up.
Then, make sure you submit your tax details and click on the ‘E-Payment’ option under the payment mode you prefer.
Click on the button that says ‘Generate Challan.’
You will then get an OTP on the phone number you’ve used for the GST new registration. Enter this code and continue.
The seventh step requires you to select the ‘E-Payment’ option and click on ‘Net Banking.’
You will find an array of banks from which you will have to choose yours and confirm that you accept their terms and conditions.
Once you select your bank, go ahead and make the GST payment online.

This should give you a decent idea of what you are supposed to do to understand GST and everything that comes with it. If you have a business and are yet to have it registered under the GST, get on it as soon as you can, and follow the steps that are outlined in this article.