September 1, 2020: As per the fresh directions issued by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) vide Notification no. 62/2020, businesses willing to register under GST can choose to opt for Aadhaar authentication, in the absence of which registration would be granted after physical verification of the place of business.
Key highlights of CBIC notification
The CBIC has further clarified that when an applicant for GST registration opts for authentication of Aadhaar number, he shall, with effect from August 21, 2020, undertake the said authentication while submitting an application.
The notification states that where a person fails to undergo authentication of Aadhaar number or does not opt for authentication of Aadhaar number, the registration shall be granted only after physical verification of the place of business in the presence of the said person.
Thus, any person registering under GST can opt for Aadhaar authentication, in which case registration is deemed to be granted within 3 days without physical inspection of the premises. In other cases, the time period could be up to 21 days and authorities can undertake physical verification of place of business or detailed review of documents as necessary.
Earlier in March this year, CBIC had issued a notification making Aadhaar authentication mandatory for GST registration from April 1, 2020.
Conclusion
The new notification issued on Friday is deemed to be a positive step to restrict tax evasion by rigorous pre-registration verification norms. The notification will also speed up the registration process amidst the COVID-19 outbreak by allowing verification through Adhaar when physical verification of the business place is difficult. Furthermore, linking GST, Adhaar and PAN will be helpful for the government in a number of ways as it will further centralise the tax database to ease the regulatory operation for the concerned authorities.
Source: MONDAQ
