GST registration allows your business to function legitimately and positions your brand as trustworthy and authentic. With the GST portal having simplified many processes, starting from application to filing returns, GST registration is the first step to managing your company taxes efficiently.
Whether you are a business owner, a service provider or even a customer, you have heard of the GST registration online. The GST came into effect in India on July 1, 2017, and changed the entire taxation process of the country.
In layman terms, it is a single indirect tax charged on the value addition provided by a business through their goods and services. At every stage, from manufacture to distribution, companies get taxed by the Government of India only on their respective offering, and the final consumer bears the burden of the tax.
Who is eligible to register for GST?
To apply for GST registration, your annual turnover should meet one of the following thresholds:
For the manufacturing sector, the threshold is Rs. 40 lakhs or more
For the service sector, the threshold is Rs. 20 lakhs or more
For businesses in the North-eastern and hill states, the threshold is Rs. 10 lakhs or more
Further, if you meet any of the below criteria, you must apply for GST registration:
You sell goods or services in a state other than the one you are located in
You utilise e-commerce platforms like Flipkart or Amazon to sell your products
You are in the business of import-export
You would like to generate tax invoices for your consumers
You are a company participating as Casual Taxable Payer in an exhibition or an event outside your state
You are taxable under reverse charge mechanism
You are an agent working on behalf of a registered taxpayer
You are an Input Service Distributor (ISD)
You operate an e-commerce site or have an aggregator business
You are an overseas OIDAR (Online Information Database Access and Retrieval) service provider to India
What are the GST registration documents you need?
To register for GST, you need to keep the following documents ready:
Photographs (passport size)
Company PAN Card
Identity proofs like Aadhar Card/Passport/Driving Licence
Proof of address for your offices
Bank details via a statement or a cancelled cheque or a passbook
Certificate of Incorporation for Private Ltd Company or LLP or OPC
Partnership deed for partnership firms
What are the steps to follow for GST registration?
The GST portal allows you to do GST registration online. This is a free process or you may ask for a tax consultant to do so for a nominal fee. The steps to follow are:
Step 1) When you visit the portal, select Services > Registration > New Registration
Step 2) In the next screen, select the ‘New Registration’ option. Choose ‘Taxpayer’ in the first dropdown, fill the rest of the form and click on the ‘Proceed’ button.
Step 3) Once you receive the OTP, provide the same in the next screen. If you did not receive an OTP on your phone or email, click on the button Resend OTP to get a new one.
Step 4) A Temporary Reference Number or TRN will be generated. Further, it will be emailed to you and sent as an SMS to your mobile number. Make a note of it.
Step 5) Go back to GST portal > Services > Registration > New Registration, and this time, select the radio button Temporary Reference Number. Input the details from the previous step.
Step 6) You will have to perform OTP verification again.
Step 7) A new application is created, which can be edited to supply the primary details.
Step 8) You will have to provide all the necessary details with proofs section-wise.
Step 9) When you reach the Verification section, select the checkbox next to the declaration. Then, submit the form to complete the application.
Once you have submitted the application, an Application Reference Number or ARN will be generated. You can track your application with this number on the GST portal.
Why should you register for GST?
There are many advantages of GST registration for business owners in the long run. These include:
The tax you pay to the Government can come down, as you only need to pay for the value-addition done by your business, and not incur other “tax on tax.”
The GSTIN is a symbol of authenticity for your clients, e-commerce platforms, government tenders, banks and financial institutions, MNCs and more. Without a GST registration, these entities will refuse to collaborate with you.
Since there is only one return to be filed under GST, there are fewer compliances you need to follow.
For e-commerce brands, GST has explicit provisions on the inter-state movement of goods, which were not previously defined.
At the end of the day, GST registration allows your business to function legitimately and positions your brand as a trustworthy, authentic one. With the GST portal having simplified many processes, starting from application to filing returns, GST registration is the first step to managing your company taxes efficiently.
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