GST Council decides to raise compensation limit to firms with Rs1 cr turnover

The GST Council at its 22nd meeting held at Vigyan Bhavan in the national capital today decided to increase the composition threshold for companies to a turnover of up to Rs1 crore.

Accordingly, the GST Council is expected to announce a proposal to raise the threshold for the composition scheme from a turnover of Rs75 lakh to a turnover of Rs1 crore, Andhra Pradesh finance minister Y Ramakrishnudu said on the sidelines of the meeting.

The GST Council headed by union finance minister Arun Jaitley met today to review the implementation of the new indirect tax regime, which has shown teething troubles, and to discuss ''structural changes'' in light of feedback from stakeholders.

The Council also is reported to have discussed issues faced by small traders and quarterly filing of returns for small businesses.

Relief for exporters and relaxation of norms that requires small traders to file three returns every month was also expected to be on the cards.

Reports quoting sources said the GST Council has decided to relax the reporting requirement for gold purchases. Accordingly, the government need not be informed on the purchase of jewellery for over Rs50,000. PAN card will also not be mandatory for such purchases, reports CNBC Awaaz.

Quoting sources moneycontrol.com reported that the GST rate on some handicraft items may be cut to 5 percent from 12 percent.

A Financial Express report said: "The GST Council, in its 22nd meeting today in New Delhi, has apparently skipped the discussion on cutting tax rates on the remaining 60 of the 100 items under review, and has instead chosen to focus on straightening out administrative and procedural issues to make the implementation of the tax reform simpler for business owners."