Union Budget 2019: The government has set the aspirational target of taking it to $5 trillion by FY25 with considerate focus on three main growth pillars: investments in infrastructure, digital economy and job creation.
Budget 2019 India: Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented her maiden Budget with encouraging remarks that the Indian economy had reached from $1.85 trillion in FY14 to $2.7 trillion by FY19. The government has set the aspirational target of taking it to $5 trillion by FY25 with considerate focus on three main growth pillars: investments in infrastructure, digital economy and job creation.
From an indirect tax standpoint, the FM indicated that indirect tax landscape has significantly changed with the implementation of GST, which subsumed 17 taxes and 13 cesses into one single tax. The teething problems with regard to GST implementation have more or less settled and there is a considerable reduction in tax rates on majority of goods and services in the last two years. Now there has been buoyancy in revenue collections. The GST Council is further aiming towards simplifying GST processes.
In this regard, the proposal for a single monthly return has been rolled out. Furthermore, taxpayers with annual turnover of less than Rs 5 crore are required to file GST returns on a quarterly basis. The FM also highlighted its recent proposal to move towards electronic invoicing from January 2020, which is expected to reduce the compliance burden and will eventually phase out the e-way bill system. Other GST proposals such as facility to transfer the cash balances available in the electronic cash register from one head to another head for discharge of tax liability, payment of interest on net cash tax liability, constitution and other administrative aspects relating to setting up and functioning of National Appellate Authority Ruling, etc, are welcome provisions to boost the confidence of India Inc in the new tax regime.
Source: Financial Express
