GST Amendments 2024-25: Key Updates, Compliance Changes & Impact

Learn about GST Amendments 2024-25, including key updates, ITC changes, tax compliance, penalties, and the impact on businesses and taxpayers.

Key GST Amendments and Their Business Impact (FY 2024-25)

Amendment	Impact
Common timeline for demand notices	Streamlined tax compliance
GST Appeal Reforms (Faster Resolutions & Lower Costs)	Easier dispute resolution
Reduced penalties for e-commerce	Compliance relief for platforms
Extended ITC Claim Window (Section 16 Reforms)	Extended claim periods
Amnesty scheme for 2017-2020	Relief for past non-compliance
GSTAT Appeal Process Simplified (Faster Tax Dispute Resolutions)	Faster resolution of tax disputes
GST Refund Process Streamlined (Faster Approvals & Fewer Delays)	Faster refund approvals

 

Key GST amendments include a common timeline for demand notices, streamlined appeals, reduced e-commerce penalties, and a new amnesty scheme for FY 2017-2020 compliance and transition credit rules for FY 2024-25. These updates aim to reduce compliance costs and simplify tax procedures for businesses.

• Introduction of GST Section 74A: Timelines for Fraud & Non-Fraud Cases

Section 74A of GST has been introduced to introduce a time frame for issuing demand notices in fraud, willful misstatement or suppression of facts. It gives clarification of the timelines from FY 2024-25 where many codifications have already been made to these sections, and makes a more systematic way of decoding such cases.

• Modifications in GST Sections 73 and 74

Hence, the Assessment Committee has capped GST Sections 73 and 74 will be for cases up to FY 2023-24, basically leaving no provision for these sections for subsequent FYs. This change concerns better organising of the compliance and enforcement for past periods thus providing a more comprehensive outlook on tax recovery.

• New Sub-section (5) in Section 16

GST Section 16 now allows ITC claims for invoices from previous fiscal years, offering businesses more flexibility in tax credit recovery. A new Sub-section (5) has allowed claims for ITC for invoices of earlier fiscal years to help recover tax credits more flexibly.

• GST Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT) Amendments

In line with the amendments to be effective from 1st August 2024,GST Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT) amendments now allow taxpayers three months to file appeals, reducing financial strain with lower pre-deposit requirements. Also, the pre-deposit requirement has been lowered, thus, enabling the taxpayers to appeal against the decisions and judgments more and ease the appeal process and financial pressure.

• Modifications in GST Section 122

GST Section 122 now defines stricter penalties for e-commerce operators under Section 52, ensuring better compliance with tax collection and reporting rules. Some changes make clearer understanding of the penalties concerning noncompliance with e-commerce tax collection and reporting rules. These changes have been proposed to follow GST norms better and minimise the violation of laws within the e-commerce industry.

• Adding New GST Section 128A

GST Section 128A introduces an amnesty scheme (2017-2020), allowing businesses to settle outstanding tax dues under flexible repayment terms. It also enables the taxpayers to clear outstanding tax amounts under convenient terms of repayment. The eligibility criteria and compliance dates are proposed to promote voluntary compliance and provide efficient solutions for so-called ‘ zombies ’ disputes.

• Transitional Credit in GST Section 140

GST Section 140 amendments allow businesses to claim transitional ITC for invoices issued before July 1, 2017, easing the GST transition process, which have been issued before the appointed date of 1st of July 2017. This one is intended to permit the users to avail the credit which was availed by them under the previous system of indirect taxation and facilitate them to shield themselves under the arrangement of GST.

Other Key Changes in GST Amendments

Some of the main changes brought to the GST Act includes, exclusion of co-insurance premium from supply under schedule III, new provisions relating to refund of export of goods under section 16, simplify registration cancellation and revocation, making compliance easier for businesses and GSTR 7 compliance even for those with no deduction or input tax credit. These changes are meant to improve understandability and Tax compliance for Tax payers.

• Schedule III – No Supply Transactions

Some of the supplies have even been exempt from the definition of supply under schedule III of the GST law like co-insurance premiums. This in effect implies that these premiums will not be subject to GST and this makes it easier for all contracting parties in co-insurance to deal with their tax status.

• Modifications to Refund Clauses (Section 54 & IGST Act)

The changes to Sections 54 and the IGST Act now contain limitations on expenditures on export duty on goods. This is all in an effort to streamline the refunds process while endorsing compliance to current changes on export duty regulation.

• GST Registration and Revocation (Section 30)

It required new rules concerning GST registration and revocation that defined new understanding of GST cancellation and reinstatement norms. Besides, these amendments simplify the common provisions relating to the conditions and procedures for the registration for or cancellation of GST registration for taxpayers.

• Modifications to TDS Return Filing (Section 39)

GST Section 39 now mandates TDS return filing for all businesses, even those with no tax deductions, ensuring better compliance tracking. Even if no deductions have been made so far, the businesses will now have to file the GSTR-7 return. This change seeks to capture all the compliance associated with TDS in the GST system on a consistent and correct basis.

Impact of GST Amendments on Stakeholders

The latest GST amendments reduce compliance costs, improve refund processing, and simplify tax filing, benefiting businesses across sectors. Key benefits for businesses include streamlined compliance, lower pre-deposit requirements for appeals, predictable tax demand timelines, and reduced financial burden.

 However, specific changes such as refund and penalty may affect exporters and operators of electronic commerce.

• Simplified Compliance for Businesses

The Compliance Level under the 2024 GST amendments is improved through strengthening the ITC matching mechanism and modifications to return forms. It eliminates cumbersome administrative barriers such as the unified demand notice timeline and the new rules for appealing filing all of which ease compliance for businesses.

• Financial Implications

The amendments also contribute to introducing the amendments in the precondition of reduction of pre-deposit, bearing in mind that they facilitate the financial burden of the companies that file appeals. This will assist both the less and large business entities including the management of their cash flows and the enhancement of their access to justice mechanism over the various disputes without necessarily having to break the bank to do so.

• Sector-Specific Impact

Sector	Impact
E-commerce	Stricter penalties for tax non-compliance
Exporters	Refund process stricter under Section 54
SMEs	Simplified tax filing requirements

Conclusion on GST Amendments

The GST Amendments bring about major changes with regard to enhancing compliances and setting efficient practices. These modifications are as follows: easier appeals, less severe penalties for e-commerce participants and ITC extension. Need help understanding the latest GST amendments? Our experts provide customized GST compliance solutions to simplify your tax processes. Contact us for a free consultation today!

We are using our expertise in helping you deal with the new or changed GST amendments and keep you out of trouble. We have the expertise in the new regulations to eliminate the clutter in GST filing and appeal and enable you to concentrate on developing your business. Allow us to optimise your compliance and improve your operations.

FAQs on GST Amendments

What are the major GST amendments for FY 2024-25?

GST 2024-25 amendments include ITC claim extensions, reduced penalties for e-commerce operators, changes to appeal processes, and a new amnesty scheme for 2017-2020 tax compliance

How does Section 74A impact businesses?

Section 74A introduces a fixed timeline for fraud-related demand notices, ensuring a structured compliance process from FY 2024-25 onwards.

What are the key changes in ITC claims?

Businesses can now claim ITC for past invoices under the new Sub-section (5) in Section 16, improving tax credit recovery.

How does the new GST Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT) amendment help taxpayers?

The GST Appellate Tribunal now allows a three-month appeal window with lower pre-deposit requirements, making it easier for businesses to dispute tax assessments.

What relief does the GST amnesty scheme provide?

The GST Amnesty Scheme waives interest & penalties on outstanding tax dues from 2017-2020, helping businesses clear past tax liabilities.