GST filing is an important task that should be performed by every firm even if no transaction is there. The article serves all the details regarding GST Return filling, including some important things to keep in mind.

GST, also known as Good and Service Tax, must be returned every 15th month. It is a necessary process for business holders and taxpayers. These GST filings help the government know about the taxes collected from citizens. Moreover, it also allows the authorities to generate reports about businesses’ income and gather data regarding the same. Make sure to return it before the GST filing due dates.

Filling and then returning GST can be a complicated process. It requires considerable knowledge of the procedure to do so. Also, many marginal traders and businessman does not even know the meaning and importance of GST filing. Here, we’ll discuss the prominent aspects of GST filing, the documents required, and the complete process to return tax successfully. 

What exactly is GST filling?

Two terms are associated with GST that is; GST filling and return. Both of them are quite identical in their function. GST filling simply means informing the government about your income, transactions, sales, purchases and other economic activities. This information is conveyed through a document that holds all the data of the financial operation of the firm or the individual. 

After submitting this report, one must now pay all the payable taxes to the government. Therefore, this is known as GST return. But as already mentioned, they are the same and initiate each other. The GST return filing forms has to be submitted periodically. The business type determines this period of GST return. It is available in three formats, monthly, quarterly and annually. The Government of India can find the complete list of business types and their corresponding returning period on the online portal.

Types of GST Return Filing

Several categories for different businesses of varied valuation are made for GST return filing. A total of 11 types of forms are available for filing GST Returns. 

1. GSTR 1
2. GSTR 2
3. GSTR 3B
4. GSTR 4
5. GSTR 5
6. GSTR 6
7. GSTR 7
8. GSTR 8
9. GSTR 9
10. GSTR 10
11. GSTR 11

Many of them even contain their subcategories. These categories cater to the business that is not appropriate to the current form or the succeeding one. Each class has its separate form that should only be filled by the companies that earn a particular revenue. Apart from the revenue businesses, the types of GST filling also hold different dates for filing returns. 

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How to file a GST Return

 GST returns can be easily filled in using the government’s online service. The process is quite simple and does not require any technical knowledge to perform. One has to follow the given step to file your GST return successfully.

Step 1

Login intro the government portal for GST filling. 

Step 2

A 15-digit number will be issued after entering the state code and Permanent Account Number.

Step 3

After the 15-digit number is generated, one has to upload all the invoices. You will receive a unique reference number for each invoice uploaded. 

Step 4

Now, file all the outward returns and inward returns as well as the cumulative return of the month.

Step 5

Once done, now go to the information section in GST Common Portal to file the outward supply return of GSTR 1. The process of filling should be done before the 10th of every month. 

Step 6

File the GSTR 2a return form to get the outward supplies uploaded by the business owner.

Step 7

Now, the verification of the outward supplies details should be done. This would be accompanied by the filling of information about the credit and debit notes.

Step 8

Then enter the details regarding the inward supplies of goods and services sold throughout the period. The data should be correctly filled in the GSTR 2 return filing form.

Step 9

The system will now ask for an acceptance or rejection of the information submitted by the inward supplies made apparent in GSTR- 1A.

Download Forms for GST Return Filing

Users can also download and see their GST returns using the online GST government portal.

Here are the complete steps to follow

Step 1

Visit the online website specified above for GST Return Filing.

Step 2

Once on the home page, navigate through the service and click on the’ Returns’ option. Now select the Return Dashboard. 

Step 3

Select the appropriate month and year using the drop-down menu. 

Step 4

Then, click the option ‘Prepare Offline’.

Step 5

Find the option ‘Download’ and hit ‘Generate File’.

Step 6

A new page would load then. A ‘Click Here’ adoption could be seen with a hyperlink. Click on it. A compressed file would start downloading. 

Step 7

Then to open the downloaded file, the users have to use GST offline tool. Once installed, go to the Downloaded return File and select the file to open. Now, your GST return file will open. One can see all the information in a summarised manner with the tool paramount of payable tax to the government. 

Consequences of Late Payment and Interest to be Paid

Some fine has to be collected from the taxpayer and other people. They are eligible for filing GST returns if their payment is delayed. A fine of ₹200 can be collected for late GST Return filling. This could be done under the CGST and SGST Act.

 According to this, ₹100 under SGST and ₹100 under CGST can be taken from late payers. But also, the government cannot collect more than ₹5000 as a fine per the same Act even if a person paid tax after GSTR 3 return due date. If we talk about the interest on the taxes, 18% per annum is the interest rate on taxes. The interest is only applicable for the total payable tax. And the number of days would be considered from the GST filing due dates to the date of payment of the tax.

Conclusion

So, this was some important information regarding the GST filling. The online portal launched by the government can help you a lot in checking the status of GST returns, downloading GST return files and accessing various other information. These online portals also educate and guide users about GST return filing. 

But these processes can be tricky and complex to practise, especially to pay returns before GST filing: https://www.gst.gov.in/ due dates. Thus, a need for professionals is always there. Vakilsearch is an online platform that offers the best tax and legal documentation-related services. They have the best law services at an affordable price which is assisted by their active customer support. One can visit their website and mobile application to know more and avail of their services.