GST Consultation in India: The Complete 2026 Guide

GST registration in India is mandatory above turnover thresholds that vary by state and supply type. The Central thresholds are ₹40 lakh for goods (₹20 lakh in special-category states) and ₹20 lakh for services (₹10 lakh in special-category states). Inter-state supply, e-commerce sale through a platform like Amazon or Flipkart, and certain reverse-charge supplies trigger registration regardless of turnover.

Beyond the turnover trigger, voluntary registration is an under-rated lever for startups: it unlocks input-tax credit on purchases and presents the business as GST-compliant from day one. The trade-off is the compliance burden — monthly or quarterly filings, e-invoicing if turnover crosses ₹5 crore, e-way bills on inter-state movement of goods.

Specific compulsory-registration categories: casual taxable persons, non-resident taxable persons, persons required to deduct TDS under §51, agents of a supplier, input service distributors, and persons supplying online information and database access or retrieval services from outside India to a non-taxable online recipient in India.

The two returns every regular taxpayer files are GSTR-1 (outward supplies) and GSTR-3B (summary return with payment). GSTR-1 due dates: 11th of the following month for monthly filers, 13th of the month following the quarter for QRMP scheme filers. GSTR-3B due dates: 20th of the following month (staggered to 22nd / 24th for QRMP states), regardless of scheme.

Annual return GSTR-9 is due 31 December of the next financial year for taxpayers above ₹2 crore turnover. GSTR-9C reconciliation is required for those above ₹5 crore. Composition-scheme taxpayers file CMP-08 quarterly and GSTR-4 annually.

Late-fee structure under §47: ₹50 per day (₹25 each CGST + SGST) for normal returns, capped at ₹10,000. Nil returns: ₹20 per day. Interest under §50 on tax not paid: 18% p.a. on the net cash liability. These add up fast — automating filings or engaging a consultant pays for itself in the first late month avoided.

Input Tax Credit is the heart of GST. You collect output tax from customers, pay input tax to suppliers, and remit only the difference to the government. The mechanic only works if your suppliers actually report your purchases on their GSTR-1 — because that data flows into your GSTR-2B, and only ITC matching your 2B is creditable post the §16 amendments.

Conditions for ITC eligibility under §16: (a) you have a tax invoice or debit note, (b) you have received the goods or services, (c) your supplier has paid the tax to government and reported the invoice in their GSTR-1, (d) you have filed your return, (e) the supply is not in the blocked-credit list under §17(5) (motor vehicles, food and beverages, club memberships, personal-use goods, etc.).

The Time of ITC is now §16(4) and §16(5) (the latter inserted by the 2024 Finance Act with retrospective effect for certain years) — you have until 30 November of the next financial year, or the date of filing the annual return, whichever is earlier. Lose the deadline, lose the credit.

§61 (scrutiny of returns) — mismatch between GSTR-3B and GSTR-1, or GSTR-3B and GSTR-2B. Respond in Form ASMT-11 with reconciliation, usually within 30 days. Often closeable without escalation.

§73 (non-fraud SCN) — short-payment, non-payment, or wrongly availed ITC without intent to evade. 30-day reply window, penalty 10% of tax or ₹10,000 (higher).

§74 (fraud SCN) — willful misstatement or suppression. 30-day reply window, penalty up to 100% of tax. The reply must rebut the fraud allegation factually; otherwise the matter quickly escalates to confirmed demand + appellate route.

§65 / §66 / §67 (audit, special audit, search/seizure) — typically follow a high-risk-profile flag. Treat any notice in these sections as serious; engaging a GST practitioner from day one is sensible.

Procedural appeal route post-2024: ASMT-10 → ASMT-11 → DRC-01 → DRC-06 → DRC-07 (order) → first appeal under §107 within 3 months → GSTAT (now functional, post the September 2023 amendments) → High Court on substantial questions of law.

The common refund categories are: (a) excess balance in electronic cash ledger, (b) exports of goods or services (LUT/bond mechanism), (c) inverted duty structure (output rate lower than input rate, refund of unutilised ITC), (d) zero-rated supplies to SEZ.

Procedure: Form RFD-01 filed online with annexures. The officer issues acknowledgement in RFD-02 within 15 days of filing. Provisional refund of 90% under RFD-04 is supposed to be issued within 7 days for exports — in practice closer to 30 days. Final order in RFD-06 within 60 days.

Interest @ 6% p.a. on delayed refunds beyond 60 days. Refund claims must be filed within 2 years from the relevant date — miss it and the right is gone.

Reverse-charge on imports of services — easy to miss for SaaS and consulting purchases from foreign vendors. Pay GST on the import, then claim ITC. Net cash impact is nil, but a missed entry triggers §73 follow-up.

E-commerce TCS (Tax Collected at Source) under §52 — Amazon / Flipkart / Swiggy etc. deduct TCS on net taxable supplies; the seller reconciles in GSTR-2X and claims TCS credit. Mismatches trigger notices that take a quarter to unwind.

Pure agent treatment of reimbursements — a common error among consultants who pass through travel / out-of-pocket expenses. Document the pure-agent test (Rule 33) properly, or the reimbursement gets added back to value of supply with GST.

Place-of-supply for services to overseas clients — easy to assume export and skip GST; the test is the recipient's usual place of business plus consideration in foreign currency through banking channels. Anything else and you owe IGST.