How can anyone register for GST in 6 steps This form has two parts- A and B. While part A is simple and easy to fill, it is part B which asks for specific operational details
Anybody who has to/wants to register for Goods and Services Tax (GST) needs to fill up the GST REG-01 form. The GST REG-01 form can be filled up online and it is completely free of cost. The GST REG-01 form is divided into two segments: Part A and Part B. It is crucial that both, Parts- A and B, are filled up with correct information, otherwise, the GST registration will not be completed.What are the documents required for registering for GST?
According to Rajat Bose, Partner, Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas and Co, a law firm, the following documents are mandatorily required to apply for GST registration and should be kept ready in advance:CIN No. / Certificate of Incorporation of the Company (if applicable)PAN Card Memorandum and Articles of Association or Partnership Deed, LLP deed etc. as applicableAddress proof of Principal Place of Business [ownership agreement, rent / lease deed/ consent letter or no objection certificate (NOC) to use the premises with proof that the Consenter is in legal possession or ownership of the premises [electricity bill, land record etc.]]List of Proprietor/all Partners/Karta/Managing Directors and whole time Director/Members of Managing Committee of Associations/Board of Trustees etc. of the Company with their identity proof [passport / PAN Card / Aadhaar etc.] (if applicable)Name of the Authorised Signatory for the Company, residential details, Aadhaar and PAN card.Here's a step-by-step guide on how to register for GST:
Step 1: Visit the GST portal- https://www.gst.gov.in/ and click on the registration button under the 'services tab'. After that click on new registration.
Source: GST websiteStep 2: This is Part-A of the GST REG-01 form. The information that has to be filled in here is:
Source: GST websiteThe box 'I am a'- has a drop-down menu showing multiple options. The options here include taxpayer, or tax deductor, or tax collector (e-commerce), or GST practitioner, etc.
Source: GST websiteNext, fill in the following in the relevant boxes.
State/UTDistrictLegal name of the business (as mentioned in PAN)Permanent Account Number (PAN)Email AddressMobile numberThe GST portal will send different one-time passwords (OTP) to the individual's email ID and mobile number, separately. Once all the information is filled in, click on 'Proceed'.
"Part A functions as a preliminary verification phase for the applicant. After an individual has submitted Part A and the filled-out information has undergone online verification, a unique reference number known as the "Temporary Reference Number" (TRN) will be issued. This TRN is indispensable for proceeding to Part B," says Unnikrishnan Nair, Senior Tax Specialist, Sirmacs Consultancy Services, a Delhi- based business consultancy and law firm.
Step 3: A new webpage will open, and it will ask for the OTPs sent to the email address and mobile number. Once the OTPs are inputted and verified by the portal click on the 'Continue' button. After that another new webpage will open. This webpage will have the applicant's temporary reference number (TRN). TRN is a 15-digit unique number that will be sent to the applicant's email address as well as to the mobile number and will be valid for 15 days.
The webpage displaying the TRN will also say: "Part B of the application form can be filled till xx/xx/xxxx (Date) using the above TRN. You can retrieve the application and submit it within 15 days. You can access the Application from My 'Saved Applications and submit on the GST portal".
The above completes Part-A of GST REG-01 form.
Step 4: Part-B of GST REG-01 form starts from this step. Once again, an individual needs to go to the new registration page under the services button (as mentioned in Step-1). But now an individual needs to click on 'Temporary Reference Number (TRN) and then type in the number and fill in the captcha code too. After that click on the 'Proceed' button.
Step 5: A new webpage will open. It will ask for an OTP which will be sent to the individual's mobile number and email address. Once the OTP is inputted, click on the 'Proceed' button.
Step 6: Another web page will open, and it will show the status of GST REG-01 form as 'draft'. This is because up till now only Part-A was filled, Part-B was not filled in. There will be another button here on this page called 'Action'. Click on that. Part-B of GST REG-01 form starts from here.
Part B of GST Reg-01
"Part B comprises approximately 27 distinct points under 10 sub-heads that necessitate completion. Notably, the 26th and 27th points pertain to consent and self-verification. For the remaining 25 points you would have to fill in the details carefully, as certain details cannot be amended at a later time. To correct errors in these details you would have to cancel this registration and register afresh," says Nair.The 10 sub-heads are: business details, promoter/partners, authorised signatory, authorised representative, principal place of business, additional place of business, goods and services, state specific information, Aadhaar authentication and verification.
The 27 points under these 10 sub-heads in Part-B of GST REG-01 form which are to be filled online are explained by Nair below:
Trade Name: This requires the business entity to specify the name under which it intends to operate. Trade names and legal names are different.Constitution of business: Here, the applicant will choose the type of business structure, i.e., private, public, etc.Name of State: Indicate the state/Union Territory and District where the business operates.Jurisdiction: Identify the specific regulatory jurisdiction that your business falls under, i.e., whether under State or Centre.Option for Composition: If the individual wants to opt for the composition scheme, then this option should be selected, otherwise it is not required to be selected.Date of Commencement of Business: This should reflect the actual date when the business operations were started.Date on which liability to register arises: This is mandatory for those who have reached the GST registration threshold limit or have legal obligations for registration. In case of Voluntary Registration, i.e., when GST threshold limits are not reached, this field is not required to be filled in.Are you applying for registration as a Casual Taxable person (Yes/No): An individual needs to give either a positive (yes) or affirmative (no) answer to this question. Nair explains with an example: "Suppose Raj Kumar estimates turnover of his taxable services at Rs 100000, for the entire period of GST registration under the casual taxable person category. He is required to make an advance deposit of the GST amount. So, 18% GST amount (Rs 1 lakh*18%= Rs 18,000) must be deposited in advance. The individual is required to prepay the tax amount, equal to the estimated tax liability for the period of the temporary GST registration based on their projected turnover.Casual taxable person additional details: If an individual opted for 'yes' to the casual taxable person question above, then details are to be provided of estimated supplies and estimated net tax liability during the period of registration.Are you applying for registration as an SEZ unit? (Yes/No): If an individual operates inside a special economic zone (SEZ) then that information needs to be inputted here.Are you applying for registration as SEZ Developer (Yes/No): This field is required to be filled in by those who are Developers, approved under Section 3 of the Special Economic Zone Act, 2005.Reasons for obtaining Registration: An individual needs to choose the reason behind registering for GST from a drop- down menu from options such as: Crossing the threshold, Merger/amalgamation, inter-state supply, Input Service Distributor, etc.Provide existing registration held: If previously registered under other laws (e.g., Central Excise, Companies Act), provide the relevant registration numbers. There are 14 different Acts/laws under which an entity can register. These other registration numbers, if any, have to be provided here on the GST portal. "When declaring existing registrations from other laws (e.g., Central Excise, Companies Act), businesses can specify up to 14 different laws under which they are registered. These registration numbers must be furnished on the GST portal. Examples include CIN for Companies registered under Companies Act, 2013, Udyam Registration number for entities having registered under MSME Act, 2006, among others," says Nair.Details of address of Principal Place of Business: The address of the business is required to be inputted here. This category is divided into 4 parts, ranging from the actual address to contact information, nature of premises, type of business that an individual is conducting from that premise (such as, Retail, Manufacturing, Office etc.)Details of Bank Accounts (optional): Bank account details are optional since December 27, 2018 while filling up Part B of this form. However, after GST registration, the bank details must be added. Up to a total of 10 bank accounts can be added. "It is very important to note that within 30 days of the issue of the GST REG 06 registration certificate, the registered individual/company must submit the bank account details on the GST portal (if not already done). This will include the submission of the details and upload of a cancelled cheque / passbook showing the name of the individual/Company," says Bose.Details of Goods and Services supplied by the Business: Here the HSN Codes of the goods/services that the business/individual would be regularly dealing in have to be mentioned.. Up to 5 goods and 5 services HSM codes can be inputted here. HSN code is the Harmonised System of Nomenclature. This is a worldwide code systematically classifying all goods and services.Details of address of Additional Place of Business: If the business has, say, more than one office, then the applicant can add the additional places of business here.Details of Proprietor/all Partners/ Managing Directors, others: This column requires the details of all the key managerial persons, like Directors, Karta, Proprietor etc.Details of Authorised Signatories: The details of the individual/s who are authorised to sign on behalf of the business are to be inputted here. An individual can select 'No' as well and skip this column out if there are no authorised signatories.Details of Authorised Representative: "In case any GST Practitioner is employed, their details are filled in the Authorized Representative Tab, otherwise this tab can be skipped," says Bose. This is the last field which is required to be filled. The next step is Aadhaar authentication and verification. Also, at every stage where details such as principal address of the business, authorised signatory details, etc, are required, supporting documents also have to be uploaded.
Aadhaar authentication
"If an individual chooses the Aadhaar authentication method then physical verification of place of business is not required. The exception to this rule is specified in the GST law wherein in certain cases physical verification is required irrespective of whether Aadhaar verification is chosen or not.
"However, if one does not still wish to proceed ahead with an Aadhaar Card or they do not have one, they may opt for physical verification for Business," says Nair.
"In case online verification of Aadhaar of authorised signatory is opted for, a link is sent to the authorised signatory to complete the process online after submission. Otherwise, a manual authentication of Aadhaar is also possible. Manual authentication is possible on the upload of e-KYC documents if online verification is not opted for. E-KYC documents include Aadhaar Enrollment No, Passport, Voter ID Card, etc," says Bose.
Verification of GST REG-01 form
After the Aadhaar authentication column comes the last column, i.e., verification. This can be done using digital signature (class 2 and above) or e-Aadhaar verification. "For Companies, Partnerships and LLP(s), digital signature is mandatory for verification," says Bose.
In case verification using Aadhaar is opted for, the verification link for Aadhaar authentication is sent to the registered email ID for further verification. This further verification is a must and should be done soon after the submission of the GST REG-01 form is complete otherwise, the submission will be invalid.
Once the application is verified, it has to be submitted on the GST portal by clicking on the 'Submit' button. The application will then be taken up for checking by the GST portal. The details of the company, authorised signatory, PAN, Aadhaar No. are verified by the GST portal from the respective databases online.
"In case the verification is successful, an ARN No. is generated and communicated by sending an acknowledgement in GST REG 02 form, to the registered email id of the authorised signatory. The application then moves to the jurisdictional GST officer for processing," says Bose.
"If the documents and authentication are found complete after verification and Aadhaar authentication, then the GST Registration certificate and GSTIN is issued within seven working days from the date of submission of the GST registration application," says Bose.
Don’t miss out on ET Prime stories! Get your daily dose of business updates on WhatsApp. click here!
This story originally appeared on: India Times - Author:Faqs of Insurances
