GST: Is Electronic-way bill a game changer?

The government is all set to launch Goods and Services Tax (GST) at midnight on Friday June 30, 2017. 

GST is touted to be the biggest reform in India's taxation system which is expected to boost the country's tax collection and growth rate. 

One of the key features of GST is electronic-way bill or e-way bill. Industry experts and analysts are saying that the e-way bill is likely to be the game changer in the Indian economy. 

"Once implemented across India, e-way bills will prove to be a game changer for the economy," Edelweiss Securities in a report dated June 27 said. 

However, the GST Council has decided to defer e-way bill requirements at all-India level and left it to the discretion of states. The GSTN network is also not ready and will take 4-5 months to implement the e-way bill provisions. "Hence, we anticipate few quarters of delay in implementation of the e-way bill rules on pan-India basis," it said.  

Draft e-way bill: Key provisions

Under the proposed rules, movement of goods worth more than Rs 50,000 by a registered entity will require prior online registration of the consignment on the GST portal and securing an “e-way” bill.

• In case the e-way bill is not generated by the registered entity (as above) and the goods are handed over to a transporter, the registered entity shall furnish the information relating to transporter on the common portal and the e-way bill shall be generated by the transporter.

• The registered entity will also be required to furnish the information and generate the e-way bill for all inward supplies from an unregistered player.

• The entity carrying the goods will be required to carry the e-way bill along with invoice/bill of supply/delivery challan. The facility of generation and cancellation of e-way bill may also be made available through SMS.

• Details of e-way bill shall be made available to the registered recipient on a common portal and will have to be approved or rejected by the registered recipient within 72 hours, else it would be deemed to be approved by the recipient.

•  E-way bills will have a validity period of 1-15 days, depending on the distance to be travelled. Authorised tax officials can intercept conveyance during transit to verify e-
  way bills to check tax evasion.

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