Finance Ministry to issue Circular on GST Amnesty Scheme in last Quarter of this Year

The Ministry of Finance will shortly issue a circular relating to the highly anticipated GST Amnesty Scheme, which was recently suggested in the Budget 2024, the report said.

The initiative attempts to offer taxpayers relief by waiving interest and penalties for tax concerns arising between July 1, 2017 and March 31, 2020, subject to specific requirements.

It includes show cause notices (SCNs), adjudicating orders, and appeal orders issued for the financial years 2017-18, 2018-19, and 2019-20. According to insiders, the arrangement allows taxpayers to avoid interest and penalties if they pay the full amount of tax due by March 31, 2025.

“However, incidents involving refunds are explicitly excluded from the system. To be eligible for amnesty, taxpayers currently involved in appeals or court processes must withdraw their cases. Furthermore, once a case is decided through the system, it cannot be appealed,” according to a government source.

The scheme’s implementation is planned to begin around October or November 2024, following the publication of the official announcement.

Furthermore, there is continued industry involvement arguing for the inclusion of cases involving only interest or penalties, as well as the consideration of transitional credit disputes under the scheme.

The system runs on an SCN or order-by-order basis, requiring taxpayers to address all issues associated with a single SCN or order if they desire to participate.