Govt may soon to exempt Small E-Commerce Sellers from GST Registration

According to a report, small online sellers may soon be exempted from GST registration, which might expand the reach of small businesses through e-commerce. Currently, regardless of turnover, all e-commerce retailers are required to register for GST.

“Representations have been made by industry and commerce to achieve parity between online and offline sellers on the topic of GST registration, claiming that the current standard prevents small firms from reaching a bigger client base.” The central and state governments are now in talks. The GST Council’s law committee would investigate the situation before making a decision, according to the report, which cited a source.

As of today, all online retailers, regardless of turnover, are required to register for GST, whereas offline dealers are required to register for GST only if their total annual sales exceed Rs 40 lakh. If adopted, the measure will bring online and offline vendors on level in terms of GST registration.

Aside from that, the GST Council, which is expected to meet next month, may consider scrapping the 5% slab by shifting some mass-consumption commodities to 3% and the remainder to 8% categories, according to sources.