GST Fraud of over Rs. 1.98 lakh crore detected by GST Intelligence Unit

During the year 2023, the Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI), the prime investigating agency for GST concerns, continued its relentless effort to combat GST evasion across the country.

It has revealed major GST evasion in a variety of sectors, including online gaming, casinos, insurance, secondment (import of manpower services), and fake ITC, among others. Non-compliance in these sectors not only represents a threat to financial stability, but also has potential social, financial, and economic security ramifications.

DGGI’s dedication and hard efforts have generated outstanding benefits, including a considerable improvement in performance.

Overall Performance in Detection of Duty Evasion and Voluntary Payments

DGGI has increased its detection of evasion and voluntary payments. In 2023, DGGI found 6,323 cases of duty evasion totalling Rs. 1,98,324 crore, with a voluntary payment of Rs. 28,362 crore. 140 masterminds responsible for GST evasion were captured.

This represents a huge improvement over the previous year, 2022, wherein 4,273 cases were detected, resulting in duty of Rs. 90,499 crore, voluntary payment of Rs. 22,459 crore, and 97 arrests. The amount of duty evasion detected by DGGI has increased by 119% year on year, with a 26% increase in voluntarily made payments.

Performance in fake Input Tax Credit (ITC) cases

The DGGI launched a Special Drive against ITC fraudsters to plug the leakage in Government revenue, and as a consequence, 2,335 cases of ITC fraud totalling Rs. 21,078 crore were found, with a voluntary payment of Rs. 2,642 crore. To combat the threat of fake invoicing, 116 masterminds were arrested. This is a huge improvement from the previous year, 2022, wherein 1,646 cases worth Rs. 14,471 crore were identified, a voluntary payment of Rs. 1,604 crore was made, and 82 masterminds were caught.

This shows 46% increase Year-on-Year in amounts of duty evasion detected and 65% increase of voluntarily payments made in fake invoicing cases.

DGGI’s performance demonstrates its commitment to upholding the principles of justice, openness, and compliance. DGGI maintains committed to maintaining the GST system’s integrity, ensuring that business operations are performed in accordance with GST Laws and Rules, and providing a level playing field to complying firms.