State of Bengal to reduce intrastate E-way Bill threshold to Rs. 50000:

State of Bengal to reduce intrastate E-way Bill threshold to Rs. 50000 West Bengal would cut the intrastate e-way bill threshold from Rs. 1 lakh to Rs. 50,000 beginning in December, bringing it in line with the rest of the country and preventing GST slippage. According to a recent West Bengal GST notification, an e-way bill will be required for the movement of goods worth more than Rs 50,000 within the state. The provision will also apply to job-related items. State GST commissioner Khalid Anwar told that the e-way bill threshold was changed for two reasons. "The first is to achieve parity with the rest of the country, which is already Rs. 50,000 for interstate goods movement. The Rs. 1 lakh intrastate movement threshold was frequently misinterpreted as applying to interstate movement of goods, and traders were penalised," he said. The second reason is that unscrupulous traders are using the increased threshold, resulting in tax slippage. He believes that lowering the threshold will assist protect tax revenues. Anwar stated that the state initially fixed the intrastate threshold at Rs. 1 lakh to help small traders by providing breathing room and avoiding early complications with the e-way system. The threshold has been reduced now that the method has been streamlined. The head of the Confederation of West Bengal dealers Association, Sushil Poddar, responded to the move by saying that it will impose an additional compliance burden on small and petty stores and dealers. "The notification, which takes effect on December 1, 2023, aims to streamline and improve the monitoring of intrastate goods movement. To avoid penalties and disruptions in their supply chain, businesses operating in West Bengal must ensure compliance with the amended e-waybill requirements," said Rajarshi Dasgupta, director of Aquilaw. "The revised limit of Rs. 50,000 represents a significant change. Stakeholders should take proactive measures to align with the updated regulations," said Vedika Agarwal, an indirect taxation specialist at Aquilaw.