Undue haste to collect GST interest – The Hindu BusinessLine

Even as the Finance Ministry is attempting to close the ₹11-trillion pending direct and indirect tax demands, that have become a veritable source of embarrassment for the Centre, the CBIC is getting ready to create a new pile of tax disputes. GST officials have recently been asked to collect interest amounting to nearly ₹46,000 crore for delayed payment of the GST. This is likely to lead to numerous litigations, since most GST assessees filed their taxes late in the initial years when the technical problems with the GSTN led to very low compliance. Since the law mandates that interest due on this delayed payment has to be paid by the assesses on their own, the CBIC is not wrong in enforcing this. It could, however, give some leeway to smaller businesses given the current tough economic conditions. Also, a legal tangle is being created due to the tax department’s haste in enforcing the law in letter.