GST Bill will push back regulatory clock by decades: IAMAI

Internet and mobile industry body IAMAI representing giants like Google, Flipkart, Facebook, Airtel Money today slammed proposed Goods and Services Tax Bill saying it fails to recognise the digital economy and push back regulatory progress by decades.
"The new GST Bill springs an unpleasant surprise: a 'forward looking' Bill that is supposed to modernise Indian governance fails to recognise the Internet and digital economy in India.
It is ironic that on one hand the government is promoting Digital India and Startup India initiatives, on the other hand, the GST seeks to turn the clock back by decades," IAMAI said in a statement today.

The Internet and Mobile Association of India said the extant service tax profile under proposed GST recognises services like advertising and online information services, online information and database access, Internet telecommunication services and telecommunication services as separate service categories.
However, 'electronic mail, voice mail, data services, audio text services, video text services, radio paging and cellular mobile telephone services' are clubbed under 'Telecommunication services' and not even Information Technology, IAMAI said.
"Clubbing all the sectors under telecommunication services reflects a poor understanding of technology, and a wilful renouncement of the existence of these sectors in India.

"This renouncement is compounded further in the section listing activities to be treated as 'supply of service' and also the new 'place of supply of goods and/or Services' section under the new Bill," the statement said.

Non recognition or misinterpretation of the sectors may result in a barrage of unjustified tax demands with insufficient provisions of resolving such disputes. Such an eventuality can throttle the sector and effectively kill it, it said.
Recognition of category of services is key to 'locating' a sector in the economy in terms of determining tax liabilities, regulatory compliances etc.
"Most importantly, any dispute can only be resolved by identifying the exact provisions based on official recognitions. For example, online marketplaces could successfully contest claims of VAT payment by positing their services as digital platforms and not retailers," the statement said.

Excellon Software with its extensive experience in the
field of cloud-based innovative and robust IT software solutions ticked off all the GSP criteria. On being shortlisted as one of India's authorized Goods and Service Tax Providers, the company's Co-founder & COO Mr. Vinod Tambi said, "We are honored and delighted to be shortlisted as one of the GST Suvidha Providers.
The idea of being a part of something so enormous and ability to contribute towards building a better India is exciting to all of us. For a reform as huge as GST, technology has to be at the forefront. And we at Excellon Software are committed to providing accessible and reliable technology to cater to scores of businesses across the country.

We are also looking to partner with other Application Providers to integrate with our GSP Services. A lot of hard-work and dedication has gone into this project and we are extremely excited about the road ahead of us.
As a GST Suvidha provider we are focused to deliver convenient and innovative solutions to assist our clients with their tax filing process and ensure a smooth transition into the biggest tax reform the country has ever seen."
About Excellon Software
Excellon Software Pvt. Ltd. Is a 20-year veteran in the field of IT software innovation and boasts of clients that includes Automobile, Consumer durable and Industrial Manufacturing giants. The company provides Software solutions to automate sales, service and distribution networks of companies across verticals.

Media Contact Details
Aksha Bhuraria, Excellon Software Pvt. Ltd., +91-8411882837, akshab@excellonsoft.