What is GST Certification?

Introduction

GST Certification is proof of GST registration in India. It is a valid document. It is required when the business turnover exceeds the lower limit for registration in GST. Some businesses require compulsory registration under GST like non-resident taxable persons, casual taxable persons, etc.

What is the use of a GST certification?

In form GST REG-06 each taxpayer will be issued a certificate of GST registration which is successfully registered. You can download your GST certificate from GST Portal, and the government will not issue any physical certificate. Under GST type of taxpayers are TCS, TDS, and regular applicants responsible for obtaining Unique Identity Number u/s 25(9) of CGST act. The non-residents include the persons who are giving OIDAR services & from pre-GST laws which are migrating. The GST registration certificate is displayed on the primary business place, and some other places also include in the Form GST REG-06 list. This is written in the CGST Rule 18 & any negligence can lead to the penalty of Rs. 25,000.

The GST registration will be valid to a maximum of 90 days for a casual taxable person, and after that, the GST certification becomes invalid. Although the taxpayer expands the validity of GST certification, he can also renew it when the validity period ends. At any moment, there is no change in the particulars of GST registration. There is no particular time limit for the certificate’s expiry for the regular taxpayer. GST registration is valid as long as it will not be canceled or surrendered.  The GST portal permits the user or taxpayer to download new GST certification with the particulars of amendments.

GST Certification content

The content present in the GST Certification is the principal certificate and 2 Annexures- A and B. Below, we have discussed the contents that are present on GST certification:-

• The taxpayer’s GSTIN.
• Legal Name and Trade Name
• Business constitution types like Trust, Company, Partnership, Proprietorship, etc.
• Business principal’s place address
• Liability date
• Validity period
• Registration types
• Approving authority particulars including name, signature, jurisdictional office, designation.

Types of GST Registration

GST council has divided taxpayers into different categories, which are discussed below:-

• Normal Taxpayer: Most businesses come under this category as there is no expiry date for this business. No deposit is required for becoming a taxpayer.
• Casual Taxable Person:- Person who set up seasonal shops come under this category. Their registration validity is three months, but you can extend or renew it.
• Composition Taxpayer:- If you want to obtain GST Composition Scheme, you will not enjoy input tax credit. You have to submit an average amount for the same.
• Non-Resident Taxable Person: If a person lives outside India but supplies goods and services in India, they fall under this category.

How to download GST Certification?

If you want to download a GST registration certificate, you should own a GST account. At the time when you fill in all the details of the GST portal, start following the below steps:-

• Access the GST India portal. (https://www.gst.gov.in/).
• Go to the Login button and fill in your username and password.
• Enter the proper credentials with the captcha in the necessary field and click on the Login button.
• Go to Services – User Services – Download Certificate.
• Click Download to download the certificate. All details of tax transactions are included in it.

Revise change in GST Registration Certification

If there is any wrong information on the GST certificate, the taxpayer can alter the GST portal to the main field. Alteration to the main field needs acceptance by Tax Officials, and after the acceptance, a new altered GST certificate can be downloaded. In the GST registration certificate, some main fields are discussed below:-

• Any amendment in business trade/legal name, not require an alteration in PAN.
• Business principal place.
• Apart from the state change another business place.
• Deleting or adding Karta/Partners/whole-time directors and managing directors/Board of Trustees/Managing Committee of Association Members/ Chief Executive officer etc.

Steps of amending in the main field of GST Certification

The given steps can institute change in the main field:-

• Click on the GST India portal. (https://www.gst.gov.in/).
• Go to the Login button and fill in your valid username and password.
• Go to Services – Registration – Amendment of Registration Core Fields link.
• Choose Verification Checkbox in the Verification Tab.
• Choose the authorized signatory in the drop-list of Name of Authorised Signatory.
• Write the place name in the Place field.
• Once you fill in all the details for the Amendment of Registration, you must the application digitally make and use a digital Signature Certificate or E-Signature/EVC.

Once the Amendment of the application is completed, the application will get the application status that whether it is accepted or rejected via e-mail and SMS notification. Over the application approval, the applicant can also look approval order (REG 15) & can download it also on the GST portal. You can also be given the facility to download the registration certificate from the portal directly, including amendment details.

Time Limit and validity period of the GST Certification

Those certificates that are issued to ordinary taxpayers will not be expired. Therefore, till the GST registration is not canceled or surrendered by the GST authority, it will be valid. But in a casual taxable person or non-resident taxable person case, the validity of GST registration is a maximum of 90 days. Although, a taxpayer can expand the validity period of GST certification or renew it when the validity period ends.

Who is liable for GST Certification?

• Individuals who are registered under pre-GST law such as Service Tax, VAT, Excise Duty, etc.
• Those businesses whose threshold limit is above Rs.40,00,000 and Rs. 10,00,000 for Uttrakhand, Himachal Pradesh, J&K, and the North-Eastern States.
• Each e-commerce aggregator.
• Input service distributors and supplier’s agents.
• Non-resident Taxable person or casual taxable person.
• Individual supplying retrieval services or database access and online information from outside India to an individual in India who is apart from the registered taxable person.

Penalty for not doing GST Registration Certification

A lawbreaker not paying any tax or making small payments will be penalized up to 10% of the tax amount and a minimum of Rs. 10,000. This penalty amount will be on 100% tax amount because the lawbreaker is continuously avoiding paying the tax amount.