CBIC Waives off Late Fees For GSTR-4 and GSTR-10

Shivani Jain | Updated: Nov 03, 2020 | Category: GST

The COVID- 19 pandemic and the series of lockdown have majorly disrupted the Indian Economy. As a result, the Government of India had announced several measures to tackle the situation of hassle, such as Food Security, Extension of Tax Deadlines, Extra Funds for Healthcare Services, etc. In the same manner, CBIC has waived off Late Fees for GSTR 4 and GSTR 10. In this blog, we will discuss the 2 rulings passed by CBIC in detail.

Table of Contents

Concept of Late Fees under GST

Under the GST Act, every registered person needs to file its Monthly/ Quarterly/ Annual Return within the due date prescribed. Further, it shall be relevant to state that the due date of GST Return Filing depends on the status type of the Taxpayer.

However, if in case a taxpayer fails to file the return or pay tax on time, then he/ she requires to pay late fees, together with interest charged on the late payment.

Further, it shall be taken into consideration that the late fee is charged for every day during which such a delay or failure continues on the part of the taxpayer having GST Registration after the due date of filing.

Also, the concept of Late Fees applies to NIL Returns as well.

Provisions Governing the Levy of Late Fees under GST

Section 47 of the Central Goods and Service Tax or CGST Act deals with the concept of levying late fees under GST. As per this section, if a registered taxpayer fails to submit the details of the inward and outward supplies made under section 37/ 38/ 39/ 45, then he/ she needs to pay Rs 200 as late fees.

Further, the amount of Rs 200 includes Rs 100 under CGST and Rs 100 under SGST/ UTGST. Also, the late fee is charged for every day for which such a failure continues, subject to a maximum of Rs 5000.

Moreover, as per section 47 (2), any taxpayer who fails to submit the return under section 44 by the due date prescribed, then he/ she will be liable to pay a GST Late Fee of Rs 200.

In this case, also, the amount of Rs 200 includes Rs 100 under CGST and Rs 100 under SGST/ UTGST. And, the late fee is charged for every day for which such a failure continues, subject to a maximum of 0.25% of his/ her annual turnover in the State or Union Territory.

Waiver of Late Fees for GSTR 4 by CBIC

As per a notification issued 67/2020 by the CBIC (Central Bureau of Indirect Taxes and Customs), if any composite taxpayer fails to file Form GSTR 4 for the of July 2017 to March 2020, then he/ she can now avail of some relaxations as follows:

In the case of NIL Returns, the applicant needs to file Form GSTR 4 on or before 31.10.2020. That means no late fees will be charged.
In the case of a Single Transaction, the late fee for Form GSTR 4 will be Rs 25 per day, which shall maximum be Rs 250 /-. Therefore, the total GST Late Fee applicable for non-filing of Form GSTR 4 will be Rs 500/- (Rs 250 under CGST and Rs 250 under SGST/ UTGST). However, the only condition is that the applicant needs to file Form GSTR 4 from 22.09.2020 to 31.10.2020.

Waiver of Late Fees for GSTR 10 by CBIC

The registered taxpayer requires to file Form GSTR 10 or Final GST Return filing during the event of GST Cancellation.

As per the notification issued 68/ 2020 by the CBIC, the government has decided to provide an upper limit on the late fee charged for the late filing of Form GSTR 10. Further, the relaxations bought through the notification issued are as follows:

The government has waived off the late fee charged for non- filing of Form GSTR 10 within the prescribed due date, i.e., 31.10.2020 in excess of Rs 250/-
Therefore, the late fee charged for the non-filing of Form GSTR 10 is Rs 500/- (Rs 250 under CGST and Rs 250 under SGST/ UTGST)

Earlier Waiver of Late Fees Made by CBIC

The earlier occasions of Late Fees Waiver are as follows:

According to Notification No 52/ 2020, dated 24.06.2020, the Central Bureau of Indirect Taxes and Customs^[1]) had waived off/ reduced the late fees for the late filing of Form GSTR 3B for the period starting from July 2017 to January 2020.
According to Notification No 57/ 2020, dated 30.06.2020, the government had capped the maximum late fee at Rs 500 per GST Return, for the tax periods specified, filed after the deadlines provided in Notification 52/ 2020 but before 30.09.2020.