Key Recommendations at GST Council Meeting

The GST Council has made several key recommendations aimed at simplifying the movement of goods across states. It recommended that the authority to inspect, detain or seize goods should be restricted to officials from either the state of supply or the destination state. Goods should be intercepted only when there is intelligence-based evidence, and approval from an officer of the Joint Commissioner rank should be made mandatory before stopping a consignment.

The Council has decided not to make any changes to GST rates. It recommended raising the prosecution threshold from Rs 1 crore to Rs 5 crore and allowing small businesses with an annual turnover of up to Rs 5 crore to file returns only once a year. Other recommendations include removing the arrest powers of officials, reducing the penalty limit from Rs 25,000 to Rs 10,000 and introducing a uniform tax treatment across all platforms. The Council also proposed reducing refund processing time to 10 days and introducing reforms to ensure that 90% of refunds are cleared automatically.