Tally Solutions raises concern on proposed e-way Bill for GST; biggest dampener for all businesses

The biggest indirect tax transformation ‘GST’ will be upon us in a few weeks from now. The law makers are deliberating on the specific clauses and contours of it – so that the appropriate legislations can be passed. Tally Solutions, a premier Indian software product company though extending their full support to GST, raises their concern on the proposed e-way Bill under GST; which shall be a big dampener for businesses.

While the proposed e-way bill sounds good, this multi- layer process will make the transport of goods very cumbersome and cause delay in movement of goods. The current format is quite cumbersome and involves creating e-Way bills even though invoices are already uploaded – making it a multi-step process.  Simplification is definitely required here; also there is too much reliance on technology in every step of the transportation process, which small transporters will struggle with.  When suggestions were sorted for the proposed e-way bills, there were overwhelming objections and suggestions from across industries. However, given the urgency of implementation, it has to be seen how much of stakeholders’ recommendations are taken into consideration.

Small transporters and small businesses are not yet GST-ready and aberrations like these will further widen the preparedness gap. GST is expected to create free environment for businesses and smoother movement of goods, but the multi-layer declaration of details and verification under E-way bill may defeat the core design of GST – a Technology Driven compliance system.