The central government has proposed significant changes to simplify the Goods and Services Tax (GST) process. These changes will primarily benefit small merchants, sellers selling goods through e-commerce platforms, and businesses awaiting GST refunds. According to reports, some administrative reforms are slated to be implemented in phases starting November 1, 2026, while provisions requiring legal changes are expected to come into effect on April 1, 2027.

GST registration process to be simplified
According to the new proposal, the GST registration process can be simplified for small sellers doing business in different states through e-commerce. In the state where the seller does not have its own office, the facility can be given to declare the warehouse of the concerned e-commerce platform as the main place of business. For this, it will be necessary for the seller to have a physical business in at least one state. The process of physical verification and Aadhaar authentication will have to be completed in the concerned state. It is expected that this change will benefit around 9.5 lakh small sellers.

The document process for registration will be simplified.
It is proposed to issue clear guidelines regarding the documents and information required for GST registration. By simplifying the process on the GST REG-01 application and the online portal, the incidence of application rejections due to incomplete documents can be reduced. This is expected to save businesses time and administrative hassle.

GST refunds are likely to be processed faster.
It is proposed to approve eligible refunds for higher amounts deposited in the electronic cash ledger through an automated system. Furthermore, in the case of refund claims related to eligible zero-rated supplies and inverted duty structures, 90% of the amount may be provisionally approved after risk verification. It is also proposed to reduce the time limit for issuing refund applications or memos regarding errors from 15 days to 10 days.

Changes to GST Notices:
To reduce compliance burden and legal disputes for small businesses, a provision for show-cause notices with a minimum limit of ₹10,000 has been proposed. According to reports, these changes were approved at the 57th GST Council meeting held on October 8th. However, not all changes will be implemented on the same day. Therefore, traders should verify the final notification and official guidelines and take action accordingly.

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