Upbeat survey suggests more GST reforms

New Delhi: While noting the positive sentiment created by GST, a survey on eight years of the indirect tax regime has identified the areas of reform, including rate rationalisation.

In a Deloitte survey, 85% of industry respondents, including MSMEs, gave a positive outlook due to digitisation of compliances and "proactive tax policy management", marking the fourth straight year of growing positive sentiment. In 2022, only 59% of the respondents were positive. Almost two-thirds of the respondents said clarifications and instructions issued by govt and GST Council have helped reduce disputes on ground, with MSMEs highlighting more implementation-related challenges.

Several respondents identified refund-related challenges as the number one concern and flagged the "expansive, pro-revenue" interpretation by officials as a major challenge to ease of doing business. Just last week, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman asked CBIC brass to ensure that funds do not remain locked up. When it came to changes in operational areas, effective dispute resolution mechanism, uniformity in audits across central and state jurisdictions and enhancing tech infrastructure for data availability were identified as the three top priorities by businesses.


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