TAIT guides the Channel Community to the new GST regime

India has rolled out one of the biggest tax reforms – the Goods and Services Tax (GST), which has replaced the complex maze of Central taxes and duties such as Excise Duty, Service Tax, Countervailing Duty (CVD), Special Additional Duty of Customs (SAD), central charges and cesses and local state taxes that was Value Added Tax (VAT), Central Sales Tax (CST), Octroi, Entry Tax, Purchase Tax, etc.

Coinciding with the new tax regime, the Mumbai-based Trade Association of Information Technology (TAIT) organized their Knowledge Series events putting emphasis on Input Tax Credit and the way forward in the GST regime for their members.

TAIT's past sessions/events on GST have been addressed by CAs and the Service Tax department. This time, the Association had invited G.V. Bilolikar, Jt Commissioner of Sales Tax, Mumbai to address the members.

The event kicked off with a panel discussion on “Road to Successful IPO” where panellist Vinit Bolinjkar, Head, Equity Research, Ventura Securities Ltd; Ketan Patel, President and CEO of Creative Peripherals and Distribution Ltd; and Nikit Rambhia, Joint Managing Director of Panache Digilife Ltd, discussed about the current IPO market and checklists, filing requirements, role of advisors, bankers and exchanges, IR specialists and the media.

Taking it further, TAIT knowledge series also took up Input Credit Tax (ITC) under GST topic to develop better understanding and clarity to the members.

ITC under the GST framework is one of the core concepts which will help eliminate the cascading effect of taxes. Any manufacturer, supplier, agent, e-commerce operator, aggregator registered under GST are eligible to claim input credit for tax paid on their purchases. Addressing to the queries of TAIT members, the panel discussed those conditions to claim ITC under the GST, which is one of the most critical activities for every business to settle its tax liability.

Archana Koul, Technical Consultant, Cisco, talked about the new arrival for Cisco SMB and the enterprise market. Talking about Cisco Catalyst 2960-L Portfolio, she said, "These L-series switches power small networks with quietness and simplicity. They can be appropriately targeted in bank branches, hotel buildings, school buildings, retail stores, office buildings, etc as it meets the specifications that are often demanded in these scenarios. These switches are low-priced GE model, with simple management, low-energy consumption, small factor plug-in support, Basic layer 2 functionalities and other enterprise- grade quality features that is often needed in the above sectors."

Pushpasheel Andari, Head Solution Engineering Tata Teleservices Ltd, gave insights on “Digital platform for emerging businesses”.

"TAIT as the leading IT industry association in India always makes a consolidated effort helping every member streamline their business. We leave no stone unturned to help members regarding any obstacles they are/ may be facing adapting the new tax regime. We have also requested special assistance from the VAT department and we are pleased to state that TAIT will be given special guidance and assistance whereby the VAT Department will be deploying their staff at the TAIT office where members can reach and seek assistance, a unique step by our association," says Rushabh Shah, President, TAIT.

TAIT through their various workshops / seminars have put in immense effort in addressing doubts / queries of the members through lists of frequently-asked questions.