The abbreviation and CGST full form refers to Central Goods and Services Tax. Under Goods and Services Tax (GST), the CGST (Central Goods and Service Tax) Act, 2017 has been authorized to arrange for levy and collection of tax on supply of goods and/or services in case of intra-state supply by the Central Government and the issues associated therewith or incidental thereto. In this article, you'll come to know about features of CGST, CGST meaning, objectives of CGST and much more.
Under the former taxation laws, the Central Government imposed different taxes on production or manufacture of certain goods (Central Excise duty), interstate sale of goods in the form of Central Sales tax (CST), tax on providing services interstate/intrastate in the form of Service Tax, etc. The State Governments imposed a tax on retail sales in the form of Value Added Tax (VAT), on entry of goods in the State as Entry tax, Luxury tax on Luxury Items/Services, and so on. In the like manner, there were a variety of taxes that the government levied on similar transactions. Excessive tax evasion and cascading effects were the major challenges faced under past taxation systems. There were several Value Added Tax Laws in the country with different tax rates and dissimilar tax practices which were dividing the country into different zones. The creation of barriers such as entry tax, octroi, checks posts, etc., acted as an obstacle to the free flow of trade throughout the country. Also, the large number of taxes led to a higher compliance burden to the taxpayers. To overcome the flaws of the previous laws, GST with Dual Levy Approach was introduced in India on 1st July 2017 wherein the Central governments will levy tax in the form of Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) and State governments in the form of State Goods and Services Tax (SGST).
The below mentioned points will explain the salient features of CGST Act 2017
The Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) Act, 2017 comprises 174 Sections divided into 21 Chapters and 3 Schedules.
● Schedule I: Transactions/Activities that are to be treated as supply regardless of whether such supply of goods or services, made without consideration.
● Schedule II: Transactions or Activities that are treated as a supply of goods or/and services.
● Schedule III: Transactions/Activities that will be treated neither as a supply of goods nor as services.