Table of Contents
- Online Information Database Access Or Retrieval (oidar)
- Compulsory Gst Registration For Oidar Service Providers: -
- Who's A Non-taxable Online Recipient?
- What Is Gstr-5a Return?
- Gstr-5 Vs. Gstr-5a
- Mandatory Compliance To Be Followed By A Non-resident For Oidar Service
- Details To Be Mentioned In Gstr-5a
- Due Dates For Filing Gstr-5a
- The Penalty Levied In Case Of Default In Filing Of Gstr-5a Return

ONLINE INFORMATION DATABASE ACCESS OR RETRIEVAL (OIDAR)
Businesses are not restricted by geographical borders in today's Scenario. One of the means of delivering services from abroad in India is through the use of the internet. There are several mechanisms in which service users are delivered these services. For instance, in India, Amazon provides cloud-based services (AWS) from the United States.
Online information database access and retrieval services are a type of service offered via the means of the internet and received by the user online without having any physical interaction with the provider of these services.
The IGST act describes OIDAR to imply services whose distribution is managed by information technology over the internet or an electronic network and the essence of which makes their procurement basically automatic and requiring minimal manual interference and difficult to maintain in the absence of information technology and involves electronic services such as:
- Online Advertisement through the Internet or Online ads
- Online Availability of cloud services or Cloud Computing Provision
- The delivery of data, retrievable or otherwise, to any person in electronic form via a computer network
- Provision through telecommunications networks of e-books, video, music, software, and other intangibles
- Digital content supplies online (movies, tv programs, songs, and the like) digital data storage
- Online Gaming Programming / Online gambling games
- Providing data to any person in electronic form via a computer network, retrievable or otherwise,
Few Examples of what could be or could not be OIDAR services.
Service |
Whether provisions of service mediated by information technology over the internet or an
|
Whether it is automated and impossible to ensure in the absence of
|
OIDAR Services |
PDF documents manually emailed by the provider |
Yes |
No |
No |
PDF documents automatically emailed by |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
PDF document |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Stock photograph available for |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
An online course consisting of pre-recorded videos and downloadable PDF’s |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
An online course consisting of pre-recorded videos and downloadable PDF’s plus support from a live tutor |
Yes |
No |
No |
Individually commissioned content sent in |
Yes |
No |
No |
Compulsory GST Registration for OIDAR Service Providers: -
Any person offering OIDAR services from a place outside India to a person in India other than a registered user. Needed to file GSTR -5A for providing services to unregistered or non-taxable customers in India. The rationale behind including only unregistered/non-taxable service recipients is as follows:
As per Rule 64 of CGST Rules, 2017, a Registered person providing OIDAR services from a place outside India to a person in India other than a registered person shall file a return in FORM-GSTR-5A on or before the 20th day of the month succeeding the calendar month or part thereof.OIDAR service providers situated outside taxable territories are expected to file a return on feeding facilities under GSTR-5A with unregistered or non-taxable buyers in India. For such services, two types of service recipients exist;
A. OIDAR service recipient: Registered Person
- Registered people or businesses obtaining services from outside India are responsible for paying GST under the "Import of Service" reverse charge.
- The government has therefore collected taxes on these OIDAR Services through the Reverse charge mechanism.
- Registered recipients of OIDAR Services are responsible for including these services in their turnover and are responsible for paying GST on that amount under the system of reverse charge and filing the returns respectively.
B. Service recipient: Unregistered individual or Non-Taxable Person
- Non-Taxable Person or unregistered person receives OIDAR service than The service distributors are responsible for paying GST to the government. Thus, the GSTR-5A return should be filed by the service provider.
Who's a non-taxable online recipient?
"Online non-taxable recipient" means any local authority. Authority, government authority, person, or some other body
- A person not enrolled and obtaining information on the Internet and
- Database access or retrieval services for any reason;
- Other than trade, industry, or some other sector or occupation,
- Situated in taxable territories
What is GSTR-5A RETURN?
- The GSTR-5A form is a document containing information of the goods or services supplied by any person residing outside India to an unregistered person within India through Online Information and Database Access or Retrieval (OIDAR). For example, a person, unregistered under GST, accesses the database of any company established in London. Then, the services provided via GSTR-5A, these service providers are responsible for paying GST.
- Essentially, OIDAR service providers fill the GSTR-5A return by sign into the GST portal to filing GST Returns. Here we have to know all about every single aspect of the GSTR-5A returns filing.
GSTR-5 vs. GSTR-5A
Basically, In both, the Return is a small variation between GSTR 5 and GSTR 5A,
- GSTR-5: GSTR 5 is a form submitted by non-resident Indians. On the 20th of the following month, they are expected to register. The form contains all of the distribution and purchase information in the form.
- GSTR-5A: Whereas GSTR 5A is a return form that NRI online service providers or OIDAR (Online Information and Database Access or Retrieval) service providers who deliver their online services in India are expected to file an Income / Revenue in return.
Mandatory Compliance to be followed by a non-resident for OIDAR service
There are some requirements and safeguards that for/while filing GSTR 5A one should comply with.
- The return has to be submitted even though there is no commercial transaction during any taxable period (in such cases, nil return)
- For non-resident OIDAR service providers, it is compulsory to file GSTR 5A
- There is no input tax credit available in GSTR 5A, so the GSTR 5A electronic cash ledger is not kept.
- Only after payment of due taxes and all other sums due will the return is filed.
- You cannot file a return for the current year until filing a return for the previous tax year.
- All OIDAR service providers who are responsible for filing GSTR-5A must file GSTR-5A even though there is no business going for a tax period. Any refund balance would not be allocated to the provider in these situations.
- As an OIDAR service provider and as a GSTIN holder, the taxpayer has to register.
- It is also compulsory to have a correct user ID and password for a GST Portal account.
- To submit a DSC, a valid PAN-based signature is also required.
For all non-resident taxable persons delivering the OIDAR service, it is compulsory to file the GSTR-5A return within the due date. So, if you are one of them, be sure to include the correct descriptions of your income and expenditure in order to avoid any possible tax-related complications. Keep in touch with the experts if you have any concerns.
Details to be mentioned in GSTR-5A
- Table 1: The Supplier's GSTIN
- Table 2: The Registered Person's Legal Name & Trade Name (if any)
- Table 3: Name of the Authorized Representative in India who submit the return.
- Table 4: Mention the Period, i.e. month & year for which the return is submitted
- Table 5: Taxable outward supplies rendered to Indian clients, including place of supply information, tax rate, taxable value, integrated tax, and cess.
- Table 5A: Modification to taxable outward supplies rendered in India for the corresponding period to non-taxable persons.
- Table 6: Interest calculation, penalty calculation, or some other amount which is payable.
- Table 7: Tax interest, late fees, and all other sums payable and charged
After the successful completion of the Filling of GSTR 5A, an acknowledgment is generated on the effective submission of GSTR 5A and is also transmitted automatically to the taxpayer via an email.
Due dates for filing GSTR-5A
According to the IGST ACT, GSTR-5A is to be filed by the 20th of the following month after the tax period and to which the return is relevant or to which the GST Commissioner will have to increase the Time Limit. For Example, for the services rendered in the month of April 2020, GSTR 5A must be filed by 20 May 2020 at the last.
The penalty levied in case of default in filing of GSTR-5A return
In the circumstance of any default in the filing of Form GSTR-5A, the following late penalty is payable—
- Normal Return- Rs. 200/day
- NIL Return- Rs. 100/day
GSTR-5A can be submitted on the GST portal only by OIDAR service providers and they must also be required to be Non-resident and make rendering aids to unregistered persons in India. As it would not be possible to file a GSTR-5A without a GSTIN and PAN.