Table of Contents
E-commerce (electronic commerce) is the buying and selling of goods and services, or the transmitting of funds or data, over an electronic network, internet or online social networks.
MEANING OF E-COMMERCE IN GST
The Chapter defines an ‘electronic commerce operator’ to mean a person who owns, operates or manages an electronic platform engaged in facilitating the supply of any goods/services or in providing any information or any other incidental services.
E-commerce operator
Electronic commerce operator: shall include every person who, directly or indirectly, owns, operates or manages an electronic platform that is engaged in facilitating the supply of any goods and/or services or in providing any information or any other services incidental to or in connection therewith but shall not include persons engaged in the supply of such goods and/or services on their own behalf.
Registration requirement
FOR E-COMMERCE OPERATOR
Registration under GST is mandatory for all e-commerce operators irrespective of the sales turnover. Hence, prior to commencing business as an e-commerce operator or within 30 days of commencing business, all e-commerce such as .flipkart, Amazon or Snapdeal must obtain GST registration
FOR SELLER
Persons undertaking a supply through e-commerce operators are also required to obtain GST registration irrespective of sales turnover.
As par notification 65/2017 dated 15-11-2017 the Central Government, on the recommendations of the Council, hereby specifies the persons making supplies of services, other than supplies specified under subsection (5) of section 9 of the said Act through an electronic commerce operator who is required to collect tax at source under section 52 of the said Act, and having an aggregate turnover, to be computed on all India basis, not exceeding an amount of twenty lakh rupees in a financial year, as the category of persons exempted from obtaining registration under the said Act
COMPOSITION SCHEME
GST law has excluded e-commerce businesses from this scheme
TAX COLLECTION AT SOURCE (TCS) MECHANISM
Tax is collected by the e-commerce operator when a supplier supplies some goods or services through its portal. TCS is calculated and deducted at the rate of 1% of the net value of the goods or services supplied through the e-commerce operator.
RATE APPLICABLE ON E-COMMERCE
The e-commerce operator must deduct TCS at the rate of 1% from the supplier and remit the same as TCS to the Government. The TCS remitted by the e-commerce operator will be provided as credit to the supplier.
Transactions in which two or more E-COMMERCE are involved.
In such cases, each transaction needs to be treated separately and examined according to the provisions of Section 52 of the CGST Act, 2017. The TCS will be deducted accordingly
GST RETURN
E-commerce operators are required to file GSTR-8 every month and file a GST annual report. In the monthly GSTR-8 return, e-commerce operators must provide details of outward supplies of goods or services made by sellers through the platform and the amount of TCS collected. Details furnished by e-commerce operators will be made available to each of the suppliers in Part C of FORM GSTR-2A
DUE DATE OF GSTR-8
GSTR-8 return must be filed by E-Commerce Operator on or before the 10th of every month. E-Commerce operators must provide details of outward supplies of goods or services or both made through it
E-commerce operators are also required to file an Annual TCS Statement by the 31st December of every financial year.
Latest updates
Service providers will now be allowed to undertake inter-state sales of upto Rs.20 lakhs without obtaining GST registration. Further, this is exemption is also available for service providers supplying services through an e-commerce operator
