Question 1

Is GST payable on hostel or paying guest accommodation in Anna Nagar?

Accepted Answer

A specific exemption effective 15 July 2024 covers accommodation services supplied at a value up to Rs.20,000 per person per month, provided the accommodation is supplied for a minimum continuous period of ninety days. Student hostels and working men's or women's PGs in Anna Nagar charging within this limit for long stays are therefore exempt. Where the monthly charge exceeds Rs.20,000, or the stay is shorter than ninety days, the supply is taxable like ordinary accommodation. Operators should maintain stay records and agreements evidencing the duration, because the ninety-day condition is what officers test first during verification.

Question 2

What is the penalty for running a business without GST registration?

Accepted Answer

A taxable person who is liable to register but fails to do so faces a penalty of Rs.10,000 or the amount of tax evaded, whichever is higher, under Section 122 of the CGST Act. Beyond the penalty, the department can demand the tax for the entire unregistered period with interest at 18 percent per annum, and you cannot recover that tax from customers you billed without GST. Goods moved without registration and e-way bills, required for consignments above Rs.50,000, also risk detention. If your turnover has crossed the threshold, registering within thirty days is far cheaper than regularising later.

Question 3

I buy electronics stock from distributors in other states. How does the IGST on purchases work for me?

Accepted Answer

Inter-state purchases carry IGST, which flows into your GSTR-2B once the distributor files GSTR-1, and it is fully available as input tax credit. When you sell locally in Tamil Nadu you charge CGST and SGST, and the law lets you use IGST credit against both, with the portal applying the set-off order automatically. There is no cost disadvantage in buying from out-of-state distributors, provided they are compliant filers; a distributor who files late delays your credit by a month. Track supplier filing discipline as part of vendor selection. Retailers in Anna Nagar can call +91 - 9600 606 444 for a supplier compliance scorecard.

Question 4

Which everyday goods now attract 5 percent GST?

Accepted Answer

The 5 percent slab now covers most household essentials that earlier fell in the 12 or 18 percent brackets: soaps, shampoos, toothpaste and toothbrushes, hair oil, bicycles, kitchen utensils and tableware. Packaged foods such as butter, ghee, cheese, namkeens, sauces, pasta, biscuits and chocolates are also at 5 percent, as are most medicines, medical devices and agricultural machinery. Apparel and footwear priced up to Rs.2,500 per piece attract 5 percent as well. Retailers in Anna Nagar should update billing software rate masters item by item rather than assuming old rates continue.

Question 5

What falls under the 18 percent standard rate of GST now?

Accepted Answer

The 18 percent slab is the standard rate for most services and for goods that are neither essentials nor demerit items. Notably, several products that earlier suffered 28 percent moved down to 18 percent from 22 September 2025: air conditioners, televisions of all sizes, dishwashers, cement, small cars and motorcycles up to 350cc, and most auto parts. Apparel and footwear priced above Rs.2,500 per piece also fall at 18 percent. Most professional, business support and repair services billed by professional firms continue at 18 percent with full input tax credit.

Question 6

If I open a bulk bag and sell rice loose by weight, is that sale taxable?

Accepted Answer

No. The 5% levy on specified food items applies only when they are supplied in pre-packaged and labelled form in packs up to 25 kilograms. When a retailer opens bulk stock and weighs out loose quantities against each customer's order, the supply is not of a pre-packaged commodity, so it remains exempt. What you cannot do is sell an intact labelled retail pack and bill it as loose. Keep purchase records showing bulk procurement and maintain the loose counter separately from the packed shelf, because officers test this distinction during inspections of grocery businesses. When in doubt on a product, call +91 - 9600 606 444.

Question 7

Our security agency does not charge GST on its bills. Is that correct?

Accepted Answer

Quite possibly, yes. Since 1 January 2019, security services meaning supply of security personnel, when provided by any person other than a body corporate to a registered person, fall under reverse charge, so the agency correctly bills without tax and you pay 18 percent through GSTR-3B in cash, claiming ITC. If your security agency is a private limited company, however, RCM does not apply and it must charge GST on its invoice under forward charge. Composition taxpayers as recipients are excluded from this entry. Confirm the agency's constitution from its PAN, because paying under the wrong mechanism creates trouble for both sides.

Question 8

What are OIDAR services under GST and who pays the tax on them?

Accepted Answer

OIDAR means Online Information Database Access or Retrieval services, delivered over the internet, such as cloud services, e-books, streaming, online advertising and automated e-learning. When a foreign OIDAR provider supplies these to unregistered persons in India, the foreign provider itself must take a simplified registration in Form REG-10 and file monthly return GSTR-5A. From 1 October 2023, the definition was widened, so almost every unregistered Indian recipient is covered. When the Indian recipient is GST-registered, the tax instead falls on the recipient under reverse charge as an import of services.

Question 9

My customer says he cannot claim ITC because of my late filing. Is that correct?

Accepted Answer

Yes, he is right. A buyer can claim input tax credit only for invoices appearing in his GSTR-2B, which is generated from suppliers' GSTR-1 and IFF filings. If you file GSTR-1 after the 11th, your invoices miss that month's GSTR-2B and your customer's credit gets pushed to the next month, straining his working capital. Repeated delays lead buyers to withhold the GST portion of payments or move to more compliant vendors. Timely GSTR-1 filing is therefore a commercial necessity, not just a legal one. ChennaiGST ensures clients in Anna Nagar never face this complaint.

Question 10

What is the GST treatment for an event management company handling corporate events?

Accepted Answer

Event management services attract 18 percent with full input tax credit. Place of supply rules deserve attention: for organising an event for a registered client, the place of supply is the client's location, so a Chennai company organising a Goa offsite for a Bengaluru-registered client charges IGST to Karnataka. For unregistered clients, the place of supply is where the event is actually held. Admission tickets are taxed where the event takes place. Getting the state wrong means the client's credit is jeopardised and the tax may need repayment under the correct head, so event companies serving multi-state clients should map each contract before invoicing.

Question 11

Our company paid fees to a lawyer. Who pays the GST on this?

Accepted Answer

You do, as the recipient. Legal services supplied by an individual advocate, a firm of advocates or a senior advocate to a business entity are notified under Section 9(3), so the advocate does not charge GST and your business pays 18 percent under reverse charge in cash through GSTR-3B, claiming it back as ITC if otherwise eligible. Relief exists for small recipients: legal services to a business entity whose turnover is within the registration threshold are exempt. Since the advocate is usually unregistered, remember to raise a self-invoice and payment voucher for the transaction. Litigation-heavy businesses in Anna Nagar should reconcile their legal expense ledger against RCM paid every quarter.

Question 12

Our small lodge in Anna Nagar gets bookings through online travel apps. Who pays the GST?

Accepted Answer

It depends on your registration status. If the lodge is registered, you charge GST on the accommodation and the platform collects TCS on payments routed through it, which you claim back on the portal. If the lodge is not liable to be registered, the law shifts the liability to the e-commerce operator itself under Section 9(5), so the app pays the tax on accommodation booked through it and the small lodge need not register merely because it lists online. Direct walk-in business remains within your threshold computation. Keep the platform agreements and statements, since they determine who reported the tax.

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GST Developments Worth Knowing — relevant to Anna Nagar businesses

Electronic toys attract 18 percent while other toys stay at 12 percent

CBIC answers on what counts as pre-packaged and labelled

E-way bill rules first written into the CGST Rules

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